Saint John's University named Tudor Flintham '06 its director of soccer – head coach on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024.
Flintham is one of the most successful active coaches in NCAA soccer with 153 victories as a head coach and is ranked 17th nationally for win percentage. He has won a combined eight MIAC championships as a coach and player and led teams as far as the NCAA Elite Eight with national rankings as high as No. 3. His teams have participated in 13 national tournament matches, including five NCAA postseason runs in the past seven seasons. Flintham was named the NCAA North Region Coach of the Year in 2022, as well as MIAC Coach of the Year in both 2022 and 2018. His 2022 and 2024 teams competed to 18-game undefeated streaks. Of all undefeated MIAC regular seasons, Flintham’s teams own half of them. He has also produced 15 All-Americans since 2018.
He completed his first year as the director of soccer – head coach for Saint John’s in 2025. His program had one of the largest turnarounds in NCAA history, more than doubling its win total with 13 victories – the second-best total in program history. He accounted for the second-best NPI turnaround in the country, improving the team’s national ranking by 156 places. SJU had the most wins in program history since 2014, the best win percentage since 2015, the most home wins in a decade and finished third nationally for points per game in the regular season. Flintham’s team set program records for goals in a season (57), assists (73), points (187), MIAC Athletes of the Week (7) and claimed the two-highest ranked wins in recorded program history. SJU defeated the No. 3 team in the country 5-2 and the No. 6 team 2-1 in the MIAC playoffs while playing two men down.
Sophomore forward Ronan O’Connor broke the 51-year-old record for goals in a season with 20, which was good for second in the country. O’Connor had the sixth-best individual season in the last 55 years of MIAC soccer, after Flintham’s former player Cole Schwartz scored 24 goals in 2019. The Johnnie forward’s 20 goals, 10 assists and 50 points were also second overall in NCAA Division III in the fall of 2025.
Flintham on returning to Saint John’s:
“I am excited and honored to rejoin the Saint John’s community, as well as lead this new era of a historic program like Johnnie soccer,” Flintham said. “Throughout this process, I was convinced thoroughly that SJU is committed to this team being not just good, but great. I want to thank everyone who was involved in that process who made me feel so welcomed and reassured that our ambitions are fully aligned.
“As an alum of this program, I feel I have a clear vision of what this place can be,” Flintham added. “During my time as a player, we were ranked as high as No. 6 in the country, set the NCAA-era program record for wins in a season and won the MIAC playoff championship in its third year of implementation.
“Johnnie soccer is a sleeping giant. It’s not only a program that should be perennially competing at the top of the MIAC, but nationally. That’s the mandate we now have. We have a lot of work to do. But that change has happened fast wherever I have been, and I am excited to reestablish Johnnie soccer as a household name around the North Region and Division III.”
Prior to joining the staff at Saint John’s, Tudor Flintham served as the as head men’s soccer coach at Gustavus Adolphus College. Flintham directed the Gusties to a 92-20-18 (.777) record with five MIAC championships – four regular-season (2018, 2019, 2022, 2024) and one playoff (2019) – and five NCAA Division III tournament appearances (2018-19, 2022-24). GAC hosted NCAA Regionals in 2022 and 2024. Flintham’s 47-6-7 (.842) in conference play places him as the most successful coach in program history.
The two-time MIAC Coach of the Year (2018 and 2022) had his program ranked No. 1 in the North Region and in the top 20 nationally in each season he was at the helm. GAC was ranked as high as No. 3 nationally in 2024 and in the top eight in each of the past three seasons. Flintham’s team was regionally ranked in 50-consecutive polls and No. 1 39 times. The Gusties completed two undefeated regular seasons with two 18-game unbeaten streaks in his last three years.
GAC posted a 47-6-7 (.842) record in MIAC play and produced 22 All-MIAC honorees, 15 All-Americans, 19 All-Region selections and three MIAC players of the year (offensive or defensive). In the classroom, 24 Gusties earned Academic All-District/All-Region honors, seven of which were Academic All-Americans, during his tenure.
In 2024 GAC won the No. 1 seed and MIAC regular-season title with an 8-0-2 record and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 16-2-3 mark. They were also ranked No. 3 nationally. In 2023, the Gusties reached the MIAC playoff championship game and the NCAA second round with an 11-4-7 record, while being ranked as high as No. 5. In 2022, Gustavus was ranked No. 5 nationally, ended the regular season undefeated, went to the NCAA Elite Eight, and finished with a 15-2-6 (9-0-1 MIAC) record. In 2019 Flintham led the Gusties to an 18-3-1 (9-1-0 MIAC) record and swept both the MIAC’s regular season and playoff titles in just his second season (2019). He additionally won the MIAC regular-season championship in his first year (2018).
Other coaching experiences:
Prior to Gustavus, Flintham served as the head coach for both the men’s and women’s soccer programs at Nebraska Wesleyan University for three seasons (2015-17). The Prairie Wolves combined for 49 wins in the three seasons, including 33 shutouts. In 2017, the men’s team went 11-7-1 and won its first postseason game in 20 years.
Flintham was the associate head coach at SJU from 2010-14 and also served as an assistant coach at Saint Benedict from 2012-14. The Johnnies totaled a 46-34-11 record (28-16-6 MIAC) with two MIAC Playoff championship game appearances during his five seasons on staff, while the Bennies went 37-13-6 (23-9-1 MIAC) in their three seasons with MIAC regular-season and playoff titles, and an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2013.
From 2008-10, Flintham was head girls’ soccer coach at Valley Catholic High School in Beaverton, Ore., and the program director and head coach for FC Portland Soccer Academy in Hillsboro, Ore. At Valley Catholic, he collected a 29-4-4 record and was named the 2008 NSCAA Oregon High School State Coach of the Year and was a two-time Oregon District 1 Coach of the Year.
He is also the associate head coach of Minneapolis City SC in the USL2, the largest pre-professional soccer organization in the state, and works with high school student-athletes as a coach with the Elite Club National League’s (ECNL) Minnesota Thunder Academy.
A native of Norwich, England, Flintham received his bachelor's degree in sociology from SJU in 2006. He registered 59 points (20g/19a) in 64 career games for the Johnnies from 2002-05. Flintham captained SJU to an MIAC playoff championship, led the conference in both goals and assists, and earned All-MIAC, Academic All-MIAC and All-Region honors in 2005. He earned his master's degree in sport management from St. Cloud State University in 2014.
After growing up in the English academy system, Flintham came to the United States for the first time with The Saints FC (a Southampton FC associated squad) where, as a player and coach, he won three consecutive USA Cups.
Flintham and his wife, Theresa Naumann (CSB ’08), reside in Rogers. Theresa played volleyball at CSB and was a member of two NCAA Division III Tournament teams, advancing as far as the Sweet 16 in 2005, and served as a senior captain in 2007. She is currently the Director of Admission at DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis.
| Tudor Flintham's Record at SJU |
| Year |
Overall |
Pct. |
MIAC |
Finish |
Notes |
| 2025 |
13-5-3 |
.690 |
5-4-1 |
T-5th |
MIAC Playoff Semifinals |
| 1 Season |
13-5-3 |
.690 |
5-4-1 |
|
|
