Angel City FC has hired Alexander Straus as the team’s new head coach following an extensive search that sporting director Mark Parsons detailed to ESPN.
Straus was previously in charge of Bayern Munich women, who are currently positioned to win a third straight league title under the 49-year-old Norwegian’s guidance. He will begin his role the NWSL club on June 1, allowing him to complete the German season first and transition to Los Angeles.
Straus emerged as Angel City’s “preferred candidate” in a process that Parsons felt was comprehensive — until he realized he hadn’t looked at the entire coaching pool.
“One morning I woke up and I said to myself, ‘Have we called the best coaches in the world? And have we thought of everything, have we been creative? Have we thought differently?'” Parsons told ESPN.
“And the answer was, I think we did in the women’s game, but we didn’t in the men’s game. I can’t say who it was, but Mark Wilson got onto one of the biggest men’s coaches in the world within two days and had an interview with him to see if we could attract him to the process. I had a phone call with two other top, top, top coaches on the men’s side.”
Two of those three men’s team coaches were interested in the job, Parsons said, but by that time Angel City had already “zoomed in” on their preferred candidate Straus.
Parsons arrived at Angel City in January and worked with technical director Mark Wilson and assistant general manager Matt Wade to narrow down a long list of candidates to a 12-person longlist in February.
Those dozen candidates spanned six different leagues and nine nationalities, with a 50-50 split among men and women.
Two current NWSL coaches were initial targets in the process, but Angel City was denied on each request for permission to speak with them, Parsons told ESPN.
Finding a “proven winner” was among the five primary pillars of criteria for Parsons in the search. He also wanted a strong communicator and someone with charisma.
The first criteria for Parsons centered around a candidate who is “relentless, ruthless, resilient” — a three-word motto that has become so deeply adopted by the club that it is adorned on the walls of the players’ weightlifting gym at their new training facility.
“Alex fits this profile at every measure,” Parsons said in a statement.
“He has consistently demonstrated an ability to unite teams under a shared purpose, inspire players to grow and perform at their peak and deliver results consistently. I’m truly confident Alex’s experience, commitment to team culture, and tactical intelligence will strengthen our foundation as we aim to bring championships to Los Angeles.”
Sources told ESPN’s Emily Keogh that Straus was well regarded by Bayern Munich players.
Angel City’s search for a new head coach began in December, when former head coach Becki Tweed was fired.
But former general manager Angela Hucles Mangano had departed the club only a few days earlier, meaning Parsons’ hire needed to happen before a coach could be identified.
Sam Laity, who has over a decade of NWSL coaching experience, was appointed interim head coach and will stay on as an assistant when Straus arrives.
Angel City is the only NWSL team to start the 2025 season without a full-time head coach, but the Los Angeles-based side is one of three unbeaten NWSL teams left after four rounds of the 2025 season.
In addition to Frauen-Bundesliga titles, Bayern Munich made it to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League in two of three seasons under Straus.
Prior to his time at Bayern, Straus coached extensively in Norway in the club system and youth national team system and was previously on the radar of several clubs in England, sources told ESPN’s Emily Keogh.
Now, he is tasked with guiding the NWSL’s most high-profile team to sustained success. Angel City has only made the playoffs once since launching as a 2022 expansion team. Last season, the team finished 12th in the 14-team league after suffering a three-point deduction — the first in NWSL history — for salary-cap violations.
