The Colorado Rapids announced Friday that vice president of soccer operations and technical director Paul Bravo is leaving the club.
The move ends Bravo's seven-year stint on the technical side of the club, during which time he helped the Rapids win the 2010 MLS Cup, their first-ever league championship, and build their youth academy and Alliance development partnerships. In 2016 Colorado carved out their best regular season in club history, finishing second in the Supporters' Shield race and advancing to the Western Conference Championship, where they fell to the eventual MLS Cup-winning Seattle Sounders.
“Paul has been a valuable member of the Colorado Rapids organization since the day he arrived as a player, as an assistant coach and as the club’s technical director,” said Rapids president Tim Hinchey in a club release.
“He and our technical staff reestablished a winning tradition. Paul leaves us with our respect and appreciation for his dedication and commitment to the club as well as the entire soccer community in Colorado. On behalf of the club, I wish Paul the best of luck in his future endeavors.”
A three-time MLS All-Star and longtime Rapids standoutduring his playing career, Bravo scored 39 goals and added 22 assists in 135 regular-season games with Colorado. He paced the Rapids' run to the 1997 MLS Cup final and is one of five members of the club's Gallery of Honor. He also earned four international caps with the US national team, and scored a goal in the Yanks' 2-0 win over Saudi Arabia in the third-place match at the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup.
Before becoming Colorado's technical director, Bravo served as a Rapids assistant coach for two years and worked on the coaching staffs at UCLA and the LA Galaxy, where he also worked as a technical director from 2007-09.
