He also managed several clubs, including Aris, his birthplace team, and Olympiakos with whom he won three Alpha Ethniki championships.

After finishing his first degree, he moved to the United States, where he attended the university of New York City.

A professional version of the USMNT, called Team America, played in the North American Soccer League in 1983, based out of RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. After many American stars refused to leave their NASL clubs to play for them, however, Team America could only manage a 10–20 record (and a last place finish) with a patchwork lineup.

The following year, Panagoulias led the USA squad in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, with a 1–1–1 record in the group stage, not sufficient to advance to the next round.

After failing to qualify for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in 1985, Panagoulias resigned as USMNT coach.

Although he was very popular among Greek fans at the time, the team's poor performance in World Cup '94 (losing all three matches by a combined score of 0–10) attracted widespread criticism, and Panagoulias was replaced by Kostas Polychroniou.