Rob Becerra (born March 15, 1976) is an American soccer coach who is the director of youth development for Major League Soccer club New England Revolution.[1] He has held multiple college and professional coaching roles, including at the University of Redlands, Stanford, LA Galaxy II, and the LA Galaxy.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rob Becerra | ||
| Date of birth | March 15, 1976 | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | New England Revolution (Director of Youth Development) | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Cal State San Bernardino | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1997 | Sacramento Scorpions | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| University of Redlands | |||
| 2006-2011 | Stanford (assistant) | ||
| 2014–2017 | LA Galaxy II (assistant) | ||
| 2017–2017 | LA Galaxy (assistant) | ||
| 2018–2021 | San Diego Surf SC (Girls Senior Director of Coaching) | ||
| 2021– | New England Revolution (Director of Youth Development) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Early life and playing career
editIn 1997, Becerra earned a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology from Cal State San Bernardino.[2] He also starred as a goalkeeper for their soccer team.[2] He later earned his master's degree in management from the University of Redlands.[2] Becerra played for the Sacramento Scorpions of the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues.[2]
Coaching career
editBecerra began his career as the head coach for the University of Redlands (nicknamed the Bulldogs).[3] He had a 126-28-8 record, which included the program's first NCAA playoff appearance.[3] His time as coach was considered the most successful run in the school's history,[3] and he broke the team's 24-year streak of having non-winning seasons[2] In addition to his head-coaching position, he served as the assistant athletic director and a physical education instructor.[2] In 2006, Becerra began working at Stanford as an assistant coach.[2] He continued in this role until 2011, and during his tenure, 18 of his players received Pac-10 All-Conference honors.[1]
In 2014, Beccera joined the LA Galaxy.[1] Initially, he began as an assistant coach for LA Galaxy II of the USL Championship, under head coach Curt Onalfo.[1] During his time as an assistant, the club reached playoffs in each season, and in 2015 season they won the Western Conference title.[1]
In January 2017, Becerra was named assistant coach of the Galaxy first team, working under newly promoted head coach Curt Onalfo.[3] Onalfo was fired after 20 games, with a 6-10-4 record and ending with the team 9th in the Western Conference.[4] Onalfo was replaced by Sigi Schmid on an interim basis.[4] Even after Onalfo's departure, Becerra continued on with his role as an assistant coach.[5]
In February 2018, Becerra left the Galaxy to join San Diego Surf SC as the Girls Senior Director of Coaching.[6] In 2018, he led the 2005-birth-year team to a national championship.[1] Becerra was accused of sexual harassment during his time in San Diego, which led to a lawsuit against the club in 2021.[7] Becerra was accused of harassing one of his employees, Karley Nelson, who joined the club in 2020.[8] He allegedly told Nelson that she could "sleep with any of the guys in that clubhouse" and made repeated comments about her body.[7] Additionally, the suit alleged that Becerra touched Nelson multiple times.[7] Nelson was told that Becerra would be removed at the end of the season for poor performance, but to her knowledge, he was not reprimanded for the allegations of sexual harassment.[7] Another woman who coached for Surf alleged that Becerra had directed sexist and homophobic jokes at her.[8]
In April 2021, the New England Revolution announced Becerra as the Director of Youth Development, where he would oversee the Revolution Academy across its four age groups.[1] On September 12, 2023, New England Revolution II head coach Clint Peay was announced as interim head coach of the first team, replacing Richie Williams who had been serving in the same role after head coach Bruce Arena was as placed on administrative leave by the team on amid allegations of "insensitive and inappropriate remarks".[9][10] After Peay changed roles, Becerra was named as manager on the match report for the last four Revolution II games of the season.[11][12][13] [14]
Becerra also holds a USSF A License and a Director of Coaching License.[1] In addition to his club roles, he served as a U.S. Soccer's Technical Advisor for the Southwest Division from 2011 to 2014.[1] In 2019, he was an assistant coach with U.S. Men's U-19 Youth National Team.[1]
Personal life
editBecerra is married to his wife Samantha, and has two daughters.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "New England Revolution hire Rob Becerra as new Director of Youth Development". revolutionsoccer.net. MLS. April 20, 2021a. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Player Bio: Rob Becerra". gostanford.com. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Baxter, Kevin (January 10, 2017). "Galaxy fills out its coaching staff". LA Times. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 11, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ a b Baxter, Kevin (July 27, 2017). "Galaxy fire coach Curt Onalfo, hire Sigi Schmid to finish season". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 12, 2023.
- ^ Guesman, Josh (July 27, 2017). "UPDATED: LA GALAXY HAVE FIRED CURT ONALFO! FORMER GALAXY COACH SIGI SCHMID NOW IN CHARGE!". Corner of the Galaxy. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ Scavuzzo, Diane (February 19, 2018). "ROB BECERRA AND BRIAN REED JOIN SURF SC". Soccer Today. SoccerToday. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Winkley, Lyndsay (July 25, 2021). "Former San Diego Surf Soccer Club coach files suit alleging 'pervasive' sexual harassment". The San Diego Union-Tribune. The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ a b Hensley-Clancy, Molly. "Where girls compete but men rule". The Washington Post. The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 19, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ "Revolution shake up staff, name Clint Peay to replace Richie Williams as interim head coach - the Boston Globe". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on October 23, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "New England Revolution Team Statement | New England Revolution". Archived from the original on March 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "Crown Legacy FC 1 0 New England Revolution II". MLS Next Pro. Pro Soccer Development, L.P. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "New England Revolution II 3 2 Philadelphia Union II". MLS Next Pro. Pro Soccer Development, L.P. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "New England Revolution II 2 1 New York". MLS Next Pro. Pro Soccer Development, L.P. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ "New England Revolution II 0 1 Columbus Crew 2". MLS Next Pro. Pro Soccer Development, L.P. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.