CHICAGO -- He was the man behind the scenes of one of the biggest stories
in women's sports. Tony DiCicco avoided the headlines, reserving
them for the players on his women's World Cup soccer team.
So when he resigned as coach of the U.S. women's national team
on Wednesday, it was no surprise that he did so without fanfare.
No news conference. No luncheon. No television announcement.
A statement from U.S. Soccer said the country's most successful
soccer coach was leaving at the end of the year to spend more time
with his family.
"The main reason I'm stepping down is that it's more important
for me to be a world-class husband and father than a world-class
coach," said DiCicco, who has boys of ages 17, 14, 12, and 8.
"When I looked at the generous financial opportunities
available to me next year, I didn't see how they could possibly
enrich my life more than spending time with my wife and boys."
DiCicco has been asked to work with the federation as a
consultant. The federation gave no indication who might succeed
him, but Lauren Gregg, his top assistant, certainly will draw
attention. The new coach will face a difficult task: replacing
DiCicco with the Olympics 10 months away.
"I can't think of anyone more deserving of the attention and
praise brought on by the U.S. women's national team's success and
popularity than Tony DiCicco," U.S. Soccer president Robert
Contiguglia said.
"He has won every trophy in sight and done it with grace and
style. He has been an integral part of the team's success since our
first World Cup championship in 1991, and he has met every
challenge head on. We respect, understand and admire his desire to
share his life with his family."
DiCicco leaves another family behind, one with which he shared a
monumental achievement that brought women's sports to the
forefront.
"Obviously, it's a sad day for the team because we all have
tremendous respect for Tony as a coach, a person and friend," U.S.
co-captain Julie Foudy said. "But we understand his commitment to
his family and his desire to spend more time with his wife and
sons."
DiCicco has been a fixture on the U.S. soccer scene since 1990.
He began with the women's national team as the goalkeepers coach,
and was an assistant on the 1991 World Cup championship team before
taking over the head job from Anson Dorrance in 1995. His '95 team
finished third in the World Cup, but he led the Americans to the
1996 Olympic gold medal.
"He's put in a lot of years with us, and spent many hours away
from his family for us, and sacrificed a lot for the team," Foudy
said. "We'll always be proud of the things we accomplished
together. It will be difficult to replace him."
Defender Joy Fawcett, who twice returned to the team after
giving birth, added: "Tony understands us. He understands we have
a different approach to the game and to the relationships we build
than the men do. He allows us to be ourselves, and that's been a
very important part of our success."
DiCicco built a fast, aggressive defense and a potent offense in
which Mia Hamm became the sport's career goals leader. His overall
record with the national squad was 103-8-8, including six wins in
the World Cup.
"The things I'll miss the most are the players, what they
taught me, what we learned together and how they made me feel. And
how much fun it was to go after something great together," he
said.
Few sports events captured America's imagination the way the
Women's World Cup did. For a month, soccer -- women's soccer, yet -- was a front page, nightly news story. The Americans, who drew
sellout crowds to their games and huge gatherings of youths, soccer
moms and dads to their practices, became as popular as rock stars.
Squeals of "Mia" and "Julie" and just about every other first
name on the team were heard at those workouts.
The women responded with rounds of autographs, interviews and
personal appearances. The tone of cooperation was set by DiCicco.
"The genuine pursuit of their dreams and goals is what is so
enticing for people," he said just before the shootout victory
over China in the World Cup final. "It's kind of snowballed and
has turned into a wonderful phenomena. They are finally getting
their due."
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