Twila Kilgore’s time as interim head coach of the United States women’s national team has come to an end following the SheBelieves Cup triumph vs. Canada.
Current Chelsea boss Emma Hayes will coach the next USWNT game which will be a friendly vs. South Korea on June 1.
Kilgore finishes her eight-month tenure with a Concacaf W Gold Cup title, a SheBelieves Cup title and a national team with renewed hope.
The task handed to her was massive. Prior to becoming interim head coach, Kilgore had only been the head coach for college sides, U.S. youth teams and a second-tier team.
She was an assistant coach under Vlatko Andonovski from February 2022 until his resignation in August 2023. Then she was thrust into the fire and tasked with taking over a USWNT side that just had their worst-ever World Cup and said farewell to legends like Megan Rapinoe, Julie Ertz and Sam Mewis.
Fast forward to present day and she’s done a damn good job.
Two Twinals, two trophies. pic.twitter.com/LiZroE7Lli
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 10, 2024
Kilgore was in charge for 14 games and finished with 10 wins, three draws (the two penalty shootout wins vs. Canada are recorded as draws) and the one loss which came against Mexico in the Concacaf W Gold Cup group stage.
Winning the Gold Cup and SheBelieves Cup was important, but it was equally as crucial to test out new players and tactics to figure out what the best version of the USWNT will look like in Paris this summer.
While Hayes finishes her final season with Chelsea, Kilgore got the national team back on their feet, restored the confidence and has introduced new stars like Jaedyn Shaw to the USWNT who could play a big role in this summer’s Olympics.
Kilgore has the USWNT back on track with Hayes set to take over as the new conductor.
“I’m proud of who we are right now, very proud of who we’re becoming. We have a growth mindset, we’re getting better, and like I said at Gold Cup, this team is just getting started,” Kilgore said after the SheBelieves Cup victory vs. Canada.
Kilgore’s time with the USWNT isn’t over as she'll take on an assistant coaching rule under Hayes.
“I think we’ve just done a really good job setting the stage for her to come in and make her next steps,” said Kilgore. “I will be there to support her and the team as we move forward and that’s an exciting thing.”
While Kilgore won’t go down as a legendary head coach, she was absolutely the right person for the job to bridge the Vlatko and Hayes eras.
