American University Women's Soccer

American University Athletics named Phil Casella the next head coach of the Eagles’ women’s soccer program, as announced December 19, 2025 by Director of Athletics and Recreation JM Caparro.   Casella joined AU following nine seasons as the head coach at Wagner, where he led the Seahawks to the 2025 Northeast Conference Championship and the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Under his leadership, Wagner reached the NEC postseason in each of the last three years, made two championship-game appearances, and recorded the best overall and conference records in program history.   He brings more than two decades of collegiate coaching experience to American, including successful stints as an assistant at Mississippi State, Fordham, and Fairleigh Dickinson.   Casella’s tenure at Wagner was marked by steady, historic progress. The Seahawks posted three straight postseason berths from 2023–25, reached consecutive NEC semifinals, and captured four postseason wins over the last three years. Wagner earned the program’s best NEC finish in 2024, then topped it in 2025 with an 11–3–6 overall record and 8–1–2 conference mark on the way to the league title.   Prior to Wagner, Casella served as an assistant coach at Mississippi State, where he oversaw recruiting and player development while helping the Bulldogs reach their highest RPI in program history. His earlier coaching career included impactful assistant roles at Fordham and Fairleigh Dickinson, where he helped both programs reach conference championships and postseason success.   Casella also holds extensive coaching experience at the elite youth and amateur levels and has developed multiple players who went on to NWSL and U.S. National Team careers.   He is a 1996 graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson, where he played collegiately and earned a degree in communications and advertising.