CHICAGO (Sept. 17, 2019)—U.S. Soccer has appointed Dusan Jakica as the new head coach of the U.S. Futsal National Team. Jakica will prepare the Futsal NT for next spring’s 2020 Concacaf Futsal Championship beginning with a training camp from Sept. 17-22 in Akron, Ohio.

Jakica brings a wealth of experience in the sport, having spent 15 successful years as a futsal coach at the international, collegiate and youth levels as well as 12 years as a player. A native of Serbia, Jakica spent six years as an assistant coach with the Serbia Futsal National Team and also led the University Team of Serbia at the 2014 EU Games. Holder of a UEFA B Pro License for Futsal, Jakica currently serves as a head coach with the Minnesota Thunder Academy and as a scout for the Minnesota United FC Academy.

“It’s an incredible opportunity to lead the launch of a new era for the U.S. Futsal National Team,” Jakica said. “While our immediate goal will be to qualify for next year’s Futsal World Cup, the greater challenge will be to grow a futsal culture in the United States. I have seen the heights that this sport can reach and it excites me for the future. We have a tremendous challenge ahead of us, it’s one that I am privileged to undertake.”

With Serbia Futsal, Jakica primarily worked to develop young players for the highest level. As the head coach of the University of Novi Sad Men’s Futsal Team from 2007-2015, Jakica led the squad to top three finishes at the Serbia University Futsal National Championships in eight of his nine years at the helm, including three national titles.

At the high school level, Jakica won numerous city and provincial titles, as well as guiding the High School of Mechanical Engineering, Novi Sad to a national championship in 2006 after a competition that involved more than 500 Serbian high schools. In 2014, he led the High School of Electrical Engineeering, Novi Sad to a runner-up finish in the same tournament.

Jakica holds a FIFA Futsal Coaching Certificate, UEFA B and C licenses and a national license in Serbia. Fluent in English, Bosnian, Croatian, German, Serbian and Russian, Jakica also played professional soccer for 16 years in the former Yugoslavia.