The name of Anson Dorrance is synonymous with women’s college soccer.
The legendary coach has won 21 NCAA championships—the most by a head coach in any Division I sport in college athletics history.
On Aug. 11, Dorrance announced his decision to retire after 45 years leading the women’s team at the University of North Carolina.
Associate head coach Damon Nahas will lead the team this season as interim head coach while Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham conducts a national search for Dorrance’s full-time replacement. Dorrance, who is 73 and a 1974 North Carolina graduate and former player for the Tar Heels, will be remembered as one of the most successful coaches in college athletics history.
“As many of you know I modeled our program after Dean Smith’s basketball program, and retiring at this time is a credit to his thinking, as well,” Dorrance said in a statement following his retirement announcement. “He would re-evaluate his tenure, not after the season, but after he had time to recharge his batteries prior to the next season. When he didn’t, he retired. After last season I initially was excited about the chance to bolster our roster, which we most certainly have done, but as preseason training camp went on, I realized I didn’t have the same energy it takes to give 100% to this year’s team.
“The players and staff, the university, Carolina athletics and our great fans deserve more, and the respect I have for the amazing legacy the current and former players have built led me to make this decision at this time.”
Dorrance was the first and only women’s soccer coach at North Carolina, amassing a 934–88–53 record in 45 seasons (1979–2023). He was also the head coach of the men’s soccer team from 1977 to 1988, winning 172 games and leading the Tar Heels to an ACC title and NCAA Final Four berth in 1987.
North Carolina’s women’s soccer has finished in first or tied for first in the ACC regular season 25 times and won 22 of 32 ACC Tournaments. The Tar Heels have played in 31 of the 42 College Cups—17 more than any other program—and are the only team to play in every NCAA Tournament.
The 934 wins, 21 NCAA titles, 147 NCAA Tournament wins, and 31 College Cups are the most in women’s soccer history.
Under Dorrance, the Tar Heels had 102 first-team All-America awards, 191 All-ACC honors, 19 ACC Players of the Year (three-time winners Hamm and Dunn), 34 NCAA Tournament MVPs, and 22 ACC Tournament MVPs. In 2006, the NCAA named Dorrance, Hamm, Heinrichs, Lilly, Overbeck, Hoch, and Whitehill to its 25th-anniversary team.
Hamm set the NCAA scoring record and was a two-time FIFA World Player of the Year. Lilly played in 354 international games—more than any player in U.S. history—and is one of five former Tar Heels players to serve as captain of the United States Women’s National Team.
“Anson is an all-time soccer, coaching, and Tar Heel legend,” says Cunningham. “The numbers and accomplishments are staggering and will be hard for any coach or program to replicate or exceed. His impact on the development and growth of women’s sports across the country and around the world has been profound. Not only did he elevate women’s sports in the NCAA, but he also led the early dominance of the United States Women’s National Team. With Anson at the helm numerous Tar Heels raised trophies in the World Cup and later in the Olympics.”
Dorrance won the Walt Chyzowych Award from the National Soccer Coaches Association in 1996, a C. Knox Massey Distinguished Service Award from the University in 2010, the Werner Fricker Award from U.S. Soccer in 2016 and was inducted into UNC’s Order of the Golden Fleece in 1988. In 2022, Dorrance was named one of the 50 Champions of Women’s Athletics at Carolina to celebrate 50 years of Title IX.
Dorrance is the all-time Division I leader for NCAA championships by a coach in any sport with 21. UCLA men’s volleyball coach Al Scates and Arkansas men’s indoor track and field coach John McDonnell are tied for second with 19 apiece.
In addition, Dorrance is a seven-time national coach of the year and a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame (2008), United Soccer Coaches Hall of Fame (2018), North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame (2005) and North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame (2002).
“It is no exaggeration to say Anson Dorrance is one of the greatest collegiate coaches of all time, in any sport,” North Carolina Chancellor Roberts said in a statement. “He has trained many of the best players in the history of U.S. women’s soccer and has led our program through decades of unparalleled success. Coach Dorrance has shaped the sport for generations to come and leaves an unequaled legacy at Carolina.”
