Concordia University Irvine alum Chris Gould serves as the women's soccer head coach at his alma mater and has helped the Golden Eagles emerge as postseason contenders on the NCAA DII stage.
From 2009 to 2023, Gould served as the director of soccer at CUI and led both the men's and women's programs to over 140 victories each. He steered the Golden Eagles to winning campaigns in 22 of the combined 30 seasons he was on both sidelines.
Gould enters the 2025 fall season with 171 career wins as the CUI women's head coach. Along with 144 career wins with the men's team, both those totals rank first in each program's history.
Gould has helped the CUI women's team emerge with a weekly perch in the national rankings and as high as No. 5 in the U.S. Coaches DII poll in 2024. CUI featured eight All-PacWest selections in 2024 and has won at least 13 games in each of the past three campaigns. This includes the program's first three NCAA DII playoff wins and three straight appearances in the NCAA DII West Regional Tournament bracket.
Along with assistant coaches Cheyne Gordon and Erik Kirsch, Gould helped navigate both CUI soccer programs through the COVID-19 pandemic. Both teams were able to resume play with four regular season games in the spring of 2021 against PacWest Conference foes as well as multiple scrimmages, while adhering to strict COVID-19 health and safety protocols. This included the first-ever CUI soccer night game at home under the lights at Eagles Field.
Gould coached USMNT selection and MLS star Christian Ramirez during the 2011 and 2012 campaigns at CUI and he and his staff helped lead the Green and Gold during the school's transition from NAIA to NCAA DII status. CUI graduates who have gone on to play professional soccer in recent years include Connor Gordon (Orange County SC) and Elijah Amadin (LA GalaxyII) on the men's side and Mari Maldonaldo (Club Puebla), Maddie Lauro (Campbelltown SC) and Val Cortez (Toluca FC) on the women's side.
In the NCAA DII era, Concordia has emerged as a consistent contender as one of the top programs in the league. Olivia Ocampo and Jadenn Carrillo have even been recognized as PacWest Freshmen of the Year.
After both CUI soccer teams finished second in the 2019 PacWest standings, a school-record 12 Eagles earned All-PacWest honors, with eight coming from the women's side. Defender Michael Oakson earned All-PacWest First Team honors from the league, while the women had three First Team selections in Maldonado, Carrillo, and defender Isabella Angotti-Jones.
A great memory from the 2018 men's season featured Connor Gordon tying the school record with career goal No. 50 on Senior Day. Gordon was later named a D2CCA Third Team All-American. Gordon also made First Team All-West Region and First Team All-PacWest after earning his degree.
One of the most impressive CUI women's teams in the Gould era went unbeaten in its final six contests in 2018 to finish 9-6-2 overall and tie for second in the PacWest with a 7-3-1 conference mark. Six Eagles on the women's squad in 2018 made All-PacWest, with three making the First Team list in forward Carmany Jones and seniors McKenna Carrillo and Kryssa Johnson. Jones was also named to the D2CCA Women's Soccer All-West Region Second Team.
He was named the PacWest Men's Soccer Coach of the Year in 2016 after the men finished 11-5-2 overall and second in the league with a 10-3-0 conference record. The women won a dozen matches that year and 12 Eagles secured spots on the All-PacWest squads.
In 2013, Gould led both the men's and women's teams that captured the GSAC regular season titles and also emerged as GSAC Tournament Champions. This was the second straight for the CUI men and first in program history for the women. He was also the first coach in GSAC history to be voted Conference Coach of the Year for both the men and women. The men’s team advanced to the second round of the NAIA National Championship and the women reached the quarterfinals, their first trip to the NAIA Final site, which was their first loss of the year.
His 2012 men’s team won its first GSAC Championship in six years and the first GSAC Tournament Championship in program history. They advanced to the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Championship. Gould was the 2012 GSAC Men's Soccer Coach of the Year and the 2012 NSCAA NAIA Men's Soccer West Regional Coach of the Year. He has coached nine NAIA All-Americans, 20 All-GSAC selections, and two GSAC Players of the Year.
His 2013 squad set team records in wins (18), goals (55), longest unbeaten streak (21), and longest road winning streak (5) and road unbeaten streak (13). He has coached five NAIA All-Americans and 23 All-Conference selections.
Gould played for two years in a Concordia uniform and graduated with both his bachelor's ('06) and master's ('07) degrees in Irvine. On the field, Gould scored 16 goals - including five game-winners - and tallied 42 points, as he helped Concordia win its first-ever GSAC title in 2005.
Gould also spent the 2006 and 2007 campaigns as a graduate assistant while finishing up his bachelor's degree in entrepreneurship. He earned a Master of Business Administration, finishing in 2009.
Gould is a United States Soccer Federation (USSF) ‘A' license holder and spent two seasons as the top assistant at Irvine Valley College prior to taking up his current post.
Gould and his wife, Dara, were married June 26, 2009 and currently reside in Huntington Beach. They have three children (Christopher, Harlow, and most recently a baby girl in 2023).
