Minnesota United FC have signed head coach Adrian Heath to a contract extension through the 2024 season, the club announced Thursday.
Assistant coaches Ian Fuller and Sean McAuley and goalkeeper coach Stewart Kerr all signed new contracts as well.
Under Heath, Minnesota have qualified for the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs each of the last three seasons. They currently sit 11th in the Western Conference standings (5W-7L-3D, 18 points).
“Adrian has been absolutely instrumental in driving the competitive success Minnesota United achieved in its first five MLS seasons, being one of only three Western Conference teams to make the MLS Cup Playoffs in each of the last three years, including reaching the Western Conference Finals in 2020,” MNUFC chief executive officer Shari Ballard said in a release. “The commitment he and his wife Jane have to this club and to our community is inarguable.
"As we continue to build on the momentum created during the early phase of MNUFC’s development, I look forward to working with Adrian and our entire team to achieve even greater levels of success both on and off the field.”
Heath is the Loons' only MLS coach since they began play as an expansion side in 2017. He has posted a 73W-79L-39D record in five MLS seasons, including a 47W-21L-19D mark at Allianz Field.
In 2019, Heath led the Loons to a club-record 53 points, a first MLS postseason appearance and a first appearance in the US Open Cup Final. The Loons reached their first Western Conference Final the following year and were playoff qualifiers again in 2021.
Before coming to Minnesota, the Englishman coached Orlando City SC in MLS and the USL. He's the fourth-longest tenured head coach in MLS.
Heath is poised to act as head coach in the 2022 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target, when an all-MLS team takes on LIGA MX’s All-Stars at Allianz Field on Aug. 10.
