Giovanni Savarese Takes Melbourne Victory Job on Two-Year Deal
Giovanni Savarese has taken over as Melbourne Victory’s new A-League Men’s head coach on a two-year contract that runs through the end of the 2027/28 season. The 54-year-old arrives with more than a decade of head-coaching experience in North America and a resume built on trophies and repeated postseason runs.
Victory moved after deciding to bring in a fresh perspective for its program, and Savarese has already started work on preparations for the 2026/27 campaign. His first competitive match in charge will come in the Round of 32 of the Australia Cup.
Melbourne Victory and Savarese
John Dovaston said the club was “delighted” to appoint Savarese, pointing to his background as a player and coach across multiple continents, including Europe and the US. Caroline Carnegie described the hire as a deliberate decision to add a fresh perspective, while also stressing his attacking football philosophy and success in a competition with strong parallels to Melbourne Victory’s environment.
Savarese said he felt a strong connection to the club’s vision and values from his first conversations with it. He told supporters the team will work tirelessly, play with real ambition and compete for the biggest honours.
Savarese’s North American record
The appointment brings a coach who guided New York Cosmos to NASL championships in 2013, 2015 and 2016. He then spent five-and-a-half seasons as head coach of Portland Timbers, where he reached MLS Cup finals in 2018 and 2021, won the 2020 MLS is Back Tournament and made five post-season appearances.
That record gives Victory a coach who has already handled long club cycles, playoff pressure and title runs. He also represented Venezuela on 30 occasions and scored 10 international goals before moving fully into coaching.
Savarese will arrive in Melbourne in the second week of July after concluding his World Cup commentary commitments, leaving the club to begin the build before he is physically in place. For Victory, the contract length and the timing point to a long runway rather than a short-term fix, with the first real test waiting in the Australia Cup and the league campaign to follow.
