Photo: Mick McDermott
By Sean McGuffin – @SeanMCG704
The 2026 World Cup has been an amazing chance for people around the world to see the best of America. From Cape Town to Tokyo, there have been countless players, coaches, and fans experiencing the United States for the first time. But for some, this World Cup has served as a homecoming. In the case of Ghana Assistant Coach Mick McDermott, the tournament has given him a chance to return to his alma mater, the University of Rhode Island (URI).
Originally from Northern Ireland, McDermott would earn a scholarship to play for Rhode Island in the early 1990s. After a brief stint in USL2, Mick would transition to the sideline, helping coach various club teams as well as joining the staff for the Iranian National Team.
The experience at the national level would land McDermott a job as an assistant coach for the Ghana National Team. It was a new team, but he would be returning to familiar scenery. A group stage match in Foxborough, MA, just down the road from his alma mater, Rhode Island.
The homecoming would be made even sweeter with a scoreless draw between Ghana and the #4-ranked country in the world, England. In the crowd for the huge result was McDermott’s family. Most notably, his wife Karla, whom he met while playing outside back for Rhode Island.
Karla was no stranger to athletics herself, representing the Rhode Island Rams in Volleyball. An on-campus party in the early 90s brought the two together, and they would get married just a year later. The undergrads had a humble courthouse wedding up the road in Warwick, but the marriage remains as strong as McDermott’s passion for the game of soccer. The two Ram alumni were set to return to campus 15 years later.
Just a day after the 0-0 draw against England, Mick and Karla would take their three children to the Kingston campus to meet with the current coach of the Rhode Island Rams, Gareth Elliott. McDermott spoke about the drive down Route 138 when traveling to the campus, saying: “Things have changed, but it still feels the same.”
Alongside their children and Coach Elliott, they walked the campus they once called home, recounting memories of shared Academic Advisors and stories from Keaney Gymnasium. With the close match against England still fresh in the memory, McDermott was reminded of the many close games he was on the pitch for as a Ram.
Karla was especially glad to return to campus and introduce the next generation to the University. “We couldn’t miss the opportunity to bring the kids back to see where it all started.” The process by which matches are selected for cities can be a complicated one, with FIFA seeding and other factors coming into play. But for the McDermott family, a homecoming match in New England almost seems like destiny.
