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LA Galaxy Head Coach Bruce Arena Named 2011 MLS Coach of the Year

Published on November 14, 2011 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


NEW YORK (Monday, Nov. 14, 2011) - Major League Soccer today announced that LA Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena was voted the 2011 MLS Coach of the Year. Arena is the first person to win the award three times, having also won it in 1997 and 2009. This season, Arena's team won the Supporters Shield for the second consecutive year and achieved the second-best record (19-5-10, 67 points) in League history.

On Sunday, Arena will be a head coach in MLS Cup for the fifth time - a League record.

Arena, now in his fourth season as Galaxy head coach, guided a team that earned at least a point in more than 85 percent of its regular season games. LA had 17 shutouts - half of the regular season and tying the all-time record set by Kansas City in 2000 - while conceding the fewest goals in MLS this season (28). LA's goals against average of 0.82 ranks third all-time behind Real Salt Lake in 2010 (0.67) and Houston Dynamo in 2007 (0.77).

The 2011 Galaxy went undefeated in all 17 regular season home games at The Home Depot Center. After voting closed, Arena's squad marched past the New York Red Bulls and Real Salt Lake to reach next Sunday's MLS Cup final, adding two more home wins.

Arena was hired as head coach and general manager of the Galaxy on Aug. 18, 2008. Since then, the Galaxy has gone 51-23-30 in 89 regular season games for a .742 winning percentage.

Prior to being hired by the Galaxy, Arena served as coach of the New York Red Bulls during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. As the head coach of D.C. United from 1996 through 1998, Arena captured two MLS Cup championships in three appearances. Arena ranks second all-time in MLS regular season wins (128) and has compiled a regular season coaching record of 128-74-40. He holds the highest postseason winning percentage (.742) and is the all-time leader in postseason wins with 21.

Following the 1998 MLS season, he was named the head coach of the U.S. National Team. He held that position for eight years, while helping the U.S. team reach the quarterfinals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup as well as a berth in the 2006 World Cup. During an 18-year-career at the University of Virginia, Arena led the Cavaliers to five national championships. Arena was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2010.

Voting was conducted among clubs, media, and players based on regular season performance. Seattle Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid and Sporting Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes were the other finalists for the Coach of the Year award. Below is a breakdown of the voting percentages for the top five candidates.

Coach % of Club Votes % of Media Votes % of Player Votes Weighted Total

Bruce Arena (LA) 29.17 31.87 29.70 90.73

Sigi Schmid (SEA) 20.83 27.47 21.21 69.52

Peter Vermes (SKC) 18.75 19.78 13.94 52.47

Peter Nowak (PHI) 9.38 13.74 9.09 32.20

John Spencer (POR) 6.25 2.75 5.45 14.45

MLS Coach of the Year Winners:

2011: Bruce Arena - LA Galaxy

2010: Schellas Hyndman - FC Dallas

2009: Bruce Arena - LA Galaxy

2008: Sigi Schmid - Columbus Crew

2007: Preki - Chivas USA

2006: Bob Bradley - Chivas USA

2005: Dominic Kinnear - San Jose Earthquakes

2004: Greg Andrulis - Columbus Crew

2003: Dave Sarachan - Chicago Fire

2002: Steve Nicol - New England Revolution

2001: Frank Yallop - San Jose Earthquakes

2000: Bob Gansler - Kansas City Wizards

1999: Sigi Schmid - Los Angeles Galaxy

1998: Bob Bradley - Chicago Fire

1997: Bruce Arena - D.C. United

1996: Thomas Rongen - Tampa Bay Mutiny

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