Soccer

Will Wilson to Quit as US Soccer CEO After 2 1/2 Years

Wilson is slated to leave the role just three weeks before the USMNT's first game in the 2022 World Cup

US Soccer CEO Will Wilson and Kate Markgraf of the USWNT talk before a game between Nigeria and USWNT at Q2 Stadium on June 16, 2021 in Austin, Texas.
Brad Smith/ISI Photos/Getty Images

Will Wilson is quitting as CEO of the U.S. Soccer Federation ahead of the World Cup, making the surprising decision to leave the job after just 2 1/2 years.

The uncle of former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, Wilson said Friday he will leave on Oct. 31, three weeks before the Americans open the tournament in Qatar against Ukraine or Wales.

Now 54, Wilson started work on March 30, 2020, and took over from Dan Flynn, who held the job from June 2000 until September 2019.

Wilson had been co-head of football — the American variety — at Wasserman Media Group.

Under Wilson and President Cindy Parlow Cone, the USSF reached landmark collective bargaining agreements this year with the unions for the women's and men's national teams and settled a lawsuit by women players over equal pay. The organization signed a 10-year renewal of its apparel contract with Nike and a an eight-year English-language broadcast agreement with Warner Media that starts in 2023.

The USSF board of directors intends to hire an executive search firm.

Copyright The Associated Press
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