Chris Armas

Chris Armas

Personal information
Full name	Christopher Armas [1]
Date of birth	(1972-08-27) August 27, 1972 (age 51)
Place of birth	New York City, United States
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Colorado Rapids (head coach)
Youth career
	New York Hota Bavarian
	Brooklyn Italians
	Frosinone
	South Shore
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1990–1993	Adelphi Panthers	73	(17)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1994–1995	Long Island Rough Riders		(8)
1996–1997	LA Galaxy	50	(4)
1998–2007	Chicago Fire	214	(8)
Total		264	(20)
International career
1993–1994	Puerto Rico	8	(0)
1998–2005	United States	66	(2)
Managerial career
2008	Chicago Fire (assistant)
2011–2014	Adelphi Panthers (women)
2015–2018	New York Red Bulls (assistant)
2018–2020	New York Red Bulls
2021	Toronto FC
2021–2022	Manchester United (assistant)
2023	Leeds United (assistant)
2023	Leeds United (co-interim)
2023–	Colorado Rapids
Medal record Representing   United States Winner CONCACAF Gold Cup 2002 Winner CONCACAF Gold Cup 2005 Men's Soccer
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Christopher Armas (born August 27, 1972) is an American professional soccer coach and former player who is the head coach of Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids.

Youth and college

Born in The Bronx, New York City, Armas is of Puerto Rican descent and grew up in Brentwood, New York. He graduated from St. Anthony's High School and then attended Adelphi University from 1990 to 1993, amassing 17 goals and 15 assists over his collegiate career. Armas was named an NCAA Division II First Team All-American his senior year. ^[2]

Playing career

Professional

After graduating from college, Armas spent 1994 and 1995 playing for the USISL's Long Island Rough Riders, being selected as a USISL All-Star. In 1995, the Rough Riders defeated the Minnesota Thunder in the USISL's Pro League Championship. ^[3]

In 1996, Armas was drafted by Los Angeles Galaxy in the first round of the Major League Soccer Supplemental Draft and played a significant role in their first and second seasons. Chicago Fire acquired Armas in a trade for their inaugural 1998 campaign. It was with the 1998 Fire team that Armas emerged as an exceptional player, helping them win their first MLS Championship that year. Between 1998 and 2001, Armas was named to the MLS Best XI four consecutive times, his streak only being broken by an ACL injury that kept him out of much of the 2002 campaign; Armas was named to his fifth Best XI after the 2003 MLS season, in addition to being named the MLS Comeback Player of the Year. He was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year in 2000. In ten years in MLS, he totaled eleven goals and 41 assists, plus added four goals and four assists in the playoffs.

On April 19, 2007, Armas announced that the 2007 MLS season with the Chicago Fire would be his last, as he decided to retire. His retirement was made official on November 13, 2007, after spending 12 years in MLS. ^[4]

International

Armas played for Puerto Rico in the 1993 Caribbean Cup. The competition was not then recognized by FIFA and so his five matches were classed as friendlies. ^[5]

He was therefore later allowed to switch his allegiance to the United States, for whom he made his debut November 6, 1998, against Australia. ^[6] He went on to earn 66 caps. He did not break into the squad until soon after the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and his ACL injury came just before the 2002 FIFA World Cup, so he was never able to play for the United States in the World Cup. He was named as a standby player for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and did not feature in the final squad.

Coaching career

After his retirement, he coached youth soccer and was a high school physical education teacher at St. Anthony's High School. ^[7]

Armas served as an assistant coach for the Chicago Fire in 2008 and was the head women's soccer coach at Adelphi University between 2011 and 2015.

On July 6, 2018, Armas was promoted to head coach of New York Red Bulls after former manager Jesse Marsch departed the club to join Red Bull Salzburg as an assistant. ^[8] Armas helped the Red Bulls finish first in the regular season, winning the Supporters' Shield as a result. The Red Bulls were eliminated in the conference finals by Atlanta United.

In 2019, the Red Bulls finished sixth in the Eastern Conference and were eliminated by the Philadelphia Union in the first round of the playoffs. The Red Bulls were then eliminated in the group stage of the MLS is Back Tournament after they were defeated by FC Cincinnati. The team was in the middle of a scoring slump when Armas parted ways with the club on September 4, 2020, the day after a 1–0 loss to D.C. United. ^[9]

In 2021, Armas was hired as head coach of Toronto FC, replacing Greg Vanney, who departed the club at the end of his contract. ^[10] On July 4, 2021, following a 7–1 loss to D.C. United, the largest loss in the club's history and a league record of one win, eight losses and two draws, the team announced he had been fired. ^[11]

On December 7, 2021, Armas was hired by Manchester United as assistant coach to work under interim manager Ralf Rangnick. ^{[12] [13]} He left the club in May 2022.

In January 2023, it was confirmed that Armas had re-united with Jesse Marsch at Leeds United. Armas was named co-interim head coach alongside Michael Skubala and Paco Gallardo following the sacking of Jesse Marsch in February, ^[14] the trio overseeing a 2–2 draw at Old Trafford with Manchester United on 8 February 2023 ^[15] and Skubala acting as solitary interim manager in the home loss against the same opponents four days later. ^{[16] [17] [18]}

Colorado Rapids

On November 17, 2023, Armas returned to Major League Soccer, signing as head coach of the Colorado Rapids. ^[19]

Personal life

Armas and his wife, Justine, have two sons, Christopher and Aleksei. ^[20]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition ^{[21] [22]}

Club	Season	League			Playoffs		Cup [lower-alpha 1]		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
LA Galaxy	1996	Major League Soccer	22	1	6	2	—		—		28	3
	1997		28	3	2	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 2]	0	32	3
	Total		50	4	8	2	0	0	2	0	60	6
Chicago Fire	1998	Major League Soccer	31	1	5	0	3	0	—		39	1
	1999		22	1	3	0	0	0	3 [lower-alpha 2]	0	28	1
	2000		16	0	5	0	4	0	—		25	0
	2001		21	0	6	1	3	0	—		30	1
	2002		4	0	0	0	0	0	2 [lower-alpha 2]	0	6	0
	2003		25	2	4	1	4	1	—		33	4
	2004		21	1	—		3	0	3 [lower-alpha 2]	1	27	2
	2005		22	2	1	0	2	0	—		25	2
	2006		27	1	2	0	2	0	—		31	1
	2007		25	0	3	0	1	0	—		29	0
	Total		214	8	29	2	22	1	8	1	273	12
Career total			264	12	37	4	22	1	10	1	333	18

1. All appearances in the U.S. Open Cup
2. Appearance(s) in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year ^[23]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Puerto Rico	1993	6	0
	1994	2	0
	Total	8	0
United States
	1998	1	0
	1999	7	0
	2000	14	2
	2001	13	0
	2002	11	0
	2003	4	0
	2004	8	0
	2005	8	0
	Total	66	2

Scores and results list the United States' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Armas goal.

List of international goals scored by Chris Armas

No.	Cap	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	9	January 16, 2000	Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California, United States	Iran	1–1	1–1	Friendly
2	13	February 19, 2000	Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida, United States	Colombia	2–1	2–2 (1–2 pen.)	2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Coaching

As of March 30, 2024

Coaching record by team and tenure

Team	Nat.	From	To	Record
				G	W	L	T	Win %	Ref.
New York Red Bulls		July 6, 2018	September 4, 2020	71	33	27	11	046.48	[24]
Toronto FC		January 13, 2021	July 4, 2021	15	2	10	3	013.33	[25]
Colorado Rapids		November 17, 2023	Present	6	2	2	2	033.33
Total				92	37	32	23	040.22

Honors

Player

Chicago Fire

• MLS Cup: 1998
• Supporters' Shield: 2003
• U.S. Open Cup: 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006

United States

• CONCACAF Gold Cup: 2002, 2005
• U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year: 2000

Individual

• MLS Best XI: 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003
• MLS All-Star: 1998, 1999, ^[26] 2000, ^[27] 2001, 2003, 2004
• MLS Comeback Player of the Year: 2003
• Chicago Fire MVP: 2003

Coach

New York Red Bulls

• Supporters' Shield: 2018

References

1. "Our Notable Alumni". Adelphi University .
2. "Chris Armas (2005) – Adelphi Hall of Fame profile". Adelphi Panthers . Adelphi University . Retrieved January 14, 2021.
3. Lewis, Michael (January 14, 2021). "Surreal Experience: Repost: Armas enjoys return to Hota (2004)". Front Row Soccer. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
4. Marcus, Jeffrey (November 14, 2007). "Kicking About: Retiring, Training and Mourning". The New York Times . Retrieved January 14, 2021.
5. Wahl, Grant (November 2, 1998). "Inside Soccer: Chris Armas: Man Without A Country?". Sports Illustrated . Time Warner . Retrieved January 14, 2021.
6. Lewis, Michael (May 19, 2020). "Unsung Hero: Chris Armas and His Contributions to the USMNT". United States Soccer Federation . Retrieved January 14, 2021.
7. Boehm, Charles (December 7, 2021). "What the discourse is missing about Chris Armas' shock move to Manchester United". MLSsoccer.com.
8. "Jesse Marsch leaves New York Red Bulls, Chris Armas promoted". WABC-TV . ABC Owned Television Stations. July 6, 2018. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
9. "New York Red Bulls Fire Manager Chris Armas". Sports Illustrated . theMaven. September 4, 2020. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
10. Davidson, Neil (January 13, 2021). "Former Red Bulls coach Chris Armas named as Greg Vanney's successor at Toronto FC". Toronto Star . Torstar . Retrieved January 14, 2021.
11. Singh, Michael (July 4, 2021). "BREAKING: Toronto FC fire head coach Chris Armas". Waking the Red.
12. "Rangnick confirms new coaching staff". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
13. Dholakia, Raj (December 12, 2021). "Chris Armas: Who is Ralf Rangnick's new assistant at Manchester United?". THE PEOPLES PERSON. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
14. "Trio to take chare of Manchester United fixture". www.leedsunited.com.
15. "Sancho earns Man Utd point in thrilling Leeds draw". BBC Sport . February 8, 2023. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
16. "Michael Skubala to remain Leeds United interim boss for Man Utd game" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
17. Taylor, Louise (February 12, 2023). "Leeds rue missed chances after Marcus Rashford sparks Manchester United win". The Guardian . Retrieved February 13, 2023.
18. Stone, Simon (February 12, 2023). "Leeds United 0-2 Manchester United: Marcus Rashford sets visitors on way to victory". BBC Sport . Retrieved February 13, 2023.
19. "Colorado Rapids appoint Chris Armas as Head Coach". Colorado Rapids.
20. Firchau, Nick (January 27, 2011). "What Ever Happened To: Chris Armas". Major League Soccer. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
21. Chris Armas at Major League Soccer
22. "Chicago Fire player registry – Chris Armas". Chicago Fire FC . Major League Soccer. Archived from the original on June 19, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
23. "Chris Armas". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
24. "New York Red Bulls fire head coach Armas after two years". ESPN.com . ESPN Inc. September 5, 2020. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
25. "Toronto FC fires manager Chris Armas amid club's struggles in MLS". ESPN.com . ESPN Inc. July 4, 2021. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
26. "1999 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. July 17, 1999. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
27. "2000 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. July 29, 2000. Retrieved July 28, 2023.

External links

• Chris Armas on Telegram
• Chris Armas at FBref.com
• Chris Armas at Major League Soccer
• Chris Armas at National-Football-Teams.com
• Chris Armas at WorldFootball.net