Rick Schantz

Richard Lewis Schantz is an American soccer coach. He co-founded FC Tucson in 2010 and was its first head coach. He was also head coach of Phoenix Rising FC in the USL Championship.

Coaching record

Team From To RecordGWLTWin % FC Tucson Phoenix Rising FC (Interim) Phoenix Rising FC (Interim) Phoenix Rising FC Career totals

Honors USL Championship Coach of the Year Winner: 2019

Personal life Schantz is a native of Tucson, Arizona, and graduated from Salpointe Catholic High School.

Homophobia controversy During a Phoenix Rising game with San Diego Loyal on September 30, 2020, midfielder Junior Flemmings was accused of using a Jamaican homophobic slur against the openly gay Loyal midfielder Collin Martin.

Video capturing an exchange between Rising coach Rich Schantz and Loyal coach Landon Donovan over the incident led to claims of Schantz telling Donovan that the incident was "part of the game," that the players were "competing," as well as accusations that Schantz tried to downplay the incident. and that he was not excusing "any alleged homophobic behavior" from his players. and Schantz was placed on administrative leave following the incident. Team officials say Schantz's placement on administrative leave was unrelated to the investigation, Schantz later apologized to Martin, as well as his team, the USL Championship league, and the LGBTQ community over the incident,