- Utah Warriors appoint Robbie Abel as head coach after a record-breaking 2025 season.
- Abel, a former assistant, replaces Greg Cooper following Utah's historic playoff run.
- CEO Kimball Kjar praises Abel's role in fostering a winning team culture.
HERRIMAN — Following a breakthrough season in the club's eighth year in Major League Rugby, the Utah Warriors will see a key change in the coaching box.
The voice will be different, but not unrecognizable.
Greg Cooper stepped down following the Warriors' 2025 campaign that saw the most wins in a single season in franchise history and the league's No. 1 seed in the MLR playoffs.
But after a season of offseason growth that resulted in the league's top try scorer in Joe Mano, leading tackler in Frank Lochore, and a berth in the Western Conference finals for the first time in club history, the Warriors went to the bench to find Cooper's replacement.
Assistant coach Robbie Abel was named head coach Tuesday morning as the Warriors hope to build on the longtime assistant's 66 matches on the coaching staff.
"I feel very blessed to be able to continue to coach the Utah Warriors in this new capacity," Abel said in a statement from the club. "Coops has been a tremendous mentor for me and a huge support in my career, and as such I'm excited to build on the foundation that's been established as we look ahead to 2026 and beyond."
Abel, 35, will be the fifth head coach in franchise history after having spent the past four years as an assistant coach. The former New Zealand Māori All Blacks forward came to Utah in 2021 as a forwards coach, and after wrapping up his tenured playing career with Waratahs in Australia, he stepped right into an assistant coaching role.
He also knows the Warriors have plenty of improvement to be made after improving from a 5-11 mark in Cooper's inaugural season in 2022 to last year's 11-5 campaign that finished behind Western Conference champion Houston and MLR 3-peat title winners New England.
"I'm immensely proud of what our group has been able to accomplish so far," Abel said, "We've learnt and grown together through honest hard work, and it's been great to see the rewards of that throughout the season. Losing in the Western Conference final hurt — a lot. But I feel our team is hungry and committed to getting better. And that for me is really exciting."
The finish helped cement Cooper's legacy in Utah in the former New Zealand international's first head coaching job in the United States following a career in Japan (DynaBoars), France (Stade Francais) and New Zealand (Highlanders and Otago Rugby Union).
Along the way, he also helped pack the 5,000-seat Zions Bank Stadium, helped foster a path-to-pro pipeline for local rugby standouts, and helped establish Utah as a hotbed of rugby in the United States before the nation hosts the men's Rugby World Cup in 2031 and women's tournament two years later.
"It has been an honor to lead the Utah Warriors," Cooper said, "This club, this community, and these players have given me so much, and I'll carry that with me as I begin my next chapter. I'm proud of what we've achieved together and confident the foundation is strong for what's to come."
But when it came time to name Cooper's replacement, there was little debate and less of an open casting call. Abel was the man for the job, Warriors CEO Kimball Kjar said.
"All successful organizations have clear cultures and expectations," Kjar said, "We've done a lot of work over the years in developing those areas, and we've seen some big steps forward in that direction this past season. Having someone like Robbie, who has been a vital part of that positive and winning culture, step into the head coach role provides a seamless and positive transition for this team and our staff."
