Donaldson back at Chicago Stars

Sixteen months after former Reggae Girlz coach Lorne Donaldson and National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) club Chicago Stars parted ways, the two have reunited.

The move follows a shake‑up at the struggling franchise, which recently dismissed head coach Martin Sjogren. Donaldson returns as interim director of coaching for the remainder of the NWSL season, overseeing the technical and analytical departments. He will work alongside former assistant Karina Baez, who steps into the interim head coach role.

Donaldson told The Gleaner he was pleased to rejoin the organisation.

“Obviously, some of the players I’m very familiar with and it’s a club that, you know, I love the club and they needed some help, so the ownership gave me a call and asked me to come in and help them out for the rest of the season. And that’s what I’m going to do.”

He takes over with the Stars sitting at the bottom of the table after 18 matches – four wins, 13 losses and one draw – and without a victory since July 5.

“Obviously I mean, it’s going to take a lot of work, but you never give up and maybe that’s why the ownership gave me a call,” Donaldson said. “It’s not going to be a miracle, but, you know, we have to make some decisions and try to climb the table if we can, and try to score some goals and just not give up many. If you can do that, then your chances are much better. But we have to be a lot more resilient as players and coaches, and my job is to help them get back in contention.”

Donaldson said there are no guarantees beyond the end of the season.

“We didn’t even get that far, you know. Everything was just immediate right now. I made a quick decision. They needed a quick response and a quick decision, so we didn’t even discuss that. What I know is that they’re taking care of stuff right now and at the end of the season, it’s up to them if they want to re‑evaluate, or myself re‑evaluate and do something different.”

During his first stint, Donaldson led the Stars from a last‑place finish in 2023 to a playoff berth in 2024, posting a regular‑season record of 10 wins, 14 draws and two losses.