A NEW CHAPTER BEGINS:
Lionsbridge FC Names Josh Spencer Sporting Director and Head Coach
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Lionsbridge Football Club has named Josh Spencer its new Sporting Director and Head Coach, placing one of the club’s foundational figures in charge of its football future.
Under a multi-year agreement, Spencer will set the club’s overall technical direction, lead the Lionsbridge first team and oversee its growing youth programming as the club prepares for its 10th anniversary season in 2027.
“Lionsbridge has meant a huge amount to me since I first joined the club as a player in 2018, so having the opportunity to lead it into its next chapter is something I’m incredibly proud of. I’ve grown with this club and I care deeply about the people, the community and everything that Lionsbridge represents,” Spencer said. “I’m excited to build on what has already been created here. We want to compete for championships, develop players and establish a clear football identity that runs throughout the club. My job is to continue with the development of the club and find new ways to move us forward.”
“Josh is the right person to lead Lionsbridge into the future as our Sporting Director and Head Coach,” co-founders Mike Vest and Kevin Joyce said. “Lionsbridge is deeply personal to Josh and his family. His character is unquestioned. Players gravitate toward him. He plans with purpose. He looks after everyone and everything that makes Lionsbridge special. He has played a major role in many of the club’s proudest moments, but he also knows the heart and soul of the club are bigger than any individual result, season or trophy. His sense of stewardship combined with his tremendous football intelligence are why we asked him to lead our next chapter and why we’re so thrilled that he chose to accept it.”
Spencer’s Lionsbridge story began in 2018, when the Nottingham, England native became the first player signed in club history. A starting defender during Lionsbridge’s inaugural season, he returned as an assistant coach in 2022.
Spencer played a key role in recruiting and developing the players who delivered Lionsbridge’s four Chesapeake Division championships in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2026, as well as the club’s run to the 2023 USL League Two national final.
Lionsbridge FC Names Josh Spencer Sporting Director and Head Coach
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Lionsbridge Football Club has named Josh Spencer its new Sporting Director and Head Coach, placing one of the club’s foundational figures in charge of its football future.
Under a multi-year agreement, Spencer will set the club’s overall technical direction, lead the Lionsbridge first team and oversee its growing youth programming as the club prepares for its 10th anniversary season in 2027.
“Lionsbridge has meant a huge amount to me since I first joined the club as a player in 2018, so having the opportunity to lead it into its next chapter is something I’m incredibly proud of. I’ve grown with this club and I care deeply about the people, the community and everything that Lionsbridge represents,” Spencer said. “I’m excited to build on what has already been created here. We want to compete for championships, develop players and establish a clear football identity that runs throughout the club. My job is to continue with the development of the club and find new ways to move us forward.”
“Josh is the right person to lead Lionsbridge into the future as our Sporting Director and Head Coach,” co-founders Mike Vest and Kevin Joyce said. “Lionsbridge is deeply personal to Josh and his family. His character is unquestioned. Players gravitate toward him. He plans with purpose. He looks after everyone and everything that makes Lionsbridge special. He has played a major role in many of the club’s proudest moments, but he also knows the heart and soul of the club are bigger than any individual result, season or trophy. His sense of stewardship combined with his tremendous football intelligence are why we asked him to lead our next chapter and why we’re so thrilled that he chose to accept it.”
Spencer’s Lionsbridge story began in 2018, when the Nottingham, England native became the first player signed in club history. A starting defender during Lionsbridge’s inaugural season, he returned as an assistant coach in 2022.
Spencer played a key role in recruiting and developing the players who delivered Lionsbridge’s four Chesapeake Division championships in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2026, as well as the club’s run to the 2023 USL League Two national final.
Beyond the first team, Spencer co-launched Lionsbridge Academy Experience, serving as its Director of Coaching, establishing the club’s approach to player development into the youth game. He created the program’s technical framework, assembled and led its highly credentialed coaching staff and built an environment centered on elite-level instruction, honest feedback and measurable development. Spencer has also directed Lionsbridge’s summer camps across Hampton Roads during the past four years.
As Sporting Director, Spencer will now bring those responsibilities together under one club-wide football vision, shaping first-team recruitment and development, setting Lionsbridge’s technical identity and overseeing programming designed to serve, inspire and develop young players throughout the Virginia Peninsula.
As a player, Spencer developed in English academy systems at Derby County, Lincoln City and Boston United before coming to the U.S. in 2014 to attend West Virginia Wesleyan College. He was a four-year starter and three-year captain for the Bobcats, helping lead the program to the Mountain East Conference championship during his senior season. After playing for Lionsbridge in 2018, Spencer returned to England, where he competed for Grantham Town and Spalding United and began his career in coaching and player development.
He returned to West Virginia Wesleyan as an assistant coach in 2021 under his former coach and mentor, Gavin Donaldson. Following Donaldson’s passing, Spencer was appointed the sixth head coach in the program’s history.
Spencer is completing his master’s degree in Soccer Coaching Education at Ohio University and earned his undergraduate degree in kinesiology and exercise science from West Virginia Wesleyan. In college, he and his now wife, Dr. Mary (Cooper) Spencer, were both team captains and center backs for their respective Bobcats teams.
Spencer succeeds Chris Whalley, who served as Lionsbridge’s head coach from 2018 through 2026. Spencer will continue as an assistant coach on Tennant McVea’s staff with the Old Dominion University NCAA Division I men’s soccer program, a role he has held since 2024.
As Sporting Director, Spencer will now bring those responsibilities together under one club-wide football vision, shaping first-team recruitment and development, setting Lionsbridge’s technical identity and overseeing programming designed to serve, inspire and develop young players throughout the Virginia Peninsula.
As a player, Spencer developed in English academy systems at Derby County, Lincoln City and Boston United before coming to the U.S. in 2014 to attend West Virginia Wesleyan College. He was a four-year starter and three-year captain for the Bobcats, helping lead the program to the Mountain East Conference championship during his senior season. After playing for Lionsbridge in 2018, Spencer returned to England, where he competed for Grantham Town and Spalding United and began his career in coaching and player development.
He returned to West Virginia Wesleyan as an assistant coach in 2021 under his former coach and mentor, Gavin Donaldson. Following Donaldson’s passing, Spencer was appointed the sixth head coach in the program’s history.
Spencer is completing his master’s degree in Soccer Coaching Education at Ohio University and earned his undergraduate degree in kinesiology and exercise science from West Virginia Wesleyan. In college, he and his now wife, Dr. Mary (Cooper) Spencer, were both team captains and center backs for their respective Bobcats teams.
Spencer succeeds Chris Whalley, who served as Lionsbridge’s head coach from 2018 through 2026. Spencer will continue as an assistant coach on Tennant McVea’s staff with the Old Dominion University NCAA Division I men’s soccer program, a role he has held since 2024.
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