ATLANTA — Atlanta United announced Friday it has named Ronny Deila as the club’s next head coach.
Deila brings more than 17 years of head coaching experience across multiple countries and has won a total of six trophies, including four league titles and two domestic cup competitions. The Norwegian manager returns to MLS where he won the 2021 MLS Cup with New York City FC. He will be under contract through the 2027 MLS season and report to Atlanta United President and CEO Garth Lagerwey.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Ronny as the new head coach of Atlanta United,” Club President and CEO Garth Lagerwey said. “He has a proven track record of winning in multiple leagues around the world, including the 2021 MLS Cup with NYCFC, and his knowledge of MLS was a key factor in our search. We believe his style of play aligns with the club’s philosophy as we look to build a team that will compete for trophies consistently.”
After holding a dual role as a player and assistant coach, Deila was named head coach at Norwegian first division side Strømsgodset in January of 2008 and went on to manage 206 matches from 2008-2014. He led Strømsgodset to win the Norwegian Cup in 2010 and then led the club to its first league title in 43 years in 2013, recording 63 points.
After his successful stint in Norway, Deila was named manager at Celtic in the Scottish Premiership on June 14, 2014. In two seasons in charge at Celtic, Deila led the club to win the 2015 Scottish League Cup and consecutive league titles in 2014-15 and 2015-16. On March 15, 2015, Celtic defeated Dundee United 2-0 in the Scottish League Cup final to win Deila’s first title at the club. Celtic won the league title that season with 92 points, 17 points ahead of second place, and qualified for UEFA Champions League Qualifying. The following season, Deila guided Celtic to another league title, announcing in April that he would leave the club at the end of the season. In total, he managed 118 matches and accumulated 2.12 points per match during his time in Scotland.
“I want to thank Arthur M. Blank and Garth Lagerwey for this opportunity and couldn't be more excited to join Atlanta United,” Deila said. “This is a club with great ownership, excellent facilities and the ambition to succeed and continue to drive the league forward. I’m happy to return to MLS, a competitive league that I enjoy, and I’m eager to arrive and get to work with our group of players.”
After returning to Norway for a stint as head coach of Vålerenga from 2016-2020, Deila made the move to MLS and was named head coach of New York City FC on Jan. 6, 2020. In his first season, Deila led New York to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference and qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. In 2021, NYCFC finished fourth in the Eastern Conference and went on to win MLS Cup, defeating Portland Timbers. In two and a half seasons in New York, Deila recorded a 46-29-15 (W-L-D) record.
The 49-year-old left NYCFC to join Standard Liege of Belgium’s top division on July 1, 2022 and led the club to a sixth-place finish in the Belgian Pro League and a 17-14-9 record that season. Following the season, Deila became the manager at Club Brugge where he posted a record of 28-10-11 and an average of 1.94 points per game before being dismissed in March of 2024. Most recently, Deila served as head coach of Al-Wahda of the United Arab Emirates Pro League where he had a record of 5-2-3.
Prior to starting his coaching career, the defender had a 20-year playing career in Norway where he made 352 professional appearances and scored 32 goals, with the vast majority coming at Odds BK from 1993-2004. He began his career with Norwegian club Urædd and made his First Team debut in 1992 before joining Odd the following season where he made 240 appearances and scored 22 goals. He then played for Viking and Strømsgodset before finishing his playing career at Sparta Bragerøen while simultaneously serving as the head coach at Strømsgodset.
