Soccer <\/p>\n
Sporting Kansas City<\/a> have mutually parted ways with longtime manager Peter Vermes, the club announced Monday morning.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Vermes was the longest-tenured head coach in MLS and one of the longest-serving managers in global soccer, having taken over his role in 2009.<\/p>\n Kerry Zavagnin has been named interim coach after being an assistant on Vermes’ staff.<\/p>\n “It would be hard to list all of the people I want to thank after 20 seasons in managerial positions at Sporting Kansas City,” Vermes said in a statement.<\/p>\n “I am thankful to everyone, especially ownership, for giving me the opportunity of being a steward of this club for the past two decades. I wish the club nothing but the best in the future.”<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n This decision followed Saturday’s 2-1 loss<\/a> at FC Dallas<\/a>, which extended the club’s winless streak (all competitions) to 13 games, dating back to September 2024.<\/p>\n Sporting KC are currently last in the MLS standings with a 0W-5L-1D record.<\/p>\n The club has missed the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in two of the last three seasons, though they reached the 2023 postseason as the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed after overcoming a 10-game winless streak to open the campaign.<\/p>\n Vermes is the second MLS manager to leave his role this season, after CF Montr\u00e9al<\/a> parted ways with Laurent Courtois<\/a> last week.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 31, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Zavagnin, a former Sporting KC player and US international, takes over on an interim basis as the club look for their first win of the 2025 season.<\/p>\n SKC’s early-season struggles follow an active offseason highlighted by the arrival of Dejan Jovelji\u0107<\/a> from the LA Galaxy<\/a> in the first cash-for-player trade<\/a> in MLS history. The club also acquired fellow Designated Player Manu Garc\u00eda<\/a> and winger Shapi Suleymanov<\/a>, both from Greek top-flight side Aris Thessaloniki.<\/p>\n Other key players include D\u00e1niel Sall\u00f3i<\/a>, Erik Thommy<\/a> and homegrown Jake Davis<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Vermes’ relationship with Kansas City began as a player in 2000, when the former USMNT defender helped lead the club to the MLS Cup-Supporters’ Shield double that year.<\/p>\n A 2013 U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame inductee, he joined SKC’s front office in 2006 as technical director before assuming head coaching duties three years later.<\/p>\n As manager, Vermes guided Sporting to the 2013 MLS Cup title and three US Open Cup<\/a> championships (2012, ’15, ’17).<\/p>\n His 203 regular-season wins rank third all-time in MLS, while his 511 regular-season matches coached are the third-most in league history. Vermes’ 17 seasons as Sporting manager were at least seven seasons longer than any other active MLS head coach.<\/p>\n Vermes coached 609 matches for SKC in all competitions, more than half of the games in the club\u2019s 30-year existence and the most ever for a manager at one MLS club. He was also the longest-serving head coach in Kansas City professional sports history.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nEnd of an era<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
What now?<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Sporting KC icon<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n