Vlatko Andonovski has resigned as coach of the U.S. women’s national team, a source briefed on Andonovski’s status confirmed to The Athletic on Wednesday. The source was granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly before the move was officially announced. Soccer outlet 90min first reported the news.
Andonovski has drawn interest from multiple teams at the international and club levels already, the source said. U.S. Soccer is finalizing an agreement to make assistant coach Twila Kilgore interim head coach, multiple sources briefed on the plans said. The U.S. women have two friendlies against South Africa scheduled for Sept. 21 and 24.
The 46-year-old Andonovski oversaw a disappointing World Cup campaign as the side was knocked out at the last-16 stage by Sweden with a 5-4 defeat on penalties. It was the earliest the USWNT have ever been knocked out of a World Cup and Andonovski’s decisions throughout the tournament had been called into question.
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Andonovski succeeded Jill Ellis in October 2019. The U.S. did not win either of its major tournaments under Andonovski, taking bronze at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. The team won four of 10 matches with Andonovski at the helm at the Olympics and World Cup combined. The coach went 51-5-9 overall with the U.S. team.
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Andonovski, a former NWSL Coach of the Year, drew criticism regarding squad selection, substitutions (or lack thereof) and the team’s tactical approach to games during the World Cup. Asked about his job status after the loss to Sweden, he said: “I think it’s selfish to think about me, my future, and what I’m going to do when we have 20-year-old players going through this.”
Kilgore was appointed an assistant coach under Andonovski in February 2022. She was previously an assistant with the Houston Dash, coached at various training camps with the U.S. youth women’s national teams and spent 15 years coaching college soccer teams — including leading the UC Davis women from 2014 to 2019. Kilgore played collegiate soccer at the University of Arizona.
Andonovski’s exit comes amid a year of change within U.S. Soccer. Sporting director Earnie Stewart, as well as U.S. men’s national team general manager Brian McBride, departed the federation at the beginning of the year. U.S. Soccer hired former Southampton director of football operations Matt Crocker to replace Stewart in April, and he oversaw the search for the next USMNT coach that ultimately brought Gregg Berhalter back to the team.
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(Photo: Jan Kruger – FIFA / FIFA via Getty Images)
