Sigi Schmid

UCLA and U.S. Soccer

Schmid's first coaching experience was in 1975 for Bishop Montgomery High School. He also founded and coached a small club called the South Bay Vikings. Between 1977 and 1979, he served as an assistant coach under Steve Gay at UCLA. Schmid took over as head coach after Gay left the position in 1980. He began focusing solely on coaching before the 1984 season and was named "Coach of the Year" by the magazine Soccer America. UCLA then won the 1985 NCAA Division I championship by defeating American University 1–0 after eight periods of overtime. In his first 10 years as coach, the Bruins won or tied 85 percent of their games. The Bruins won the 1990 national championship by defeating Rutgers 4–3 on penalty kicks after a scoreless regulation, two sessions of overtime, and another two periods of sudden death. During the 22-game season, UCLA outscored their opponents 61–16. The team continued to thrive in the following season, part of their success coming from Schmid's decision to move Cobi Jones from a midfield position to forward. Jones later played for Schmid in the MLS and became a top player for the national team. Schmid was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Coach of the Year for three years straight (1995–97), and NCAA Coach of the Year in 1997 after UCLA defeated the University of Virginia to win a third NCAA championship. A reporter for the Richmond Times-Dispatch wrote that after winning just two titles in 17 postseason appearances,…

Sigi Schmid was born in Tübingen, West Germany, on March 20, 1953. At the age of four, he moved with his family to the United States; they took up residence in Torrance, California, in 1962. Schmid's father, Fritz, who had been a prisoner of war during World War II, worked at Pabst Brewing; his mother, Doris, ran a Los Angeles–based German deli, where Schmid worked on weekends. Schmid's family spoke German at home, making him feel German despite spending so much of his life in America. He began school in the United States with little understanding of English and a stuttering speech disorder he did not overcome until high school. In his youth, Schmid visited Germany every summer, playing soccer with the local children and watching Bundesliga clubs play exhibition matches in neighboring towns. In 1964, Schmid played for one of the inaugural American Youth Soccer Organization teams, and was inducted into the AYSO Hall of Fame in 1996. Despite Schmid's early soccer experience, his parents thought a career in the sport was unfeasible and encouraged him to pursue business. He enrolled at UCLA in 1972 and was a starting midfielder for the UCLA Bruins from 1972 to 1975. In his first two seasons, the Bruins were national runners-up in the championships, and advanced to the national semifinals in 1974. In his senior year, Schmid was selected to the 1975 All Far-West team. Schmid completed his playing career at UCLA ranked 11th in all-time assists at the school. He received his…

Schmid lived in Bellevue, Washington, during the soccer season. He was married to Valerie Schmid and had four children: Erik, Lacey, Kurt, and Kyle. Kurt has been the head scout for Sounders FC and was also the Director of Player Personnel and Scouting for the L.A. Galaxy. Kyle played as a defender at UC Irvine and was in the USL Premier Development League with Orange County Blue Star. Kyle is now head coach at Loyola Marymount University. Sigi rarely missed game days in MLS, but took time off for Lacey and Kurt's weddings and Kurt's college graduation. Schmid's younger brother, Roland, lived in Sammamish, Washington, and having family in the area was one of the factors which persuaded Schmid to accept the Seattle job. After leaving the Galaxy in September 2018, Schmid stated that he planned to join another MLS club's front office or write a book. Schmid was hospitalized several times during his later career, including once for a bout of pneumonia in 2009 and again for an undisclosed issue in 2015 that required him to miss a regular season match with the Sounders.

Schmid has been described as one of the two "godfathers" of American soccer, alongside long-time rival Bruce Arena, with connections to the coaching and technical staffs across MLS. In the days after his death, Schmid's contributions to the game and his treatment of players and coaches under his wing were highlighted in eulogies and memorials. On January 11, 2019, MLS announced that it would rename its Coach of the Year Award to the Sigi Schmid Coach of the Year Award in honor of Schmid's contributions to the league.