NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nashville SC announced a major hire on Thursday morning as Mike Jacobs became the club’s first Technical Director. The former Executive VP and Technical Director of the USL, Jacobs brings a wealth of experience to his new position, which completes the 2018 USL expansion club’s senior management team.

Jacob’s most recently served as the Assistant Technical Director for Major League Soccer’s Sporting Kansas City, where he played an integral role in the establishment of the USL’s defending Western Conference champion the Swope Park Rangers. A former President of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, Jacobs will manage all player and coaching development within Nashville SC’s playing levels.

“Joining Nashville SC and the pro soccer movement here is a dream come true,” Jacobs said. “I look forward to helping put together a team that will pursue championships. When we take the field in March 2018, Nashville will see a team that competes, plays hard and is exciting to watch.”

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Jacobs will work alongside Nashville SC Head Coach and Managing Director of Soccer Operations Gary Smith as the club builds toward its first season in the USL next spring. Smith – a former MLS Cup-winning Head Coach with the Colorado Rapids – said he was excited to be joined at the club by someone with Jacobs’ experience and knowledge of the North American soccer landscape.

“Bringing Mike into our club as we continue to build something special in Nashville is a huge win for us,” said Smith. “There are few, if any, people who know more about how to succeed in American soccer than Mike, and we will certainly rely on his experience to put a product on the field that the whole city can be proud of.”