WEST LONDON, England – Rutgers women's soccer Class of 1992 graduate Denise Reddy parlayed her Scarlet Knights student-athlete success into a professional career in Europe before conquering English football with Chelsea F.C. as an assistant manager.
 
The Blues most recently won the Women's FA Cup and the Women's Super League, the top two league football titles in England. Reddy has been on the Chelsea managerial staff since 2020.
 
"It's a tremendous dynasty built by Emma Hayes," Reddy said of Chelsea, which has won three consecutive FA cups and was runner-up in the 2020-21 UEFA Women's Champions League. "I'm grateful to come into a successful program, one of the best teams in Europe. It's been exciting."
 
The Hazlet, New Jersey native most likely was born with the grit and drive to produce this level of success, but it was certainly honed and refined "On the Banks." At Rutgers, Reddy played in 81 games as a defensive-minded star, scoring 19 career points on five goals and nine assists. The two-time team captain was named Second Team All-America in 1991 following her senior season, a 13-win campaign for Rutgers that ended with an ECAC Tournament title.
 
Reddy is still connected to her Scarlet Knight teammates, who keep a WhatsApp group active. She also is connected to the current regime at Rutgers, staying close with head coach Mike O'Neill after coaching together in the PDA program. Reddy coached current Director of Operations Trish DiPaolo when she was a 17-year-old in PDA, and crossed paths with current assistant coach Madison Tiernan during Reddy's coaching stint with Sky Blue F.C. in the NWSL.
 
"Mike and the staff have done an amazing job at Rutgers," Reddy said. "It's become a top program and always competes at the end of the season in the NCAA Tournament. Once you get to a point in college athletics where success comes on the national stage, it's an attractive spot for top players. It's always been a place where New Jersey players can be proud to stay home."
 
The four-year soccer starter at Rutgers won two ECAC titles, but that did not quite fully scratch the competitive itch. Reddy also played for Rutgers' women's basketball team from 1990-93 and appeared in the 1993 Atlantic 10 championship game.
 
The diverse and athletic college career attracted professional clubs in Europe and Reddy took her talents abroad to Sweden's professional ranks with Umeå IK and then Malmö DFF for 11 years. When it was time to hang up the cleats, Reddy explored a coaching career, which had already begun in college when she coached in the New Jersey Olympic Development Program from 1989-94. Her first professional coaching gig was in the USL W-League with the New Jersey Wildcats in 2006.
 
Following NWSL stops at Sky Blue and the Chicago Red Stars, Reddy returned to Sweden, then Denmark as a manager. Reddy then returned Stateside in 2016 as an assistant coach for the Washington Spirit of the NWSL before a head coaching stint with Sky Blue from 2017-19.
 
Reddy coached with current Chelsea manager Emma Hayes in the NWSL and stayed friends. When Reddy was coaching the United States U20 National Team (with current Rutgers players Emily Mason and Sam Kroeger and on the roster) in 2020, she received a call from Hayes to join Chelsea. Reddy could not say no to that opportunity.
 
Following the recent run of success, Reddy reflects on how important her time was at Rutgers in preparing a career of high-level football at home and across the pond.
 
"I always felt that Rutgers has been an extended family of mine, and I always stayed in touch with coaches and players," Reddy said. "It's been something important and meaningful in my life, and I am extremely blessed to have played here. I learned so much through being a student-athlete, things I keep and use as a player and a coach today."
 
 
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