FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan is the 2023 Sigi Schmid Major League Soccer Coach of the Year. The award was announced Tuesday.
Noonan is in his second year in charge at Cincinnati, taking the team from a lackluster showing in MLS to the 2023 Supporters' Shield in his second year. The Supporters' Shield is awarded for the best regular season record. Finishing atop the standings also earned FCC home-field advantage during the MLS playoffs and — should FC Cincinnati advance to the final match — the right to host the MLS Cup.
Under Noonan, the team became the ninth in league history to win at least 20 games in a single season (excluding the shootout era). That run includes a league-high 13 home matches.
According to a release, "Noonan’s regular-season win percentage in his first two years as a head coach in MLS — 63.2% (32-14-22) — is the second-best in league history only behind Tata Martino's 64.7% mark in 2017-18 with Atlanta United. Noonan's 32 wins in his first two seasons as a head coach in the league are tied for the third-most in the MLS post-shootout era behind Martino (36) and Steve Cherundolo (35)."
RELATED: FC Cincinnati's Matt Miazga named MLS Defender of the Year
FCC and Noonan last month agreed on a long-term contract extension. No financial details or terms, including the contract length, were disclosed. The team at the time noted Noonan's 63.4% win rate in regular season play was the second-best in a manager's first two full seasons as a head coach in Major League Soccer history.
The MLS Coach of the Year award is named in honor of Sigi Schmid, the winningest coach in MLS history. He died in 2018. Noonan played for Schmid with the Columbus Crew and Seattle Sounders.
Earlier this month, FC Cincinnati's Matt Miazga earned MLS Defender of the Year honors. Midfielder Luciano Acosta is up for MVP.
FC Cincinnati face the Philadelphia Union Saturday, Nov. 25 at TQL Stadium in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Kick-off is at 8 p.m. The winner of the single elimination match will move on to the Eastern Conference Final, the winner of which goes on to the MLS Cup Championship game.
