12.2.21 Nico Estévez-5

Nico Estévez

Head Coach

FC Dallas named Nico Estévez the eighth full-time head coach in club history on December 2, 2021.

Estévez (pronounced KNEE-co es-TE-vez) joins FC Dallas from U.S. Soccer where he served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Men’s National Team. The 41-year-old has more than 22 years of coaching experience that includes stints in Spain’s La Liga and Major League Soccer.

Estévez has been an assistant coach on Gregg Berhalter’s U.S. Soccer staff since January 2019. While working with U.S. Soccer, Estévez has coached current and former FC Dallas Academy Products Ricardo Pepi, Jesús Ferreira, Justin Che, Paxton Pomykal, Brandon Servania, Tanner Tessmann, Bryan Reynolds, Reggie Cannon, Chris Richards, Weston McKennie, Jesse Gonzalez and Kellyn Acosta.

Prior to joining U.S. Soccer, Estévez served on Berhalter’s staff with the Columbus Crew. He joined the MLS club in 2014 as Director of Methodology for the Academy before Berhalter promoted Estévez to first team assistant coach in January 2017.

A native of Valencia, Spain, Estévez spent eight years working with La Liga’s Valencia CF in the club’s Academy system, second division team and first team. As head coach of Huracán Valencia CF from 2011-2013, a team in Spain’s Segunda Division B league, he led them to the playoffs in two consecutive seasons. While there he won the Ramón Cobo award from the Royal Spanish Football Federation Committee of Coaches for his accomplishments. In July 2013, he assumed the head coaching duties for Valencia CF Mestalla, Valencia CF’s reserve team.

Estévez served as Interim Head Coach of the first division team, Valencia CF, for two matches in 2013. He oversaw a La Liga match against Real Madrid and a Copa del Rey match – Spain’s Domestic Cup – against Gimnastic de Tarragona, resulting in a 1-0 victory. Estévez posted a 1-1-0 record as Valencia’s Interim Head Coach.

Prior to his time with Valencia CF, Estévez worked with CF San Jose, a youth soccer academy in Valencia, Spain beginning in July 1999. He was their youth team Head Coach, overseeing the Under-12, U-14, U-15 and U-16 teams. He served as CF San Jose’s Director of Methodology from 2010-2011.

Estévez holds a UEFA Pro License and an Elite Formation Coaching License (EFCL). He is fluent in English, Spanish and Catalán. Estévez and his wife, Amparo, have two children – Sandra (12) and Nico (9).

Nico Estévez Coaching History

  • 1999–04, San José (Youth)
  • 2004–11, Valencia (Youth)
  • 2011–13, Huracán Valencia
  • 2013–14, Valencia Mestalla
  • 2013, Valencia CF (Interim)
  • 2014-16, Columbus Crew Academy (Director of Methodology)
  • 2017–18, Columbus Crew (Assistant)
  • 2019–21, United States Men’s National Team (Assistant)