Nelson Cupello brings decades of soccer experience to Flower City Union. (Photo courtesy of Monroe Community College)
By Michael Lewis
FrontRowSoccer.com Editor
Former Rochester Lancers defender and Monroe Community College head coach Nelson Cupello will be named coach of the Flower City Union, according to reliable sources.
Cupello will assist head coach Jordan Sullivan, for whom he played at MCC.
He will bring a lifetime of experience to Flower City.
Born in Brazil and raised in the United States, Cupello was a standout at MCC and Brockport State before he was chosen by the Lancers in the 1975 North American Soccer League draft.
He played with the team for five seasons before becoming a player-assistant coach with the Rochester Flash (American Soccer League) from 1981-82.
Cupello, 71, had entered the college coaching ranks, first as an assistant at MCC under Joe Mancarella, then the head coach at Fredonia State before returning to Rochester to direct the Tribunes from 1990 until his retirement in 2018.
During a successful tenure, Cupello guided MCC to a 367-38-38 mark. He led the team to 14 Region III titles and was named region coach of the year 17 times and the Northeast District coach of the year on three occasions. Named NSCAA coach of the year in 2012, Cupello distinguished himself in an MCC uniform, finding the net 54 times in two years. He was inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame in 2002.
The Union kicks off its National Independent Soccer Association season at the Maryland Bobcats on April 1 at 1 p.m. The team will host the Bobcats at its home opener at the Rochester Community Sports Complex in Rochester, N.Y. on Saturday, May 13 at 6 p.m.
