GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Athletic Club Grand Rapids today introduced Erik Bushey as the first head coach in club history at a news conference at the David D. Hunting YMCA in Grand Rapids. Bushey joins West Michigan’s new professional soccer club from Major League Soccer’s Colorado Rapids, where he has led the club’s MLS NEXT Pro team Colorado Rapids 2 since the league’s inaugural 2022 season, earning 2023 MLS NEXT Pro Coach of the Year honors and guiding the team to the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro Cup final.
“We set out to find a coach who has won at this level, developed players for the next level and built cultures people want to be part of. Erik has done all three,” said AC Grand Rapids President Darrius Barnes. “He’s been one of the most successful coaches in MLS NEXT Pro since the league launched, and he’s spent more than three decades helping young players reach their potential. Importantly, he shares our belief that how we build this club matters as much as what we build, and his approach aligns perfectly with our club’s community-first vision.”
Since 2022, Bushey has built Rapids 2 into one of the league’s most consistent winners. His 2023 team finished atop the Frontier Division standings, earned the No. 1 overall playoff seed and led MLS NEXT Pro in scoring, earning him Coach of the Year honors. In 2025, he led Rapids 2 to the Western Conference championship, earning a berth in the MLS NEXT Pro Cup final, which the team lost in a penalty shootout.
Bushey arrives in Grand Rapids with the second most wins in MLS NEXT Pro coaching history. He has also served as an assistant coach for the Rapids’ MLS First Team during preseason.
“It’s a rare opportunity to be the first head coach of a club and help shape its identity from day one,” said Bushey. “From my first conversations with Darrius and the rest of the club’s leadership team it was clear we share a vision: build the culture first, develop people and players the right way, and compete to win every time we step on the field. When you add the ownership group’s commitment, Amway Stadium and how much this community already cares about this club, I couldn’t be more excited to get to work and help lead a team West Michigan is proud of.”
Bushey will report to VP of Sporting Operations & Strategy B.J. Snow, and lead the First Team, overseeing training, match preparation, player development and the First Team technical staff. He will serve as the primary steward of AC Grand Rapids’ playing identity and game model, working alongside Snow and Head of Scouting, Recruitment and Performance Analysis Eric Laurie to build the inaugural roster, while partnering with the club’s academy coaches and leadership to create a clear pathway for players in the region.
“Erik has won everywhere he’s coached, but what made him the right fit is how he wins,” said Snow. “He believes culture drives performance and that developing people is how you build winning teams. That’s exactly the foundation we want for this club. He’s coached at every level of the pathway, from youth clubs to the youth national teams to the professional ranks, and he understands how each piece connects. I’m excited to work alongside him as we build our roster and define how AC Grand Rapids plays.”
Before taking over Rapids 2, Bushey coached the Rapids Academy’s U-17 and U-19 teams from 2017 to 2021, earning U.S. Soccer Development Academy Central Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2017-18, and led the Rapids’ U-23 side to a 2018 USL PDL Mountain Division title.
At the international level, he served as an assistant coach with the U.S. Under-17 and Under-23 Women’s National Teams, including at the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan.
Earlier, he spent 15 years as technical director of Colorado Rush Soccer Club, which produced five national championship teams during his tenure. Over his club coaching career, he has helped develop more than 40 national team players and more than 20 professionals.
A native of Auburn, Washington, Bushey won an NAIA national championship as a player at Belhaven College in Jackson, Mississippi, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business. He went on to play for and captain the Jackson Chargers and Spokane Shadow in the USISL. He holds a U.S. Soccer Federation “A” License and an Elite Formation Coaching License from the French Football Federation.
Bushey credits his partner, Cami, and his three stepchildren, Connor, Rylie, and Alaina, for their critical support through his professional journey. He and Cami will relocate to West Michigan from the Denver area.
The hiring of Bushey marks a major milestone as AC Grand Rapids builds toward its inaugural MLS NEXT Pro season in 2027 and its inaugural home opener at Amway Stadium on March 19, 2027.
