Jesse Marsch, the first American to coach in the UEFA Champions League, is looking likely to be back in the competition for the foreseeable future as he's set to become the next head coach at RB Leipzig, per Kicker. The German publication is reporting that the RB Salzburg boss, who last season became the first American to win a top-tier European trophy by claiming the Austrian Cup, is moving within the massive Red Bull umbrella once again, following his move from New York Red Bulls to Salzburg with a move to the German Bundesliga to replace Julian Nagelsmann, who is leaving for Bayern Munich.
The 47-year-old Marsch, who worked under former United States men's national team coach Bob Bradley in the past, has coached RB Salzburg since 2019. Marsch first began his head coaching career with the Montreal Impact before going to New York Red Bulls from 2015-2018. From there, he moved to RB Leipzig as an assistant before getting the Salzburg job in 2019. At Leipzig, he'll be reunited with plenty of players he is already familiar with, including American Tyler Adams, who he coached in MLS.
Marsch has won 59 of 88 games at RB Salzburg with a goal differential of +163. He continues to have a stunning rise in the coaching ranks, with this looking to be the next step.
In the 2019-20 season, he nearly took RB Salzburg to the Champions League knockout stage in a group featuring Liverpool, Napoli and Genk, instead finishing in third and going to the Europa League. Before the tournament began, I spoke with him for a story where he warned me that his team could really compete, saying I have to keep an eye out for this young striker he had on the team that would soon explode. His name? Erling Haaland.
At Leipzig, he faces a tough task in replacing another top young coach in Nagelsmann but will be comforted with the familiarity of the Red Bull system while also already having a relationship with numerous players on the squad.
Leipzig are currently in second place in the Bundesliga.
