ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (December 18, 2017) — After a record-setting season, Tampa Bay Rowdies Head Coach Stuart Campbell will again lead the squad in 2018, signing a new contract, the club announced Monday. It will be Campbell’s third full season at the helm and seventh as a member of the Rowdies organization.

In his second full season as manager last year, Campbell as head coach guided the Rowdies to their first postseason berth since 2012, reaching the Eastern Conference Semifinals in their first USL season. Along the way, the Rowdies set multiple new modern-era club records including most home wins in a season (13) and most goals scored (54).

Campbell, 40, has been with the Rowdies since 2012 and is now poised to continue as one of the longest-serving members of Tampa Bay Rowdies modern era.

“Stuart has proven to grow season-after-season since becoming the head coach of the Rowdies back in 2015,” said Chairman & CEO Bill Edwards. “We broke multiple club records in 2017, and I expect that Stuart will continue to guide this team in the right direction next season. We’ve been working hard since the first day of the offseason to bring in an even stronger championship-caliber team in 2018. We want to build a team that the greater Tampa Bay region, and especially our home in the city of St. Petersburg, will continue to be proud to call their hometown professional soccer team, as We Stand For Soccer!”

Campbell initially joined the Rowdies in 2012 as a player. In his first season with the team, he helped Tampa Bay to a championship. In 2014, he transitioned to a dual role as a player and assistant coach. He transitioned to a full-time assistant coach at the start of 2015 and took over as head coach later in the season.

“First, I would like to thank Bill Edwards for believing in me and the rest of my staff, as I am absolutely delighted to continue my coaching tenure at the Rowdies,” said Campbell. “It’s an absolute pleasure to coach a team as historic as the Rowdies, and that has such an amazing fan base. We’re doing our very best to retain the core of the 2017 squad in order to continue to build on the success we had last season and continue to achieve our goals that we set out for each year, including winning the USL Cup.”

“We are going to kick their BLEEP!” said Edwards “Watch out for the Rowdies in 2018 as it will be an even more exciting KICK BUTT USL Season!”

The Rowdies are now set to announce several additions to the squad in the coming days and weeks as the 2018 roster is constructed as we start our quest for the 2018 USL Regular Season Championship and USL Cup. COME ON YOU ROWDIES!