SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Earthquakes announced today their full coaching staff for the 2025 Major League Soccer season. Incoming Sporting Director and Head Coach Bruce Arena will be supported by assistant coaches Dave Sarachan, Shalrie Joseph, Steve Ralston and goalkeeper coach Adin Brown.
“I’m excited to begin working in San Jose with this incredible staff, which has a wealth of coaching and playing experience both domestically and internationally,” said Arena. “It’s important to have coaches who share our philosophy on how we approach the game and develop a team in order to have a running start to the 2025 season.”
Arena is the winningest coach in MLS and U.S. Men’s National Team history. The 2025 season will mark his 20th season coaching at domestic club level, with stops at the New England Revolution (2019-23), LA Galaxy (2008-16), New York Red Bulls (2006-07) and D.C. United (1996-98). Arena has raised the MLS Cup an unprecedented five times (1996,1997, 2011, 2012, 2014), the Supporters’ Shield four times (1997, 2010, 2011, 2021), the Concacaf Champions Cup (1998), the Copa Interamericana (1998) and the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (1996). He has won the most regular-season games (262) and postseason games (35) in MLS history and been named MLS Sigi Schmid Coach of the Year a record four times (1997, 2009, 2011, 2021). At the international level, he led the U.S. Men’s National Team to heights previously unseen in the modern era. During his tenure in charge, the USMNT reached two FIFA World Cups (1998, 2002) — making the quarterfinals for the first time in 72 years in 2002 — while winning the Concacaf Gold Cup three times (2002, 2005, 2017) and finishing as the team’s career leader in victories (81). Arena, a native of Long Island, New York, also won five NCAA national championships (1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994) during his time as head coach at the University of Virginia from 1978-95.
Sarachan arrives in San Jose as an accomplished leader in his own right, having won the MLS Coach of the Year award (2003), the Supporters’ Shield (2003) and the U.S. Open Cup twice (2003, 2006) as head coach of Chicago Fire FC from 2002-07. Most recently, he was an assistant coach for Maccabi Tel Aviv, winning the Israeli Premier League and qualifying for the UEFA Champions League in his lone season with the Yellows (2023-24). Sarachan will be linking up with Arena for the sixth time, having previously served as an assistant coach on his staff at club level with the Galaxy (2008-16) and D.C. United (1997-99), as well as for two different eras on the U.S. Men’s National Team (1999-2002, 2017) and the University of Virginia (1984-87). Alongside Arena, Sarachan has won four MLS Cups (1998, 2011, 2012, 2014), two Supporters’ Shields (2010, 2011), one Concacaf Champions Cup (1998), one Copa Interamericana (1998) and two Concacaf Gold Cups (2002, 2017). During that second spell with the USMNT, Sarachan succeeded Arena as interim head coach (2017-18). A native of Rochester, New York, Sarachan possesses further head coaching experience with the Puerto Rico national team (2021-22), North Carolina FC in USL Championship (2018-20) and collegiately at Cornell University (1988-97).
Joseph will also be joining Arena for the second time after serving as his assistant coach in New England (2022-23) and as an assistant for the club’s Supporters’ Shield-winning campaign in 2021 while coaching various age groups in the Revolution Academy (2020-22). A native of Grenada who earned 20 caps and scored one goal with them as a player, Joseph took the helm as head coach of his national team from 2018-19. He eventually led The Spice Boys toward qualification for the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup and promotion to League A in the 2019-20 Concacaf Nations League. As a standout midfielder who played 13 MLS seasons (2003-15) — 11 with the Revolution — Joseph was selected eight consecutive times for the MLS All-Star Game (2004-11) and received four MLS Best XI nods (2005, 2007-09). In New England, he was teammates with current Quakes assistants Steve Ralston and Adin Brown, with the full trio overlapping from 2003-04. Joseph, a St. John’s University alum, ended up playing in three MLS Cup finals (2005-07) for the Revs, capturing the North American SuperLiga in 2008 as well as the U.S. Open Cup in 2007.
Ralston has served as an assistant coach in San Jose since 2022, his second stint with the club after taking a three-year hiatus from pro soccer. He originally joined the Earthquakes as an assistant coach from 2015-18 before four years in the same capacity with Houston Dynamo FC (2010-14). Ralston also has MLS head coaching experience; his first period with the Quakes ended in 2018 with him relieving Mikael Stahre and serving as Quakes interim head coach for the final six games of the season. Selected one of the 25 greatest players in MLS history by the league in 2020, Ralston retired in 2010 as the league’s all-time leader in assists (135), games played (378), starts (372) and minutes (33,143). A midfielder by trade who played his college ball at Florida International, the St. Louis native played in four MLS Cup finals for New England (2002, 2005-07) and was named an MLS All-Star six times (1997, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2008). He received MLS Best XI recognition three times (1999, 2000, 2002) during his 15-year playing career (1996-2010), winning the North American SuperLiga in 2008 and the U.S. Open Cup in 2007. Internationally, he earned 36 caps for the U.S. and scored four goals.
Brown will be returning for his third season as Earthquakes goalkeeper coach. Before the Pleasant Hill, California, native came back to the Bay Area in 2023, he occupied the same role for Chicago Fire FC (2020-22) and the Portland Timbers (2015-20), where he helped the club win its first MLS Cup in 2015. He was also goalkeeper coach for the University of Portland men’s soccer team (2013-15). Brown played in six MLS seasons (2000-04, 2011), including a stellar 2002 campaign when he led the Revolution to the MLS Cup Final and earned the club’s Defender of the Year honors in 2003. He also played five seasons in Norway for Aalesunds FK (2005-09). Brown graduated from De La Salle High School in Concord before attending the College of William and Mary (1996-99), where he became just the third goalkeeper in NCAA history to be named a First-Team All-American twice. Brown was also the U.S. starting goalkeeper throughout qualification for the 2000 Summer Olympics, appearing six times, but missed the final competition due to injury.
The San Jose Earthquakes will open the 2025 MLS regular season by hosting Real Salt Lake at PayPal Park on Saturday, Feb. 22, at 7:30 p.m. PT. With home games against star-studded Inter Miami CF, interstate rivals LA Galaxy, LAFC and San Diego FC, and the 30th anniversary of the inaugural MLS game vs. D.C. United in San Jose, this schedule will be the biggest in club history.
The only way to guarantee a seat to all 2025 Earthquakes home games is by purchasing season tickets. Single-game tickets for matches at PayPal Park and Stanford Stadium will be available to the general public on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, and tickets for the LAFC matchup at Levi’s Stadium will go on sale Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, with current 2025 season ticket holders enjoying an exclusive presale ahead of the general public.
