Bedford-born football coach, Jack Cassidy has added another club to his globetrotting repertoire after being announced as the interim head coach of Major League Soccer (MLS) side, Portland Timbers in the United States.
Cassidy, 35, who lists Bedford Town, St Ives Town, Al Jazira and Aalborg BK amongst his former employers, steps up on an interim basis to coach the Timbers after the MLS Western Conference club sacked former Manchester United and England defender, Phil Neville at the end of May.
Cassidy’s appointment to the first team comes after he joined as the head coach of Timbers2 at the start of the American 2026 MLS NEXT Pro season, following a spell in the Danish Superliga as assistant manager of Aalborg.
Read: Meet Bedford’s globetrotting football coach – From Bedford Town to the Danish top flight
“Jack has impressed in his first year with Timbers2 and see this as the right temporary staffing structure until we complete the coaching search; a process that has been productive in the last two weeks”, said the Timbers’ General Manager, Ned Grabavoy.
Grabavoy also says the club has “gone through about 20 in depth interviews with candidates from all around the world” as their hunt for a permanent head coach continues, with a plan to appoint the next manager, “by the beginning of July”.
Speaking to Bedford Independent from Oregon, Cassidy says he is not in the hunt for the job on a permanent basis, but with his UEFA Pro Licence in full swing, he feels he is well on the way to becoming a full-time head coach in the future.
“I was delighted that the club placed its trust in me to lead the group during this period”, said Jack.
“The players have responded really well so far and we have focused on bringing simplicity and clarity to our work on the pitch”.
Major League Soccer is currently on a hiatus as the United States welcomes the game’s biggest stars for the World Cup.
With the Timbers’ next game taking place at Seattle Sounders on 17 July, Cassidy may not get the chance to lead the side in a regular season MLS game, but he has been tasked with keeping the squad in shape as the World Cup goes on.
“The aim is to help the players prepare as effectively as possible for the second half of the season and to provide a positive platform for the new head coach, whenever that appointment is made”, adds Jack.
The plan is for Cassidy to return to his permanent position as the head coach of Timbers2, where he has started life well, leading Portland to their best start in five seasons.
His side are currently in a play-off position at the halfway stage of the season and have only lost once in their last nine matches, sitting fourth in the league.
