The Guam Football Association is on the lookout for a new national head coach after Karl Dodd resigned last week due to a family emergency.
Karl Dodd. Photo: Bhutan Football Association
The former Scottish Premier League defender was appointed head coach of the men's national team in January 2018 and led the Matao to the second round of qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 Asian Cup.
Guam Football Association General Secretary Marvin "Ike" Iseke said Dodd recently advised them of his decision to resign due to a family emergency.
"We supported his decision to put his family first and continue to support him through this tough situation," he said.
"His decision was made at a very difficult time as he was preparing for the upcoming Asian Qualifiers of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023 to be completed in June in China.
"We thank Karl for all his contributions to Guam's national program and wish him and his family all the best during this time and in future endeavours."
Karl Dodd led Guam to its largest victory over a FIFA member nation in 2019 when they defeated Bhutan 5-0 to seal a 5-1 aggregate win in the first round of qualifying for the World and Asian Cups.
He was the first Guam coach to appoint a sports psychologist as part of his staff and was heavily involved with mentoring local coaches at from Under 15 to Under 20s level.
Guam also developed a National Program badge - the Guahan Futbol badge - which has been displayed on all National Team match kits since 2019, in a project spearheaded by veteran midfielder Mark Chargualaf.
Mark Chargualaf poses alongside the new Guam Football national team badge. Photo: Guam Football Association
Following the cancellation of international matches in 2020 because of Covid-19, Guam's remaining Round 2 qualifiers against the Philippines, Syria and China were postponed. The matches will now be played in a centralised format in China in order to be completed by June.
Karl Dodd departed Guam on Friday to return home to Australia, with an interim coach to be announced in the coming weeks.
