The New York Cosmos announced today that Head Coach and Sporting Director, Giovanni Savarese, is leaving the legendary club following one of the most successful runs in American professional soccer history. 

Savarese was officially named head coach of the Cosmos in December 2012.  During the club’s 2013 reboot season, he led the Cosmos to a North American Soccer League (NASL) Championship. Savarese would add two more NASL Championships to his coaching resume in 2015 and 2016.  He took the Cosmos back to the NASL final in 2017, falling just short of a fourth championship in five years.

“Gio broke into professional coaching with our club and quickly established himself as one of the finest leaders in US Soccer,” said Cosmos Chairman, Rocco B. Commisso.  “In the eleven months I had the opportunity to work with Gio, he has proven to be an even better person.”

“Gio remained steadfastly loyal to his players as the Cosmos went through a difficult ending to the 2016 season, and led our team to the 2017 Championship Final despite the uncertainty created for our league by recent US Soccer Federation decisions,” added Commisso. “I thank Gio for his enormous contributions to the Cosmos, and wish him and his beautiful family nothing but the best as he moves forward into the next chapter of his coaching career.” 

“It’s been an absolute privilege to work with Gio these last five years,” said Cosmos Chief Operating Officer, Erik Stover.  “I consider him a great friend and he should be so proud of his accomplishments with the Cosmos. His next club will be truly blessed to have him.”

Under Savarese’s direction, the Cosmos organization was successful in continuing the club’s legacy of attracting world class talent with players like Raul, Marcos Senna and Juan Arango joining the team.  Additionally, he contributed to the development of some of America’s most promising young players including Haji Wright and Eric Calvillo.  Upholding the club’s reputation as American’s greatest global soccer ambassador, Savarese led the Cosmos during historically significant friendly matches in Hong Kong and Cuba in 2015 and Saudi Arabia earlier this year.

Thoughts from Cosmos Legends:

Raul

“Gio will always be a special person for me. After almost one year of conversations, he convinced me to start a new journey with the Cosmos in 2015.  Not only did Gio lead us to win the Championship that year, but he also got us to be a family and gave us memories I will never forget. Gio is a very hard-working person, with a great heart. He loves what he does and is passionate about being a head coach. I wish him all the success in the world. He deserves it.”  

Marcos Senna

“I will never forget Gio and my time with the Cosmos. My first season, Gio really brought out the best in us as players and as human beings. What he did was not only difficult, but also remarkable because it was the team’s first year back. I wish Gio nothing but the best in future endeavors and feel confident he will continue to prove himself as one of the top coaches in America.”  

Juan Arango

“I’ve known Gio for many years. We played together when I first started my career and I will always be grateful to him, as he has taught me and guided me throughout my whole career.  He has been, without a doubt, one of the best head coaches I’ve ever had and I have no doubt he will continue to be successful in everything he does.”

About Savarese

Giovanni Savarese is a native of Caracas, Venezuela of Italian descent who moved to the U.S. to play college soccer at Long Island University. After starring at LIU, Savarese joined the Long Island Rough Riders. He then was drafted by the New York/New Jersey MetroStars in the ninth round of the MLS Inaugural Player Draft and scored the team’s lone goal in its first-ever game.

Savarese spent three seasons with the MetroStars, scoring a then-club record 44 goals in all competitions, a mark that stood for 12 seasons. He also played professionally in Italy, England and Venezuela. Before being named head coach, Savarese most recently served as Director of the Cosmos Academy and Manager of the Cosmos U-23 team that played in the USL Premier Development League.

About New York Cosmos

The New York Cosmos are the most recognized American soccer brand in the world. Since beginning play at Yankee Stadium in 1971, the iconic club has won a record total of 8 professional soccer championships and brought some of the biggest stars in international soccer to the USA including Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, Giorgio Chinaglia, Carlos Alberto, and more recently, Raúl and Marcos Senna.  With the move to MCU Park in Brooklyn’s historic Coney Island district for the 2017 season, the Cosmos are now based within New York City for the first time in 41 years. For more information on the New York Cosmos, please visit www.nycosmos.com, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram (@NYCosmos).