HERRIMAN, Utah (Tuesday, December 21, 2021) – The RSL Academy has announced the hiring of former Real Salt Lake Homegrown Player Jordan Allen as the Club’s new U17 Head Coach. Allen will join RSL Academy Director of Coaching Arnold Rijsenburg’s staff effective immediately.
“Jordan joins our Academy staff with the unique perspective of having experienced firsthand our academy player pathway. This experience, his skill set and most importantly his character give Jordan the foundation for a fantastic coaching career. It is with great pride that Jordan Allen is welcomed back to Real Salt Lake as a coach in our Academy,” Real Salt Lake Assistant General Manager Tony Beltran said.
Allen, 26, joined the Real Salt Lake organization in 2011 as a member of the RSL Academy in Mesa, Arizona, where he spent two years before electing to attend the University of Virginia. After one season as Cavalier, during which he started all 24 matches to help the team reach its 11th College Cup, Allen returned to RSL signing as Club’s sixth Homegrown Player on December 31, 2013.
During his tenure with Real Salt Lake, Allen scored four goals and tallied four assists in 50 appearances. After playing nearly every match during his first two seasons Allen struggled with a persistent knee injury that forced him into early retirement in 2019 at just 24 years old.
In addition to his career with RSL, Allen garnered an impressive resume within the United States Youth National Team system, appearing at nearly every level including the 2016 U20 FIFA World Cup in New Zealand.
Since his retirement from the professional game, Allen has spent the last two years as a member of the coaching staff at the University of Virginia as an Undergraduate Assistant Coach under legendary Head Coach George Gelnovatch. As an assistant coach Allen worked with several players that would go on to sign with various clubs in Major League Soccer, including Henry Kessler (New England Revolution), Daryl Dike (Orlando City SC) and Irakoze Donasiyano (Nashville SC). This past year Allen helped Virginia reach a school-record five players selected in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft, including RSL’s own Bret Halsey.
As the RSL Academy U17 Head Coach Allen will lead a group of players who won the first-ever 2021 MLS NEXT Cup at the U15 level last June in Frisco, Texas. Most recently the U17s swept their competition at the MLS NEXT Fest in Norco, California, beating Nashville SC, Sporting Kansas City and Toronto FC.
