After weeks of rumblings, former Revolution Sporting Director and Head Coach Bruce Arena is returning to Major League Soccer.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle, the San Jose Earthquakes have hired the legendary MLS figure as the Quakes’ new Sporting Director and Manager. An official announcement is expected to come Thursday, per Carlisle.
After discussing the current state of the Earthquakes, the conversation transitioned to Arena’s controversial exit from New England in 2023 after being placed on administrative leave for “inappropriate and insensitive remarks”.
After a lengthy investigation, it revealed “certain allegations were confirmed” and that Arena had to petition MLS Commissioner Don Garber for reinstatement. Arena resigned from his role with the Revolution on September 9th, 2023. According to Carlisle, Arena met all the requirements for a return in December of 2023.
It appeared we’d finally get some answers when Arena appeared on the popular CBS Sports Golazo show Kickin’ It. Unfortunately, Arena stayed mostly silent on the situation after declining to discuss specifics.
After being pressed, Arena finally indicated what led to everything that had transpired.
“It was just staff joking around with each other in private,” Arena told ESPN. “I accept any of the criticism and I'm moving forward."
Arena arrives in San Jose with a lot of work to do after the Earthquakes ended the 2024 season in dead last with 21 points on a 6-25-3 record.
