October 11 – It was a heavy day in Chicago at US Soccer headquarters as up to 30 employees were laid off ahead of the federation’s move to new headquarters in Fayetteville, Georgia, slated for early 2026.
Every department in the Federation from refereeing, coaching, sporting, sales, and marketing felt the cuts according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity with The Athletic.
Some of the cuts were felt immediately and dramatically as employees were escorted off the premises. According to The Athletic, the Federation brought in an outside human resources agency to assist with the layoffs. “It was obvious what was about to happen,” said a source. “Some of the rooms had windows blacked out, but we’d all seen the setup beforehand, with the tissues and the water bottles.”
HR associates came armed with cardboard boxes to pack up belongings and released employees were not allowed to return to their desks.
Some employees who were not immediately released were given a termination date of April 2025, while those who did survive the cut were offered the choice to relocate to Georgia, with a caveat. They had 60 days to make the decision to move or not!
The Athletic said that the relocation packages varied for each employee and were largely based on rank. The Federation’s ‘red package’, offered to Vice-Presidents and above, includes a $3,000 allowance, five days of moving leave, rental and purchase assistance, shipment of household goods, and a variety of other benefits.
Other packages, offered to senior management and coordinators/managers, offer a greater allowance but far fewer ancillary benefits. Employees who choose to relocate will have to do so by July 1, 2025.
An audio of the meeting obtained by The Athletic had US Soccer CEO, JT Batson saying “I want to start by acknowledging that today is a difficult day for a number of our colleagues whose last day is today. And obviously, these are our friends, folks that we feel are very valuable parts of the U.S. Soccer family now and going forward. I want to make sure as we go forward that we all continue to support them and give them the same love and support as if they were showing up to work tomorrow.”
As reported by Insideworldfootball late last week, the USSF has seen revenue increase by a massive 243% since separating commercial and marketing deals from Soccer United Marketing (SUM), so the timing of this blood-letting feels a little off.
Contact the writer of this story, Nick Webster, at moc.l1728632097labto1728632097ofdlr1728632097owedi1728632097sni@o1728632097fni1728632097