Atlanta United announces Carl Robinson as assistant coach

Atlanta United announced Thursday that Carl Robinson is joining interim head coach Rob Valentino’s staff as an assistant coach. The former Wales international midfielder was most recently assistant manager of Birmingham City in the English Football League.

The Welsh-born began his coaching career in 2012 after retiring from professional football. His coaching career began with the Vancouver Whitecaps where he served as an assistant for two seasons before being named head coach in December 2013. During his tenure, Robinson led Vancouver to three playoff appearances in the MLS Cup in four seasons, as well as the club’s first participation. never won the Canadian Cup in 2015 and its first-ever appearance in the Concacaf Champions Cup, including a semi-final appearance during the 2016-17 tournament.

After his time in Vancouver, Robinson moved to Australia and worked as head coach of the Newcastle Jets and Western Sydney Wanderers before returning to the United States with DC United as an assistant coach under Wayne Rooney in 2023. He followed Rooney to Birmingham City for the 2023-24 season and also helped the Wales national team. He holds a UEFA Pro license, which he obtained in 2013.

Robinson had a distinguished playing career as a midfielder. He was capped 52 times by Wales, while spending the majority of his career with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sunderland and Norwich City. In 2007, Robinson joined Toronto FC and made 74 appearances. He concluded his playing career with the New York Red Bulls in 2011, where he became a player coach in his final season.

Atlanta United (4-8-4, 16 points) returns to action on Saturday, June 15 when it hosts the Houston Dynamo at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass, 92.9 The Game, La Mejor) . All Atlanta United matches are available with an MLS Season Pass subscription, located on the Apple TV app.