Nico Estévez

Nicolás "Nico" Estévez Martínez, born on 29 January 1980, is a Spanish football manager. He coaches different teams and helps players improve.

Most recently, Estévez was the head coach of Austin FC, a team in Major League Soccer. His job was to plan strategies, support players, and lead the team in matches.

As a manager, Nico Estévez has helped make football better. His work shows how good leadership can help a team succeed.

Career

Nicolás "Nico" Estévez Martínez started his career coaching young players in Valencia, Spain, when he was only 19 years old. In 2004, he joined Valencia CF to help develop young talent.

In 2011, he became the manager of a new team called Huracán Valencia CF in Segunda División B. He left the club in 2013 after trying to move up to a higher league but did not succeed.

Later in 2013, he returned to Valencia to coach their reserve team. For a short time in December 2013, he became the main coach of Valencia’s first team after another coach left. At 33 years old, he was one of the youngest coaches ever for the team. He led the team in two important matches before returning to his old job.

In 2014, Estévez moved to the United States to work with Columbus Crew SC. He started as a Director of Methodology and later became an assistant coach. In 2019, he followed his coach, Gregg Berhalter, to the United States men's soccer team as an assistant.

In December 2021, Estévez became the head coach of FC Dallas in Major League Soccer. In his first season, he helped the team improve, finishing third in the Western Conference.

In October 2024, he was hired to coach Austin FC, a rival team of FC Dallas. However, he and the team’s Sporting Director were let go in May 2026.

Managerial statistics

As of 16 May 2026

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Huracán Valencia		1 July 2011	1 July 2013	88	41	34	13	109	62	+47	046.59
Valencia B		4 July 2013	7 April 2014	32	8	6	18	28	44	−16	025.00
Valencia (interim)		16 December 2013	26 December 2013	2	1	0	1	3	3	+0	050.00
FC Dallas		2 December 2021	9 June 2024	97	35	32	30	132	120	+12	036.08
Austin FC		25 October 2024	present	56	19	14	23	70	89	−19	033.93
Career total				275	104	86	85	342	318	+24	037.82

Honours

Individual

Nico Estévez got an award for being the best coach in Group 3 of the Segunda División B in the 2012–13 season. The award is called the Ramón Cobo Award.