Loudoun United Head Coach Ryan Martin (left), former Sacramento Republic FC Head Coach Mark Briggs (center) and North Carolina FC Head Coach John Bradford (right) are among the graduates of the 2024 U.S. Soccer Pro License course.
Loudoun United FC Head Coach Ryan Martin, North Carolina FC’s John Bradford and former USL Championship Coach of the Year Mark Briggs, who most recently led Sacramento Republic FC, were honored in December as part of the graduation class of the 2024 U.S. Soccer Pro Coaching License course.
The trio were part of a 10-person class that also included Philadelphia Union Head Coach Bradley Carnell, Club de Foot Montreal Head Coach Laurent Courtois, and United States U-17 Women’s National Team Head Coach Katie Schoepfer.
Martin is currently the third-longest tenured Head Coach in the USL Championship, having taken the helm at Loudoun United midway through its inaugural 2019 season. Previously an assistant coach at FC Cincinnati during its time in the USL Championship, Martin led United to the most points in a season in its history in 2024, the second since the club’s acquisition by Attain Sports & Entertainment.
Bradford will enter his fifth season at the helm of NCFC this season after guiding the club to the USL Championship Playoffs in its return to the league in 2024. A longtime part of North Carolina’s coaching staff – which also saw him play a role in the development of the club’s Academy program – Bradford led NCFC to its first league title in club history in 2023 when the side claimed the USL League One Final.
Briggs is among the winningest coaches in the USL Championship era, having recorded a 105-65-65 regular season record across his tenures at Wilmington Hammerheads FC, Real Monarchs SLC and Sacramento Republic FC. Briggs led the Monarchs to the 2017 Players’ Shield with the best record in the USL Championship, earning Coach of the Year honors in the process, and led Republic FC to a first-place finish in the Western Conference in 2023. During Briggs’ tenure, Republic FC also became the first lower-division side to reach the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final in 2022 since the Charleston Battery in 2008.
2024 U.S. Soccer Pro Course Graduates
Victoria Boardman (Asst. Coach, North Carolina Courage)
Bradley Carnell (Head Coach, Philadelphia Union)
Martin Perelman (Asst. Coach, Orlando City SC)
Katie Schoepfer (Head Coach, United States U-17 Women’s National Team)
John Bradford (Head Coach, North Carolina FC)
Mark Briggs (Head Coach, previously Sacramento Republic FC)
Laurent Courtois (Head Coach, Club de Foot Montreal)
Ryan Martin (Head Coach, Loudoun United FC)
Michael Norris (Technical Director, Portland Thorns FC)
Ludovic Taillandier (Asst. Coach, Club de Foot Montreal)