Nick Cushing and Vanni Sartini are the latest managers to get caught up in the MLS coaching carousel. They were the 10th and 11th managers to be removed from their positions this MLS season, as it's been a challenging campaign for individuals on the touchline.
Regardless of success in previous seasons, or even impressive playoff runs in 2024, clubs seem to have very little margin for error. In fact, more than a third of the league’s teams have changed managers in 2024.
Shocked? You shouldn’t be.
When 2023 MLS Coach of the Year finalist Bradley Carnell was fired by St. Louis CITY in July, it showed the nature of the business. Now, as the 2024 MLS season nears completion, four sides - Atlanta United, Philadelphia Union, NYCFC and Vancouver Whitecaps - all still have openings.
So what's happened in 2024 to provoke so much change? The introduction of Lionel Messi in Miami in 2023 put eyes on MLS from all over the world, for one, and there seems to be little space on the touchline for underperforming. The margins are more important than ever, and for the four teams still with vacancies, they cannot afford to get their next hire wrong.
GOAL explores where Atlanta, Philadelphia, Vancouver and New York should go next.
