Diego Thielen

Diego Thielen was named head coach of the Franklin Pierce men's soccer program in January 2026. He previously was on staff as an assistant coach since 2023.

Thielen joined Franklin Pierce following two seasons as a volunteer assistant at Lenoir-Rhyne University, where he helped coach the Bears to back-to-back National Tournament appearances (2021,22), as well as a South Atlantic Conference (SAC) Championship in 2022. In addition to his assistant duties at Lenoir-Rhyne, Thielen also spent the spring and summer of 2022 as an assistant coach for the USL-Two's Otters FC, gaining experience at the highest level of semi-professional soccer in the United States.

Prior to LRU, Diego Thielen served as a graduate assistant at Ohio Valley University, where he helped guide the Fighting Scots to an 18th overall ranking in the country, as well as Division II's "Sweet Sixteen" in the NCAA National Tournament. In the spring of 2021, the program claimed both regular season and conference tournament championships, achieving the school's highest national ranking in program history (3rd), eventually claiming Midwest Region Staff of the Year by United Soccer Coaches.

Thielen spent four seasons as a player with the Ohio Valley men's soccer program, graduating in 2019 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sport Management and Business Administration. During his time on the field, Thielen was named to both the GMAC All-Freshman team and All-ECAC Second Team. Thielen saw great success as a member of the 2017 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Championship team, and the 2018 Midwest Region Championship team for the Fighting Scots.

Thielen is a native from Barquisimeto, Venezuela, and has also graduated from Colegio Andres Eloy Blanco and spent five seasons playing for Club Deportivo Lara.