Montego Bay United name Javier Ainstein head coach and promote Xavier Gilbert to technical director

ST JAMES, Jamaica — Montego Bay United have installed Argentine Javier Marcelo Ainstein as head coach for the 2026-27 campaign, only days after he stepped down from Jamaica Premier League rivals Waterhouse “with immediate effect”.

Ainstein joined Waterhouse in January after the dismissal of long-serving coach Marcel Gayle. He steered the club into the JPL play-offs, where they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Cavalier SC.

He becomes the second Argentine to lead MBU inside two years. Rodolfo Zapata held the post for part of the 2024-25 term before Paul ‘Tegat’ Davis took over.

Xavier Gilbert, who was appointed head coach roughly a year ago and took the side to the JPL semi-finals, has moved up to technical director. He succeeds Andrew Peart in the role.

In a club statement, MBU said the move “establishes a single, unified football leadership structure with clear ownership at every level of the club.”

Chief executive Yoni Epstein said: “Xavier has shown us, in a single season, that he can build not just a team, but an institution. Promoting him to technical director is an elevation in recognition of that record. We are asking him to build our footballing vision that runs from our youngest academy players all the way to the senior teams, and there is no one better placed to lead it.”

Gilbert responded: “This club gave me the platform to lead, and I am honoured to take this responsibility. My focus is to build a clear identity and a real pathway- a structure where every coach has what they need to win and where a child who joins our academy can see a route all the way to the first team.”

The release states that as technical director, Gilbert “will own the club’s footballing strategy and assume oversight of all footballing activity: the senior men’s and senior women’s teams, the youth academy (U5–U18), recruitment across local, regional and international markets, and the club’s representation at the Professional Football Jamaica Limited (PFJL) and with the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF)”.

A central part of his mandate is the development of the youth academy into both a player pathway and a sustainable revenue engine for the club.