This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Sandy—Real Salt Lake and Grande Sports World announced Thursday that Martin Vasquez has been appointed head coach and director of soccer operations for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Under-16 and Under-18 teams of the Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy. In addition to his roles with the RSL-Arizona program, Vasquez will also serve as the director of soccer for Grande Sports World and Grande Sports Academy, which is the the home of the RSL-AZ Academy in Casa Grande, Arizona. "It is a great honor and a dream come true to be able to make a positive impact on the young men at the Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy, who we hope to develop into great players," said the 47-year-old Vasquez. "... I am looking forward to achieving greatthings both on and off the field with the academy players." Vasquez brings a wealth of international playing and coaching experience to his new post, having suited up in the national team colors of both the United States and Mexico. He also spent time with several Mexican Primera Division and Major League Soccer clubs before embarking on his coaching career. At Grande Sports Academy, Vasquez will be reunited with Real Salt Lake-Arizona coach Mike Muñoz, who played under Vasquez while an assistant coach for Chivas USA in 2005-06. "I am excited to have the opportunity to work with Martin again and look forward to seeing how his knowledge of the game and his inspiration impacts our players," said Muñoz. Born in Yahualica, Mexico, Vasquez moved at the age of 12 to the United States, where he became an All-American at Alhambra (Calif.) High School and California State University-Los Angeles before embarking on his professional career.