Bruce Arena is an American soccer coach, currently Head Coach and Sporting Director for Red Bull New York of Major League Soccer as well as the former coach of the United States men's national soccer team.

Arena was hired by the U.S. national team to replace Steve Sampson as head coach in October 1998 following the team's disastrous showing in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He forged the team into a successful international side, and is undisputedly the most successful coach in United States history: most international wins; longest home shut-out; best World Cup showing since 1930, reaching the quarterfinals at the 2002 World Cup, before a defeat against Germany; and all-time best international FIFA Ranking (4th place, April 2006). Arena also won two Gold Cup championships in 2002 and 2005, with a third place finish in 2003.

The 2002 World Cup was the high point of Arena's career as the U.S. coach. Heavy underdogs coming into the tournament, they stunned the world by beating a respected Portuguese team 3-2 in their opening game. Arena was lauded afterwards for instilling in his players the confidence to play aggressively against an international powerhouse. A hard-fought tie against host nation South Korea was enough to qualify for the second round, despite a poor loss against Poland in the final group game.

Arena and the U.S. met old nemesis Mexico in the Round of 16, and Arena adapted his tactics brilliantly to secure a 2-0 victory and a quarterfinal berth. The U.S. switched from their usual 4-4-2 to a 3-5-2, and it paid dividends almost immediately when Josh Wolff, who Arena had brought in to fill out the formation, set up Brian McBride for the winning goal early in the first half. Arena switched the team back to a 4-4-2 for their quarterfinal against Germany, and the team continued to surprise many by dominating stretches of the game. They were considered very unlucky to lose 1-0 on a Michael Ballack header.

The U.S. national squad fell short of expectations at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, finishing last in Group E with losses to the Czech Republic and Ghana. The United States scored only twice in its three games, a tie against eventual champion Italy on an own goal by Italian Cristian Zaccardo and a goal from Clint Dempsey against Ghana. Some, including former team member and ESPN analyst Eric Wynalda, have blamed the poor performance on questionable coaching decisions by Arena. Arena and Wynalda, however, appear to have reconciled, as both appeared as co-color commentators on ESPN and ABC coverage of the 2006 MLS playoffs following Red Bull's elimination.