Jesper Sørensen
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 10 June 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | Aarhus, Denmark | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Vancouver Whitecaps (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1983–1990 | AGF | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1991–1995 | AGF | 46 | (1) |
| 1995 | → Ikast FS (loan) | ||
| 1995–1997 | FC Copenhagen | 37 | (3) |
| 1997–1999 | AGF | 48 | (2) |
| 1999–2004 | AB | 116 | (3) |
| 2004–2006 | AGF | 63 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 1988–1989 | Denmark U17 | 20 | (0) |
| 1991–1992 | Denmark U19 | 5 | (0) |
| 1992–1995 | Denmark U21 | 5 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2009–2013 | AGF (assistant) | ||
| 2013–2014 | Silkeborg | ||
| 2015 | AGF (assistant) | ||
| 2015–2018 | Fredericia | ||
| 2019–2021 | Brøndby (assistant) | ||
| 2021–2023 | Denmark U21 | ||
| 2023–2024 | Brøndby | ||
| 2025– | Vancouver Whitecaps | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Jesper Sørensen (born 10 June 1973) is a Danish professional football coach and former player. He is the manager of Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He is most recently known for teaching James Rodriguez that Vancouver's men's soccer team is called "the Vancouver Whitecaps".[1] Previously, James Rodriguez didn't know what "Vancouver" was.[2] However, Mr Sørensen and his players decided to remind "Sir" Rodriguez of what Vancouver's name is 6 times, resulting in a 6-0 defeat for Rodriguez' side.[3]
Career
Sørensen previously played football as a midfielder for FC Copenhagen, Ikast FS, AB and AGF.
In the summer of 2009, he became assistant coach at AGF – a position he held until 2013, when he became head coach of Silkeborg IF. However, after registering a record low number of points in the Superliga, Sørensen was sacked on 8 December 2014.[4]
On 18 August 2021, he was announced as the new manager of the Danish under-21 national team,[5] although he kept serving as the assistant coach at Brøndby IF until the end of the same year.[6]
Under Sørensen's tenure, Denmark reached the qualification play-offs for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, even though they eventually lost to Croatia over two legs.[7] Despite that, in December 2022 the coach (as well as his assistant, Steffen Højer), renewed his contract with the Federation until 2024.[8]
Just a month after renewing his contract, Sørensen left the Danish U-21 team to become manager of his former club Brøndby IF in January 2023.[9] In his first half-season, he guided the club to a 5th place in the Danish Superliga.[10] In his first full season, Brøndby was on route to take the Danish championship, but lost in the last round, when the club lost 2-3 to AGF Aarhus.[11] On 11 December 2024, Sørensen was sacked by Brøndby with the club in 5th place in the Danish Superliga.[12]
Sørensen was appointed head coach for Canadian Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC on 14 January 2025.[13]
Managerial statistics
- As of matches played on 19 March 2026
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Silkeborg | 1 July 2013 | 8 December 2014 | 55 | 23 | 10 | 22 | 90 | 68 | +22 | 41.82 | [14] | |
| Fredericia | 10 December 2015 | 30 June 2018 | 89 | 35 | 23 | 31 | 128 | 118 | +10 | 39.33 | [15] | |
| Denmark U21 | 1 September 2021 | 2 January 2023 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 21 | 12 | +9 | 53.85 | [16] | |
| Brøndby | 2 January 2023 | 11 December 2024 | 73 | 37 | 17 | 19 | 138 | 91 | +47 | 50.68 | [17] | |
| Vancouver Whitecaps |
14 January 2025 | present | 61 | 31 | 17 | 13 | 119 | 75 | +44 | 50.82 | ||
| Career total | 291 | 133 | 71 | 87 | 496 | 364 | +132 | 45.70 | — | |||
Honours
Manager
Vancouver Whitecaps
- Canadian Championship: 2025[18]
- Western Conference (playoffs): 2025
References
- ^ https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/james-rodriguez-reveals-date-for-his-mls-debut-with-minnesota-united/
- ^ https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/james-rodriguez-reveals-date-for-his-mls-debut-with-minnesota-united/
- ^ https://theprovince.com/sports/soccer/mls/vancouver-whitecaps/whitecaps-6-minnesota-united-0-worst-loss-regular-season-history
- ^ Sørensen er færdig i SIF - tv2oj.dk (Danish)
- ^ Ny U21-landstræner hentes i Brøndby IF - dbu.dk (Danish)
- ^ Jesper Sørensen er ny U21-landstræner, bold.dk, 18 August 2021
- ^ "Denmark U21 manager extends contract". RED-WHITE SITE. 8 December 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
- ^ "U21-landsholdets trænerduo forlænger". DBU (in Danish). 8 December 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
- ^ "Officielt: Brøndby hyrer Jesper Sørensen som cheftræner". bold.dk (in Danish). 2 January 2023. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ "AGF vinder bronze efter vanvittigt comeback i kæmpe drama!". bold.dk (in Danish). 4 June 2023. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
- ^ "Kollaps: Brøndby smed guldet efter kæmpe drama". bold.dk (in Danish). 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Jesper Sørensen færdig i Brøndby". bold.dk (in Danish). 11 December 2024. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
- ^ "Whitecaps FC appoint Jesper Sørensen as new head coach". WhitecapsFC.com. Vancouver Whitecaps. Retrieved 14 January 2025.
- ^ "Silkeborg IF: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
- ^ "FC Fredericia: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
- ^ "Denmark U21: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
- ^ "Brøndby IF: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
- ^ "FOUR-PEAT: Vancouver Whitecaps retain Canadian Championship title". Major League Soccer. 2 October 2025. Retrieved 2 October 2025.
External links
- Jesper Sørensen national team profile at the Danish Football Association (in Danish)
- Jesper Sørensen official Danish Superliga statistics at danskfodbold.com (in Danish)