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MLS LA Galaxy

Galaxy name Frank Yallop head coach

June 7, 2006 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
LA Galaxy News Release


CARSON, CA (Wednesday, June 7, 2006) - The Los Angeles Galaxy named Frank Yallop as the new head coach of the team, the club announced today. Yallop, who most recently served as the head coach of the Canadian National Team, won two MLS Cup Championships with the San Jose Earthquakes and will guide the Galaxy into the Honda Super Clasico on Thursday, June 8 at 7:00 p.m. at The Home Depot Center. Yallop, 42, becomes the fifth coach in club history, succeeding former coaches Steve Sampson (2004-2006), Sigi Schmid (1999-2004), Octavio Zambrano (1997-1999) and Lothar Osiander (1996-1997).

"The Jewel of MLS just became more dazzling. It's a pleasure to bring Frank back to the League and, more importantly, to the Galaxy family," said L.A. Galaxy President and General Manager Alexi Lalas. "He's charged with returning this team to the championship caliber that our fans have come to know and expect, and I believe it's only a matter of time before he does exactly that."

After two years leading the Canadian National Team to an overall 8-9-3 record, Yallop returns to Major League Soccer, a league where he enjoyed unprecedented success in bringing the 2001 and 2003 MLS Cup titles to San Jose. The 2001 MLS Coach of the Year, Yallop currently owns the third-highest winning percentage (.595) in MLS history and was in charge as the Earthquakes posted a league-best 41-25-18 record in his three seasons.

"I am very excited to be joining the Galaxy and to be re-joining MLS," Yallop said. "I had a wonderful time in my three years with San Jose as a head coach and, obviously, I am very familiar with the League from my time as a player and an assistant coach in the years before that. It is a wonderful set up in L.A. It is one of the top club situations in MLS and I am really looking forward to getting going and working with the players."

A former Ipswich Town FC (England) and Canadian National Team player, Yallop took over the Earthquakes in 2001 and immediately engineered a historic turnaround, leading the Quakes to a 13-7-6 record and the MLS Championship following a 7-17-8 season the year before. In 2002, Yallop kept San Jose atop MLS for 21 weeks, equaling a then-club record of 45 points despite being forced to use 19 different starting lineups in 28 games. Yallop also served as the winning coach in the 2002 Pepsi MLS All-Star game, as his team of MLS Stars defeated Bruce Arena's U.S. National Team 3-2.

Yallop established San Jose as a true MLS dynasty in 2003, leading the Earthquakes to the clubs first-ever regular season Western Conference title with 51 points and compiling a 14-7-9 record while tying the MLS record for longest road unbeaten streak. Yallop and the Earthquakes rallied from an unthinkable 4-0 aggregate goal deficit in the Western Conference Semifinals to defeat the Galaxy 5-4 before beating Kansas City and then Chicago to secure his second MLS Cup title in three years.

Throughout his coaching tenure, Yallop has shown a shrewd eye for talent and an impressive ability to develop players, as four Earthquakes players made their first appearance with the U.S. National team under Yallop's direction and several others were considered for national team duty. Yallop virtually reconstructed the San Jose roster in 2001 and 2003, making a number of trades and acquisitions as he assembled MLS Cup winners.

Yallop began his coaching career in 1999, accompanying the U.S. Project-40 team on a five-game tour of England. After completion of the tour, Yallop was hired as an assistant coach to Tim Hankinson for the Tampa Bay Mutiny, where he played from 1996-1998. In 2000, he served as the top assistant to Thomas Rongen with D.C. United before joining the Earthquakes in 2001.

Before going into coaching, Yallop enjoyed an illustrious playing career that spanned nearly 20 years in England and the United States. Yallop made 376 appearances and scored nine goals for Ipswich Town FC and played 52 times for the Canadian National Team. Yallop spent three seasons as one of the top defenders in MLS for the Mutiny from 1996-1998.

Yallop currently holds a United States Soccer Federation "A" coaching license and a FA Preliminary Badge.

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