Mark Jonathan Briggs (born 16 February 1982) is an English
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
coach and former player who is the head coach of
Birmingham Legion FC
Birmingham Legion FC is an American professional soccer club based in Birmingham, Alabama, that competes in the USL Championship, the second division of American soccer. The team was established in August 2013 and played under the name Birming ...
in the
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the second tier of the United States soccer league system#Men's leagues, United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) a ...
.
Playing career
England and Denmark
Briggs began his career with
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...
, joining them on leaving
Sedgley's
Dormston School in the summer of 1998. Briggs captained the youth team to a cup win at Wembley Stadium in 1999 and was Youth Team Player of the Year the same season. In 1999, he also signed his first professional contract. He made his first team debut in the 2000–01 season. After making 12 first-team and 150 reserve-team appearances for the Baggies, he moved to Danish football for two seasons with
Herfølge
Herfølge is a suburb of the town of Køge, Denmark, located about 5 kilometers south of central Køge, and is a part of Køge Municipality. The suburb is connected to Køge and Næstved by the Lille Syd railway line.
Herfølge Church
Herføl ...
in 2002, where they were the Danish 1st Division Champions and won promotion to Supa Liga.
Briggs then proceeded to bounce around the English and Welsh lower leagues, playing briefly for a multitude of clubs including
Notts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football, football club in Nottingham, England, which competes in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of Football in England, English football, following promotion and relegation, promotion ...
,
Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...
,
Hednesford Town
Hednesford Town Football Club is a football club based in Hednesford, Staffordshire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Keys Park. They won the FA Trophy in 2004.
History
The club was established in 1880 as a merger of t ...
. He then crossed the pond and played for
Kalamazoo Outrage before returning for a second stint at Hednesford Town. Briggs then went back to America and spent the 2009 season with the Wilmington Hammerheads before signing with Mosta FC in Malta, where he was Player of the Year in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Briggs then returned to Wilmington, where he finished his career and transitioned into coaching with the
Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017.
Histor ...
.
United States and Malta
In May 2008, Briggs was convinced to cross the Atlantic by former New Zealand international
Stu Riddle
Stu Riddle (born 23 May 1976) is a former footballer who played as a striker. He is currently the head men's soccer coach at Midway University and was formerly the head coach of the men's soccer team at Western Michigan University, University ...
to play for
Kalamazoo Outrage in the
USL Premier Development League
USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...
as an over-age player. He played the PDL season in Kalamazoo, helping the team reach the PDL playoffs.
After a brief stint back in England with Hednesford in the US offseason, Briggs signed with the
Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017.
Histor ...
in the
USL Second Division
The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...
in 2009. The Hammerheads won the USL 2 title, and Briggs was the team's Player of the Year.
Following the end of the American season, Briggs signed for
Mosta
Mosta () is a small but densely populated city in the Northern Region of Malta. The most prominent building in Mosta is the Rotunda, a large basilica built by its parishioners' volunteer labour. It features the world's 3rd largest unsupported ...
of the
Maltese First Division
The Maltese Challenge League (referred to as the BOV Challenge League for sponsorship reasons) is the second-highest division in Maltese football, behind the Maltese Premier League. The First Division was the precursor of the present Premier ...
on a two-year contract on 1 October 2009.
On 25 February 2010,
Charleston Battery
The Charleston Battery are an American professional association football, soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are the oldest continuously operating professional socc ...
announced the signing of Briggs on loan then for the remaining season.
A spell with
Tooting & Mitcham United, whom he joined for the 2011–12 season, was followed in December 2011 by a move to
Rushall Olympic.
In February 2012, he rejoined Wilmington Hammerheads for a second spell in the USL Pro Division. After the 2012 season, Briggs was named the Hammerheads Player of the Year.
Managerial career
In November 2016, Briggs joined
Mike Petke's staff at
Real Monarchs
Real Monarchs is a professional soccer club playing in the MLS Next Pro, a third division league of American soccer. The team is an affiliate of the Major League Soccer (MLS) club Real Salt Lake. Real Monarchs are based in the Real Salt Lake ...
as an assistant. Upon Petke's promotion to the
Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake (RSL) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Fou ...
senior team in March 2017, Briggs was elevated to head coach for Real Monarchs. On 20 November 2017, Briggs was named
USL
USL may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Underground Sound of Lisbon, a Portuguese dance music project
* Urban Strawberry Lunch, a band from Liverpool
Companies
* United Spirits Limited, India
* Former United States Lines shipping company
C ...
coach of the year after leading the Monarchs to the playoffs for the first time in their history.
In 2019, Briggs joined
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the second tier of the United States soccer league system#Men's leagues, United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) a ...
club
Sacramento Republic FC
Sacramento Republic FC is an American professional soccer team based in Sacramento, California, that competes in the Western Conference of the USL Championship, the second level in US soccer. Co-founded by Warren Smith and Joe Wagoner in 2012, t ...
as Academy Director. Briggs was promoted to head coach for the
2020 season. On 7 December 2021, the Republic announced that Briggs had agreed to a new contract to bring him back for the
2022 season. On 13 July 2022, Briggs was named USL Championship coach of the month for June 2022 after leading the club to victory in all four of their league games and reaching the semifinals of the
2022 U.S. Open Cup for the first time. On November 4th, 2024 it was announced that Sacramento Republic and Mark Briggs mutually agreed to part ways.
Honours
As player
Wilmington Hammerheads
*
USL Second Division
The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...
Regular Season:
2009
2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
As manager
Real Monarchs SLC
*
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the second tier of the United States soccer league system#Men's leagues, United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) a ...
Regular Season:
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
Individual
* USL Championship Coach of the Year:
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
References
External links
Mark Briggs' personal siteCharleston Battery biowith career stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Briggs, Mark
1982 births
Living people
English men's footballers
USL Second Division players
Danish Superliga players
West Bromwich Albion F.C. players
Herfølge Boldklub players
Notts County F.C. players
Tipton Town F.C. players
AFC Telford United players
Shrewsbury Town F.C. players
Northwich Victoria F.C. players
Redditch United F.C. players
The New Saints F.C. players
Welshpool Town F.C. players
Hednesford Town F.C. players
Willenhall Town F.C. players
Chasetown F.C. players
Kalamazoo Outrage players
Wilmington Hammerheads FC players
Mosta F.C. players
Charleston Battery players
USL League Two players
Northern Premier League players
Expatriate men's footballers in Malta
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark
Tooting & Mitcham United F.C. players
Rushall Olympic F.C. players
Isthmian League players
USL Championship players
Wilmington Hammerheads FC
Real Monarchs coaches
Men's association football midfielders
English expatriate sportspeople in the United States
English expatriate men's footballers
English football managers
Footballers from Wolverhampton
21st-century English sportsmen