York United FC announced on Friday the appointment of Jorge Villalpando as the club’s new Technical/Sporting Director.

The 38-year-old, a native of Mexico City, boasts an extremely rich pedigree having spent 12 years in Liga MX as a goalkeeper, most notably across two stints and 158 appearances with Puebla FC.

He also enjoyed two spells with Jaguares Chiapas, accumulating close to 60 appearances. While there, he tasted extensive Copa Libertadores experience as the club – with Jackson Martinez up front – made it to the quarter-finals of the competition. Later, during his time with Pachuca, Villalpando was involved in their 2014/2015 Concacaf Champions League adventure.

At international level, Villalpando was named to Hugo Sanchez’s Under-23 Mexico side for the 2008 Olympic qualifying tournament held in the United States, however he suffered an injury just days before his side’s opening game – against Canada – and was ruled out.

Villalpando spent a long time preparing for his next chapter. While still playing at the highest level, he enrolled at one of Mexico’s top colleges – Universidad del Distrito Federal – and gained a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Bitten by the bug of further education, he headed for Spain upon retiring from the game in 2018 and earned his MBA in Sports Management from the European Sport Business School in Valencia.

Between 2021 and 2023, he served as head coach of Coyotes Tlaxcala in Mexico’s second tier.

“I want to express how excited I am to join this incredible project, especially considering the significant growth that the CPL has experienced in recent years,” he says.

“I appreciate the trust placed in me and I’m committed to contributing my skills, dedication and hard work towards our collective success. As a former player, I’ve witnessed the substantial evolution of the game in Canada and I’m eager to see what the future holds and the role we can play in shaping it. I want to be a part of history and York United FC is the perfect place to achieve that goal.”