Bradley Carnell, a former South African international who played for Bundesliga sides VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Monchengladbach, was named Wednesday to coach Major League Soccer's St. Louis City expansion club.

Carnell, 44, has been an assistant coach for the New York Red Bulls since 2017. He went 6-5 with three drawn in an interim 2020 coaching stint after the firing of Chris Armas.

The St. Louis team makes its MLS debut in 2023 as the league's 29th squad.

"We got our top candidate for the club's first head coach position and wanted to get him on board early given the integral role he'll play in building our first team," St. Louis sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel said.

"We knew it was important to have someone who understood the ins and outs of the MLS as well as the international market, and Bradley has all the attributes we were looking for."

Carnell, a former assistant coach at South Africa's Orlando Pirates, played 42 matches as a defender for South Africa from 1997-2010 and he played in the Bundesliga from 1998 through 2005.

"I'm grateful to be a part of the St. Louis City family, a team where I can help build something special," Carnell said.