Austin FC today announced Nico Estévez as the Club’s new Head Coach. Estévez brings MLS, La Liga, and international coaching experience to Austin. The 44-year-old bilingual native of Valencia, Spain will join Austin FC after completing his duties with the United States Men’s National Team during the upcoming November FIFA window.
“Austin is a vibrant city with fantastic music, food, culture, and most importantly, a fanbase that is incredibly passionate about soccer and Austin FC,” said Estévez. “That passion was one of the main reasons why coming to Austin was so exciting to me, and I’m looking forward to growing the team on the field while getting to know our supporters on a personal level. I want to thank Rodolfo and the entire Club for this opportunity.”
Estévez began his coaching career in the youth system of his hometown club Valencia CF in 2004. He took his first head coaching role with Huracán Valencia CF in the Spanish third tier in 2011. In two (2) seasons with Huracán, Estévez led the team to a record of 41 wins, 34 draws, and 13 losses. He was named the Ramón Cobo Award winner as the league’s best coach in 2012-2013.
Estévez then took charge of Valencia B in 2013, and eventually served as interim manager of Valencia’s first team for two (2) matches in which he led them to a 1-0 win in the Copa del Rey and in a La Liga match against Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid.
In 2014, Estévez moved to the United States to join Columbus Crew SC as the team’s Director of Methodology. Estévez was promoted to first team assistant coach ahead of the 2017 season. He served in the same role for the United States Men’s National Team from 2019-2021 and again most recently as a member of Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT coaching staff.
Estévez became head coach of FC Dallas in December 2021 and led Dallas to playoff qualification in his first two (2) seasons there in 2022 and 2023. In his first season with Dallas in 2022, he led the team to a 20-point improvement over its previous season – the largest year-over-year point increase in the club’s history – and a third-place finish in the MLS Western Conference.
“We are delighted to have Nico join Austin FC as our second-ever head coach,” said Austin FC Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell. “Our search process was extremely detailed and we feel he is someone that ticks all the boxes – he is highly ambitious, has experience in MLS, and he is familiar with the culture in Texas. We believe he will be an excellent fit for this Club and community both on and off the field, and we’d like to wish him and his family a warm welcome to Austin.”
Austin FC will host a press conference with Estévez and Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell on Tuesday, October 29. Timing and location for the press conference will be communicated soon via a media advisory.
Austin FC’s preseason will officially begin on January 11, 2025, with the MLS regular season beginning in late February. The 2025 season will represent the Club’s fifth season in MLS.
