Two days after finishing the 2017 season in last place in the Western Conference, the LA Galaxy have made a front-office shakeup.
On Tuesday, the Galaxy announced that Pete Vagenas has been relieved of his general manager duties but will remain with the club as a vice president of soccer operations. Sigi Schmid, who took over as LA’s head coach in July after the midseason dismissal of Curt Onalfo, will now oversee all player personnel decisions.
“The results this season did not meet the standard and expectations of this club, our fans and this city,” LA Galaxy President Chris Klein said in a statement. “Sigi has a proven track record building championship-caliber teams in MLS. He understands this league, its players and its structure as well as anyone in soccer and we have full confidence in him as we enter this offseason to strengthen our roster ahead of 2018. Pete has been an important member for this club on and off the field and will continue to play a part in our club as the vice president of soccer operations.”
Schmid, the winningest coach in MLS history, will certainly have a lot of important decisions to make in the offseason for the Galaxy, a traditional MLS powerhouse whose 8-18-8 record was the worst in franchise history. Their 32 total points was tied with D.C. United for the lowest total in the league.
“I am excited for the opportunity to build the LA Galaxy roster into one that is capable of competing for championships,” Schmid said. “The Galaxy continue to have tremendous support from Dan Beckerman, Mr. Anschutz and AEG in every aspect of operations and I look forward to further aligning and improving the LA Galaxy, Galaxy II and our Academy. This offseason is vital as we look ahead to the coming season and we will begin the efforts necessary to strengthen our roster immediately.”
Vagenas previously played for the Galaxy during nine of his 13 years in MLS and was a part of the Galaxy’s 2002 and 2005 MLS Cup championships. He was named the club’s general manager in November 2016 after previously serving as vice president of soccer operations and director of the LA Galaxy Academy.
