Columbus Crew Names Dan Lock Head of Individual Development and Coaching for Crew 2 and Crew Academy

June 30, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Columbus Crew SC News Release

COLUMBUS – Columbus Crew today announced that it has named Dan Lock as the Head of Individual Development and Coaching for Columbus Crew 2 and for the Columbus Crew Academy. Lock, who joins from Charlotte FC, brings a decade of coaching experience to the Crew.

In his new role, Lock will interact with Crew 2 and Crew Academy players and coaches to accelerate the growth of talented players with the goal of developing players who can eventually join the First Team. As part of his job, he will work to create individual development plans and position-specific training that are tailored to the needs of the players.

“I have had the pleasure of working with Dan in the past and know that our players will benefit from his invaluable experience and level of professionalism,” said Columbus Crew Technical Director Marc Nicholls. “Adding Dan to our staff reflects our ambition in player development and sets Crew Academy apart. This is a vital next step in our growth as we continue to evolve our club programming in order to maximize the individual development of our top talents”.

Prior to joining the Crew, Lock worked as the Academy Manager and Under-17 Head Coach for Charlotte FC Academy from 2020 to 2022. During his time in Charlotte, the academy made history as they had four players from the U-15 and U-17 teams called up to represent the United States and Liberia National Teams at the youth level.

Before his time with Charlotte FC, Lock worked with Seattle Sounders FC as the U-15 Academy Head Coach as well as the Head of Affiliates and Club Partnerships from 2018-2020. From 2016 to 2018 he was the Pre-Academy Director U8-U-12 and U-17 Assistant Coach. Notably, Lock was a member of the coaching staff that saw the Seattle Sounders FC Academy U-17 team become the first American team to win the prestigious Generation adidas Cup in 2018.

Lock’s previous experience also includes working for the Bellevue College women’s soccer team from 2014-2016, first serving as an Assistant Coach before being promoted to Head Coach in 2015. During his tenure with Bellevue, Lock helped the team become the 2015 Northwest Athletic Conference West Division Co-Champions. From 2012-2016, Lock worked as the Director of Coaching for youth team Cascade FC.

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