One of Ryan Faithfull’s favorite soccer memories is the game when he broke his leg. Why? “Short-term pain, long-term gain,” he says. It effectively ended his career as a young player. But it made him try coaching, which he has happily—and successfully—done for over 15 years.
Ryan comes from New Zealand. He was an Assistant Coach for the storied Auckland City FC during 4 Oceania champions League wins and 4 Club World Cup appearances. He was also the Director of Football for regional men’s and women’s teams.
He wound up in Seattle, working for the USSF as a talent ID analyst and coaching local youth teams through the Sounders Academy, Seattle Celtic, and Seattle United. Ryan led the U-17 Sounders Academy squad to a Generation Adidas Cup championship victory in 2019 against some of the best youth clubs from across the country and the world.
Back in New Zealand from 2020 to 2024, Ryan held a few different coaching positions,. And he fondly remembers getting to be in the stands for a couple matches of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, which New Zealand and Australia jointly hosted.
In addition to Midlakes, Ryan currently works for the USSF. For the latter, he breaks down video for the Extended National Teams, focusing on the Women’s Deaf National Team.
Last season was his first in the USL League Two when he was the Assistant Coach for Midlakes. Now Head Coach, Ryan is confident about the squad he’s putting together. “The team’s looking sharp for this upcoming season. We’ve been working hard in the off-season. We’re hungry, and ready to compete.”
