Hilltop Charles Muhlauri

Charles Muhlauri P’14, ’17, ’23, ’24 sat in his office in Whittemore Athletic Center one December afternoon just a stone’s throw from the ice where two kids were shooting pucks between classes. The FIFA World Cup was heading into the semifinals, and Muhlauri, the KUA boys varsity soccer head coach and athletic assistant, was enthralled by the match unfolding on the television. His friend, a coach with the Moroccan team, was on the sidelines of a big game against France while Muhlauri was surrounded by jerseys and equipment. He was right where he wanted to be.

Until 2007, it was Muhlauri on the sidelines of those international matches. He traveled the world and found both success and joy in the sport as coach of the Zimbabwe National Team. Muhlauri led the team to win the 2015 Council of Southern Africa Football Associations Cup. The following year, the team made it to the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt and the World Cup qualifier games. At the time, he was the youngest coach in southern Africa.

“One of my friends is now at the World Cup coaching and I’m here,” says Muhlauri. “But when I look back, my kids benefitted more from me coming here than if I stayed in Zimbabwe. This is a great achievement in the bigger scheme of things. I derive most of my satisfaction from seeing my kids succeed. That’s why I sacrificed my own career. You have to balance what’s good for you and what’s good for your family.”

Muhlauri’s focus on kids—his five sons as well as KUA’s student-athletes—is at the heart of his work.

Growing up in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-largest city, Muhlauri was immersed in the sport from the time he could walk. He played with clubs and his university team, worked a stint in banking, and turned semi-pro before breaking his ankle and reassessing his direction. He turned to coaching, ultimately leading Zimbabwean team CAPS United Football Club to a 2004 championship and securing the top coaching position with the Zimbabwe National Team. He has coached and produced some of the top players in the English Premier League.

Muhlauri was eventually lured to the United States by a friend eager to have his help running collegiate soccer camps including at nearby Dartmouth College. He grew fond of the Upper Valley and chose to settle in the area, working as director of coaching for the local youth program, Lightning Soccer Club.

Today, Muhlauri works full-time at Kimball Union. In his second year as the boys head coach he has led the team to a second-consecutive Lakes Region Championship and qualified for the NEPSAC tournament. In addition to coaching, he manages the Academy’s rink and athletic equipment and maintains the ice. “I may be the only guy from Zimbabwe to drive a Zamboni,” he laughs. When the ice melts, he runs CM International, a youth sports camp held on campus.

“I talk of all my players being able first and foremost to enjoy being part of the group,” he says. “I emphasize teamwork so they can work together. It’s the responsibility of everyone on the team to make it a success, and we work together to meet our objectives. Can we compete from the first second to the last second together as a team?”

That ethos is drawn from Muhlauri’s African upbringing, where family plays a central role in society. “We as Africans are big families and we stay together and everyone who is in the group has a responsibility to look after the other members.”

Two of his sons—Charlton ’14 and Kuda ’17—played at KUA and beyond. Sons Tinashe ’23 and Andile ’24 currently play for their father, while 5-year-old Simba is a frequent fan on the Pope Field sidelines.

Family members in Zimbabwe are also ever-present in his mind. Muhlauri is the managing director of Benabour, a poultry business in Zimbabwe with 30,000 laying hens. From his Vermont home he oversees the on-site management team for a company that provides income for 14 disadvantaged Zimbabwean families.

“Zimbabwe is going through a difficult economic situation,” says Muhlauri, who has been back once in the past 13 years. “It was my only way to try to salvage and help my folks out. You sometimes just need a simple idea, not a sophisticated one. This is looking after chickens, not rocket science, but it’s a big help.”

Muhlauri’s hopes for his players are not unlike the path he’s led in life—one in which contributions are made on and off the pitch. “I think the goal is different for our school. I want my players to graduate as the best student-athletes. I want to see them being good citizens after they leave here and be able to go back and play leading roles in their communities.” K