Mark Parsons is back! Former Portland Thorns and Washington Spirit boss returns to NWSL with Angel City - but not as a head coach

Parsons has been out of work for just over a year, having left the Spirit at the conclusion of the 2023 NWSL season. The 38-year-old rose to prominence during a five-year stint at the Portland Thorns which saw him win two NWSL Shields, a Championship title and the Challenge Cup, but he failed to translate that success to the international game, in a disappointing stint with the Netherlands, and his next job at Washington only ended in an eighth-placed finish in the NWSL regular season.

Given his all-conquering success in Portland, Parsons has been linked with vacancies in the women's game whenever they have arisen in the past year, and that wait for his return to the sport ended on Wednesday when he was unveiled by Angel City. However, the Englishman will not be filling the club's vacant head coach role. Instead, he has been named Angel City's new sporting director.

"It is an honor to become part of Angel City Football Club, a trailblazing and ambitious organization setting new standards in the game," Parsons said. "I am grateful to [majority owners] Willow [Bay], Bob [Iger], and Julie [Uhrman, club president] for their trust and look forward to working closely with ownership and the exceptional leadership team to build on the solid foundation they’ve established. My focus is to foster a culture of excellence, development, and togetherness that elevates ACFC to new heights, with the goal of bringing championships home to the city of Los Angeles."

"Mark brings exceptional experience in the domestic and global game,” Uhrman added. "As we enter 2025 with the opening of our state-of-the-art 50,000-square-foot performance center, Mark will lead our sporting operations, driving our culture and championship ambitions alongside our outstanding leadership team and staff. Together, we aim to set a high standard for excellence, on and off the pitch, and we’re ready to bring home the championship in this exciting new chapter."

In his new role, Parsons will oversee all soccer operations, including the technical staff, the scouting and analytics department, sports medical, performance, nutrition, and player care. One of his first big jobs will be to help Angel City fill that vacant head coach role ahead of the 2025 NWSL season. Eleri Earnshaw has been acting as interim since Becki Tweed's departure in early December.

Parsons and Angel City don't have a great deal of time to work with in that search for a head coach, with the new NWSL season to get underway in less than two months' time, on March 14. The Los Angeles side struggled last year, finishing third-from-bottom in the regular season, eight points off the playoffs.