Earnie Stewart joins Philadelphia as Sporting Director

• by Mike Woitalla  @MikeWoitalla, Oct 26, 2015

Earnie Stewart, who played in three World Cups for the USA and has been Dutch Eredivisie club AZ Alkmaar’s Director of Soccer Affairs since 2010, will join the Philadelphia Union, which has now gone four seasons without reaching the playoffs, as Sporting Director in January.

The Dutch-raised Stewart joined the U.S. national team in 1990 and played for the USA at the 1994, 1998 and 2002 World Cups. He played 15 years of pro ball in Netherlands before joining D.C United in 2003 and helped it win the MLS title in 2004.

Upon retirement, Stewart served as NAC Breda technical director before in 2010 joining AZ Alkmaar, which during his tenure qualified for the Europa League six times and won Rinus Michels Award for having the best youth academy in Dutch soccer.

At the Philadelphia Union, Stewart will oversee and guide all Union technical and soccer-related decisions, “working closely with the Union First Team, USL team and youth Academy.”

“I am thrilled with the opportunity to come to the Philadelphia Union and help create a winning team which the fans can identify with,” Stewart said in a press release. “I look forward to working with everyone at the Union to establish a clear playing philosophy and use my experience to create a competitive edge in our methods of recruiting and developing players at all levels of the club, from the Academy up through the first team.”