
FORWARD MADISON FC ASSISTANT COACH, JOHN PASCARELLA, DEPARTS FOR TAMPA BAY
Pascarella makes move up to USL Championship League
MADISON, WI: Forward Madison FC has announced the departure of Assistant Coach, John Pascarella, from the Club today to take an assistant coaching role with USL Championship Club, Tampa Bay Rowdies. Pascarella will make this mid-season move immediately.
“It’s a difficult thing for me to say,” Pascarella said. “I’ve had four tremendous years with the Club. I will miss the staff that I’ve worked with and I would like to thank Matt Glaeser in particular for bringing me here. He’s the one who took the chance on me and I can’t thank him enough for that.”
Pascarella has been one of Forward Madison FC’s assistant coaches since the 2022 season. He came to Madison as the first hire of Head Coach and Technical Director, Matt Glaeser. Prior to joining FMFC, Pascarella spent time as a player, head coach, goalkeeping coach and assistant coach for various teams. He played at Penn State before playing abroad for Peru. After returning to the States, Pascarella played for Richmond Kickers, Standard Falcons, and Los Angeles Galaxy.
During his professional coaching career, Pascarella was an assistant coach for the Kansas City Wizards (now Sporting KC) 2013 MLS Cup Championship. He became head coach for Des Moines Menace where he took the team to the USL League Two Conference Finals in 2017. Following that, he was appointed as goalkeeping coach for the Minnesota United Loons until 2019 when he took up a head coach position with OKC Energy before finally making the move to Madison.
“JP has had a tremendous influence on our club, both on and off of the field,” said Forward Madison FC Head Coach & Technical Director, Matt Glaeser. “He’s been a great asset to our technical department over the past four seasons, helping us to two consecutive playoff berths and a semi-final and final appearance last season. While JP will be greatly missed, we feel proud to be a part of his coaching pathway and helping him move up the ladder. We want to be an environment where players and coaches
are able to grow, develop and accomplish their goals and JP is a great example of that. We wish him and his family the very best success moving forward.”
Pascarella was an incredible part of the FMFC Technical Staff, both on and off the pitch. Notably, he helped coach the 2024 Forward Madison team to the Jägermeister Cup final and the USL League One semi-final. Pascarella’s last match with Forward Madison FC was last night at home against Spokane Velocity FC. Though his departure is bittersweet, the Club’s technical and front office staff wish him well as he moves up into a USL Championship league position.
“There’s probably not enough times that I’ve said how much the Club, all its fans and all its employees mean to me,” said Pascarella. “I can only hope that in parting, what you guys remember are the things that I’ve left behind and the emotion that I’ve left on the field and with all of the players and all of you here. I’ll miss you. I love you all, and thank you for the time.” About Forward Madison FC: Forward Madison FC is a charter member of USL League One, launched in the Spring of 2019. The Flamingos were a USL League One playoff team in 2019, 2023, 2024, and have made an international name for themselves with a fun-loving, flamboyant brand. More information and registration for the team’s weekly newsletter is available at www.forwardmadisonfc.com. Follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.