Jill Ellis to step down as USWNT coach after consecutive Women's World Cup titles

"The timing is right to move on, and the program is positioned to remain at the pinnacle of women’s soccer," Jill Ellis said Tuesday.

Jill Ellis became one of just two coaches (man or woman) to win back-to-back World Cup titles when USA won the Women's World Cup in 2019.

The U.S. women's national team will have a new coach as it prepares for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Jill Ellis is stepping down as the national team's head coach just weeks after leading the U.S. to the 2019 World Cup title, U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday. She plans to stay with the national team for its five-game World Cup victory tour, which starts Saturday against Ireland at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, and will end in early October.

“The opportunity to coach this team and work with these amazing women has been the honor of a lifetime,” Ellis said in a statement. “I want to thank and praise them for their commitment and passion to not only win championships but also raise the profile of this sport globally while being an inspiration to those who will follow them.

“When I accepted the head coaching position this was the time frame I envisioned. The timing is right to move on, and the program is positioned to remain at the pinnacle of women’s soccer. Change is something I have always embraced in my life, and for me and my family this is the right moment.”

READ | Women's World Cup: A win for women, a win for the gay community

The move doesn't come as too much of a surprise as Ellis' current contract is set expire Wednesday, though there was an option to extend her contract through the 2020 Olympics. The Equalizer notes that it was Ellis' decision to move on.

While this is the end of her USWNT coaching career, Ellis will continue to work with the federation for at least the next year in the role of an ambassador, representing U.S. Soccer at various events.

For everything she has done and everything she has meant to this program we say, THANK YOU ❤

Jill Ellis will step down as #USWNT head coach in October.#ThankYouJill: https://t.co/5I3dwtQXIopic.twitter.com/QkCAkMItQj

— U.S. Soccer WNT (@USWNT) July 30, 2019

 

Ellis, 52, became the eighth head coach of the national team when she took over in 2014 after serving two separate stints as interim coach. She replaced Tom Sermanni after his dismissal.

READ | USA's Jill Ellis becomes first coach to win two titles

She saw much success as the national team's leader as she became one of just two coaches (man or woman) to win back-to-back World Cup titles. The last time that feat was accomplished was more than 80 years ago when Vittorio Pozzo was leading Italy’s men’s national team in the 1934 and 1938 tournaments. She's the first to win two Women’s World Cups.

Ellis ends her career with an overall record of 102-7-18, winning eight major tournaments.