The Ottawa Rapid FC have announced that former Canadian women’s national team defender Carmelina Moscato has been appointed the club’s new head coach next season. Moscato represented Canada at three FIFA Women’s World Cups in 2003, 2011 and 2015, and was part of the bronze medallist Canadian team at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. She was inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame in 2023. She also played with the Ottawa Fury FC women’s team from 2005 to 2008. Her coaching career includes roles in Denmark, Mexico, the U.S., and Saudi Arabia. “Carmelina’s return to Canada represents exactly the kind of moment this league was created to make possible,” said Ottawa Rapid FC CEO Thomas Gilbert, in a news release. “Her appointment is an important moment for our club, and for Canadian soccer. We’re proud to welcome her back to Ottawa as we begin this next chapter.” The Northern Super League (NSL) club says Moscato will assume her new role in the leadup to the 2027 season. Katrine Pedersen will continue to lead the team through the remainder of the 2026 regular season and any potential playoff run. “I’m very excited. I’m here in Ottawa, absorbing it all, connecting with people from the club and really feeling as if it’s a really cool opportunity for next year,” Moscato told CTV News Ottawa. “For me, as a Canadian, as a former Canadian athlete and competitor, I’m heart and soul Canada. So, for me, it’s a pleasure and an honour to come back and work with one of our very best and one of our very own. It’s a great team and a great city.” Moscato will be the club’s head coach through the 2028 season. The Ottawa Rapid FC says Moscato will work with the club’s leadership later this year, but her responsibilities will remain separate from the team’s day-to-day operations while Pederson remains at the helm. With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Austin Lee
