Jack Collison knows a thing or two about both West Ham United and the city of Atlanta, Georgia, which will host the Hammers in the 2025 Premier League Summer Series on Sunday.
The former midfielder played for the Club 121 times between 2008-14, winning promotion in 2012, before retiring through injury at the age of 27 and returning to West Ham to coach schoolboys at the Academy of Football in 2017.
Two years later, the Wales international moved from east London to the America’s South to become head coach of MLS club Atlanta United’s Under-17s. In 2021, he was promoted to head coach of USL Championship outfit Atlanta United 2. He filled that role for 18 months, then coached MLS Next Pro expansion club Huntsville City in Alabama.
Now at USL League Two club Southern Soccer Academy Kings, based 20 miles north of downtown Atlanta in Marietta, Georgia, Collison is looking forward to welcoming the Hammers to the State he now calls home.
Speaking to Atlanta Soccer’s Off The Woodwork podcast host Jason Longshore, the 36-year-old said: “I’m really excited for the Summer Series and obviously for me, with my affinity for Atlanta as a city and knowing the stadium so well, West Ham are my team and I’ve got so many special memories with them, so it ties in really nicely.
“I’m back in town working at Southern Soccer Academy and there’s some really exciting stuff going on there. We’re making some good progress as a group towards our goals and it’s been great to be around it.
“I know what Atlanta is like, a hotbed for soccer, so it’s been phenomenal with the Club World Cup, the Summer Series and the World Cup coming next year. It’s a really exciting time to be around the city and feel that buzz.”
Atlanta hosted eight matches during the Club World Cup, including those involving Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, winners Chelsea and Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami, and now Mercedes-Benz Stadium will welcome West Ham and AFC Bournemouth and Manchester United and Everton for a Premier League Summer Series double-header on Sunday.
“For me, I was at West Ham for ten years as a player and a coach, so West Ham holds a very special place in my heart and theirs is the result I look out for back home, so to be able to share the incredible stadium with these incredible players is really good,” he continued.
“Since I retired, I’ve been fortunate enough to do some ambassador work and be around the fans and I know the Atlanta Ironworks are looking forward to it. With over 40 fan groups in the US, it’s really growing, and the fans are so insightful about West Ham.
“For them to be able to see some great players up close is great, as it is for me to be able to see some really good friends as well. It’s really exciting and it’s set to be an incredible day for everyone.”
