LAFC manager Steve Cherundolo will step down at the end of the season and return to Germany, the club announced Friday, bringing a premature end to one of the most accomplished coaching tenures in MLS history.
“It is an honor to be the head coach of LAFC,” Cherundolo said in a statement. “After much reflection and discussion with my family, we made the decision that at the end of this year we will return to Germany. I love Los Angeles and LAFC, but this move is in the best interest of my family, even as it will ultimately take us away from a team, city, organization and fan base that I am proud to represent.”
Cherundolo, 46, who signed a multiyear contract extension after reaching his second consecutive MLS Cup final in 2023, told LAFC’s management and players of his decision this week.
Cherundolo became the second coach in LAFC history when he was hired in January 2022 and he enjoyed unprecedented success with the club, going 87-43-26, winning three trophies and playing in six finals across all competition. His 58 regular-season wins is the most in MLS during that span.
He is the only coach in MLS history to win both the Supporters’ Shield and MLS Cup in his first season as coach. He also won the 2024 U.S. Open Cup and took the team to the title game of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League, 2023 MLS Cup and 2024 Leagues Cup.
LAFC, which finished atop the Western Conference regular-season table last year for the second time in Cherundolo’s three seasons, is 4-4-0 and in seventh place this year heading into Saturday’s game in Portland.
Although he grew up in San Diego and made three World Cup rosters for the U.S., establishing himself as one of the best right backs in national team history, Cherundolo spent his entire club career in Germany, where his wife Mandy Rosier and the couple’s two children were born. The family, a club spokesman said, expressed a desire to return to Germany.
Cherundolo played for Hannover 96, where he was named team captain and became so popular with fans he was known as the Mayor of Hannover. He still holds the club record for appearances in the top-tier Bundesliga with 302
After retiring as a player in 2014, Cherundolo, coached for four years in Germany and two years with the U.S. national team before coming to LAFC to manage the club’s USL Championship affiliate in Las Vegas. That team won six of 32 matches but three months after the season, Cherundolo was named to replace Bob Bradley as LAFC’s manager.
“Steve has been a tremendous leader for LAFC and has proven to be one of the top coaches in our league,” John Thorrington, LAFC’s co-president and general manager, said in a statement. “We support his decision to focus on his family with this move at the end of the season.”
Thorrington said Cherundolo’s decision won’t affect the club’s focus.
“Our goals have not changed. We remain committed to winning trophies this season,” he said. “We believe we have the people to make that happen, and there will be no better way to close this chapter than with another trophy for LAFC.”
The search for a replacement is expected to begin soon, the team said.
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