Luke Smith joined the Academy of Football in March 2020, initially taking on a coaching role with the U12s.

Smith’s coaching career began during his time as a non-league footballer in the southern semi-professional leagues, where he frequently stepped in to lead training sessions for the U18s age groups.

After several years honing his coaching skills in the United States, Smith returned to the UK to join the Academy at Bristol Rovers, where he spent six years coaching across the foundation and early youth development phases. He progressed to working with the U16s before making the move to east London just before the COVID-19 pandemic.

At West Ham, Smith took on the role of Lead Development Phase Coach, overseeing a two-year age band and supporting around 50 players and their coaching teams. He initially worked with the U12s to U14s, later focusing more specifically on the U13s and U14s.

In the 2024/25 season, Smith began contributing more closely to the U18s setup, travelling on pre-season tours to Scotland and Prague, working alongside lead coaches Lauris Coggin and Zavon Hines. After assisting the group on a part-time basis, he formally joined the U18s coaching staff full-time in January 2025. That same season, the U18s lifted the Premier League Cup, the first West Ham side at that age group to do so.

The following season, with the departure of Coggin, Smith took charge of the U18s as lead coach, guiding the first year scholars to the U17 Premier League Cup title, beating Leicester City, Crystal Palace and Blackburn Rovers in the knockout stages on their way to lifting the trophy for the first time.