San Diego Wave FC head coach Casey Stoney has agreed to a four-year contract extension through the 2027 season with a mutual option for 2028, the club said Tuesday.
The 2022 NWSL Coach of the Year, Stoney, 41, became the only coach in league history to lead an NWSL expansion club to the playoffs in its inaugural season. She followed that by leading the Wave to the 2023 NWSL Shield — in San Diego’s second season of play.
The Shield is awarded annually to the club with the most points throughout the league’s nearly eight-month regular season.
“Signing the new contract is massive for me on a personal level,” Stoney said. “I think it shows commitment from the club to me and it shows my commitment to continue to grow this club and hopefully have more success here.”
Wave President Jill Ellis said, “In two years with the Wave, Casey has established herself as not just one of the top coaches in the league but also on the global stage.”
“When we brought Casey on board, we were confident that her exceptional leadership qualities, coupled with her extensive experience as both a player and coach at the highest levels, would make her the perfect fit for San Diego, and she has more than exceeded our high expectations,” Ellis said.
Stoney, who has a 21-10-13 record in the NWSL regular season, said: “I am very happy to extend my stay here in San Diego, a place my family and I call home.”
Stoney said the club has achieved in ways no other expansion team has done.
“We have won the NWSL Shield, broken records and have been supported by the most amazing fans,” she said. “This is just the beginning, and I am fully committed to building and developing this team.”
Under her guidance, Stoney’s squad has earned several individual honors in each of the past two seasons. Naomi Girma won the 2022 NWSL Rookie of the Year award and back-to-back NWSL Defender of the Year honors in 2022 and 2023.
In addition, Kailen Sheridan took home the NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year award in 2022, and club captain Alex Morgan won the NWSL Golden Boot (17 goals) in 2022 en route to Best XI honors, which Girma and Sheridan also received.
Stoney, a native of Basildon, England, was one of the most accomplished defenders in English National Team history during her playing days, and was the most decorated members of the England Women’s National Team.
Stoney was named the first-ever head coach of Manchester United Women in 2018. She led Manchester United to 52 wins in 77 competitive matches and secured promotion with the 2018-19 Football Association Women’s Championship title.
Goal.com said the extension puts to rest rumors of Stoney being interested in a job with her former English club, Chelsea Football Club Women.
“Current Blues boss Emma Hayes is set to leave at the end of the WSL campaign to take over the USWNT,” said the report. “As a result, Stoney emerged as a potential candidate, especially with her connections to the English women’s game as a former Lioness and Manchester United manager.”
Said Stoney: “I think as a coach I’ve always had a higher purpose than just winning. I’ve got two little girls and little boy and I’ll always say my job is to make sure that this game is accessible to everyone.
“My job is to make sure that my little girls have the same opportunities as my little boy,”
