Adam Cooper, one of the nation’s longest tenured and top collegiate soccer coaches has joined The Town FC.  In his 16+ seasons leading the men’s soccer program at St. Mary’s College of California, Cooper has built the Gaels into a national powerhouse, winning conference coach of the year honors four times while helping propel countless SMC players to conference, regional and national level recognition.  During his tenure several St. Mary’s players have reached the pro ranks including in Major League Soccer (MLS), with Cooper and his staff earning more wins than any other men’s soccer staff in school history.  During that same time, SMC has advanced to the later rounds of the NCAA Tournament on numerous occasions and is a 3x West Coast Conference Champion.  

An accomplished player on his own accord, Cooper, “Coop”, was a four year letter winner at UCLA and helped lead the Bruins to a national championship in 1997 and another Final Four appearance in 1999. He would go on to be a first round draft pick in the 2000 A-League draft (now USL) and would play one professional season with the Orange County Waves before moving full time into coaching.  Outside of St. Mary’s he serves as the Director of Coaching for Walnut Creek Surf SC and has a long history of involvement with the Maccabiah Games, an international Jewish and Israeli multi sport event.

“I’m excited to join an organization that fits into the community and has the vision to grow soccer in the East Bay,” Cooper said. “This is a tremendous opportunity to enhance the game at a high-level, and the connection and comfort level with members of the project was perfect from the start.”

“Having Adam come on board is yet another sign of the type of club we’re building”, said Benno Nagel, The Town FC co-founder.  “We aim to produce a world class soccer program capable of pushing our players to the highest levels of the game. Coop’s record and pedigree speaks for itself and in his time leading St. Mary’s he has proven himself as one of the best in the country. We continue to put big plans together for our club’s growth and I can’t think of a better person to help lead our soccer efforts as we move forward.”