Exclusive: 11 things to know about Charlotte FC’s first head coach

Miguel Ángel Ramírez may have arrived in the U.S. to coach in Major League Soccer, but one day he’d like to teach somewhere like Harvard University.

I sat down with Ramírez on a warm December night at Bank of America Stadium. He’d just finished the MLS Expansion Draft, and Charlotte walked away with three players and a record $875,000 in general allocation money via two trades. But we weren’t there to talk tactics.

• Instead we discussed things like how he dedicated himself to education from age 17-26, and how he loves books, live music and culture.
• Here are 11 things to know about him before Charlotte kicks off its inaugural regular season at D.C. United on Feb. 26.

1) He loves South End on the weekends.

“It’s packed and busy with young people, so at least you feel the energy of Charlotte,” Ramírez told me.

2) He hasn’t had a chance to try many restaurants, because downtime is almost nonexistent with preseason starting next month.

But when he can, he enjoys a good meal with his staff.

• He has eaten at North Italia and Barcelona in South End.

3) His home is close to NoDa.

“I have my house already, in a very quiet neighborhood that I love, because when I’m finished with the noise here, I got to the peace and quiet,” Ramírez said.

4) He loves live music, museums, books and movies.

He saw Mexican, Christian singer Jesús Adrián Romero perform in Boston.

• “He’s more than a singer, because he’s also part of my spiritual life,” Ramírez said.

His favorite book is “Perfume: The story of a Murderer” a novel by Patrick Süskind, and he loved the Harry Potter series as a kid. 

• “This book, I feel as though I could smell what I was reading,” Ramírez said.

5) He has four degrees. Four.

The 37-year-old Spaniard loves education, clearly. He has two bachelor’s and two master’s degrees.

• He holds bachelor’s degrees in sports science and in physical education.
• His master’s are in mental coaching and in sporting direction.
• “I love education,” he told me. “I was in Boston and I was at Harvard, and I was thinking I would like to teach here when I stop coaching.”

6) He was pursuing his PhD when he got the call in 2012 to coach at Aspire Academy in Qatar, which would lead him to Ecuador, followed by Brazil and ultimately Charlotte.

“I couldn’t decline this offer,” Ramírez said of Qatar, adding he hasn’t stopped coaching since.

7) When he moves to a new place, he tries to live as people do there.

In Qatar and Ecuador, that meant sharing meals and drinks with people in their homes.

8) He felt like a father to his academy players in Ecuador.

Much of his career has been dedicated to youth coaching,  joining Ecuador’s Independiente del Valle as academy director in 2018 and assuming the role of interim head coach for the first team in May 2019. 

• “I was literally the father of the 100 boys we had,” Ramírez said.
• Those players still text him to share their problems and joys.

9) Ecuador really connected with him.

It’s also where he met his girlfriend.

• “[Ecuador] is part of my life and my heart,” Ramírez said.

10) Brazil was a stressful and crazy learning experience.

Ramírez spent three months coaching Sport Club Internacional in Brazil, but was fired him after being knocked out of the Copa do Brasil by lower level side Vitória.

11) As for the U.S.? Time will tell.

“America, we are still meeting each other,” Ramírez said.

Bonus: Espresso is his caffeine of choice.