PITTSBURGH (Nov. 10, 2023) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC has elevated pro team assistant coach Dan Visser to the role of Sporting Director, where he will oversee the soccer side of the club at the professional and academy levels.
In his new role, Visser will work in tandem with head coach Bob Lilley, guiding the pro team’s scouting and player recruitment efforts to build a championship-caliber team next season and beyond. He also will work directly with the Riverhounds Academy as the club continues to build a direct pathway for its players to rise through the development program to the professional level, both with the Hounds’ First Team and to opportunities in the global soccer market.
“The investment in this position shows (owner) Tuffy Shallenberger’s clear intent to keep pushing this project forward and to double-down on our recent success in Pittsburgh. I’m grateful for the opportunity and excited to get started,” Visser said.
Visser, 37, first joined the Riverhounds organization midway through the 2016 season as an assistant coach under Dave Brandt. As the longest tenured member of the coaching staff, Visser has been a part of the Hounds’ rise to securing six consecutive postseason berths, a first-place finish in the Eastern Conference in 2019 and winning the USL Championship Players’ Shield in 2023.
“We are delighted to announce Dan’s appointment as Sporting Director,” Riverhounds President Jeff Garner said. “With a focused commitment to championship performance, Dan will lead our charge, intertwining a focus on youth development with strategic global transfer initiatives, propelling our club and our professional pathway to new heights, and continuing a legacy of excellence locally while growing on the international stage.”
A native of West Chester, Pa., Visser holds bachelor’s degrees in math and economics from Messiah College, where he was a three-time national champion on the Falcons’ soccer team. He earned his Master of Business Administration degree from Eastern University, where he began a coaching career that included stops at the NCAA Division III and Division I levels prior to the Hounds. Visser also holds an “A” Coaching License from the U.S. Soccer Federation.
Visser will begin his new role immediately, as the Hounds begin constructing their roster for the 2024 USL Championship season scheduled to begin in March.
