LAFC signs MLS Cup-winning coach Steve Cherundolo to a multi-year contract extension

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles FC has signed head coach Steve Cherundolo to a multi-year contract extension after he led the club to two MLS Cup finals and one championship in his first two seasons.

LAFC didn’t disclose the terms or length of the deal announced Wednesday. The club also agreed to extensions with assistant coaches Ante Razov, Marc Dos Santos and Oka Nikolov.

The 44-year-old Cherundolo has been a huge success since replacing Bob Bradley before the 2022 season. He is 35-19-14 in the MLS regular season and 6-1-1 in the playoffs.

LAFC won the Supporters’ Shield and its first MLS Cup championship last season, and he led LAFC to the final match of the MLS playoffs and the CONCACAF Champions League this year. LAFC lost 2-1 to Columbus in the MLS Cup final earlier this month.

Cherundolo is the only manager in MLS history to finish with the league’s best regular-season record and an MLS Cup title in his first season in charge. He is only the third coach to reach MLS Cup finals in each of his first two seasons, and he is the first to reach the finals of the MLS Cup postseason and the Champions League in the same calendar year.

A Southern California native, Cherundolo spent his professional playing career in Germany at Hannover 96, mostly in the Bundesliga.

He then coached in Germany from 2014 until 2021, when he spent one season in charge of LAFC’s USL affiliate in Las Vegas before getting promoted by LAFC general manager John Thorrington, his friend and former teammate.

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