New Atlanta United CEO Garth Lagerwey aims to ‘corporatize’ the club in chase for more titles

Garth Lagerwey’s office at Atlanta United’s training complex is strikingly bare. The leadership themed books on the shelf aren’t his — they belonged to his predecessor, former club president Darren Eales. Lagerwey’s desk is free of clutter, for now. 

His wife and three sons remained in Seattle while Lagerwey, Atlanta United’s new president and chief executive officer, was busy restructuring the club’s roster in January. Since his arrival, Lagerwey has been living in temporary corporate housing in the Vinings suburb of Atlanta. 

Those interim accommodations are a stark contrast to the permanent changes that Lagerwey will incorporate in Atlanta. Lagerwey is a three-time MLS Cup winning general manager. He’s among the league’s top executives, evidenced by the opinions of his peers, as revealed in The Athletic’s recent MLS executive survey. His roster strategies, negotiation tactics and his deep knowledge of the MLS’ idiosyncratic financial rules are reasons why. 

But in Atlanta, his first challenge isn’t to contend for another MLS Cup. That’s a short-term objective, of course. To start, the process-driven and self-proclaimed risk averse Lagerwey will be responsible for ushering in a new business model for the organization. 

Call it the corporatization of Atlanta United.

“There was definitely a start-up mentality here,” Lagerwey told The Athletic. “There was literally a start-up boom and a start-up bust. What we’re trying to do right now is just level things out and say, ‘How do we operate this company now in a sustainable manner going forward so that we stay out of those cycles?’ The way you do that is to corporatize.” 

Atlanta United is a big brand in MLS. And yet, internally, the club had a small business feel to it. Some departments aren’t fully staffed, like the club’s analytics team, which Bocanegra referred to last summer as “a one-man show.” There’s also been a lot of employee turnover at all levels of the organization, from social media to senior management. It was time to mature. Lagerwey will lead a transformation that will resemble a modern corporation. 

“Everyone here worked around the clock doing whatever they could to help the team,” said Lagerwey. “And now we have the ability to take a deep breath and look at it and say what’s your expertise?”

In Atlanta, Lagerwey will work under Steve Cannon and with Rich McKay. Cannon is the vice chairman of AMB Sports & Entertainment (AMBSE). He was previously the president and CEO of Mercedes Benz USA. McKay is AMBSE’s CEO and he holds the same title for the Atlanta Falcons. McKay is widely regarded as one of the NFL’s best-ever executives. 

Cannon and McKay’s corporate backgrounds were massive draws for Lagerwey when he chose to leave the Seattle Sounders in November. Seattle was fresh off their historic CONCACAF Champions League triumph, which had been Lagerwey’s principal objective as their general manager. 

“At 50 years old I went from ‘am I at the top of my profession? Is this all there is?’ To ‘I get to learn from these titans of industry,” said Lagerwey. “And then on top of that, I have access to Arthur Blank, who has only been successful with everything he’s ever touched.” 

Lagerwey is a former corporate attorney, but before that he was a goalkeeper in MLS’ early days. He first earned praise as a GM with Real Salt Lake, before working in the same capacity with the Seattle Sounders. His résumé is well-known, but in Atlanta, Lagerwey is a new face with a big task ahead of him, one that goes beyond the field of play. 

“Our ambition is nothing less than becoming the soccer capital of North America,” Lagerwey said. 

This statement came while Lagerwey discussed, quite passionately, the possibility of Atlanta becoming the home of a state-of-the-art U.S. Soccer training facility. Atlanta has been confirmed as one of 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup. If the facility proposal is finalized, the long-lasting effects would be monumental.

That sort of commitment from the national team would cement the city’s progression from MLS experiment to becoming a national, and potentially global, soccer hub. Lagerwey called it “an absolute no brainer” for Atlanta United.

“The World Cup’s going to be here for 30 days,” Lagerwey said. “The headquarters is hopefully here for 30 years. If you could get both of those things, I’d argue that might be more important than anything else that I do individually as the CEO of Atlanta United. There’s some real opportunity in front of us.”

Lagerwey has a vision for Atlanta United that includes a reassessment of the club’s player development model and a first-team recruitment framework that’s built on data and analytics. He’ll implement a designated player strategy in which the club will pivot toward what Lagerwey calls “prime age players.” 

“They just have more data,” Lagerwey said. “I’ve had some success in my career in signing DPs in the prime age, between 24 and 29 years old. (Giorgos) Giakoumakis fits squarely within that range. When I say I’m risk averse, I want something to underpin what I think, what I look at.” 

For as much success as Atlanta United has had in their seven years of existence, the club’s previous operational approach had a short runway. Atlanta’s immediate boom led to a sporting strategy that Lagerwey has begun to overhaul, with longevity an important part of his plans. 

“We came in and, as happens with regime change, I had a little bit different approach about what I wanted to do long term,” said Lagerwey.

After 15 years as an MLS GM, Lagerwey is Atlanta United’s first CEO. Eales didn’t hold that title, although before he left to become CEO at Newcastle United, Eales’ role as president in the first stages of the club’s launch was wide-ranging. However, an evolution will now take place under Lagerwey, from both a business and soccer perspective.

Eales was instrumental in Atlanta United’s first chapter. He helped put the club’s name on the map, as they say, and kicked off a grassroots campaign in Atlanta and its surrounding areas that ultimately gave the club instant brand recognition. Eales also oversaw the acquisition and sale of Atlanta’s biggest stars to date. MLS roster rules, though, weren’t Eales’ strong suit. Conversely, that’s one thing that Lagerwey does very well. 

“I have some idea of how to do this,” Lagerwey said. “I’m bringing some expertise to the table along with some soccer knowledge.”

Neither Eales nor current technical director Carlos Bocanegra had any prior history as MLS executives. That wasn’t perceived as a problem after the club’s incredible start, but the learning curve became more noticeable over the years, especially in regards to managing the MLS salary cap and the league’s complicated roster rules. 

In hiring Lagerwey, and with former league office executive Dimitrios Efstathiou serving as the club’s vice president of soccer operations and strategy, Blank, the team’s owner, has a more diversified front office, where the strengths of its members can be better utilized. Bocanegra, for example, can now focus more on player personnel and recruitment, while also drawing from Lagerwey’s extensive MLS background. 

In his first months as the club’s new steward, Lagerwey took stock of its financial situation.

”What we did was what I would call a salary cap reset,” Lagerwey said. “Not a roster reset, but a salary cap reset, which is to say allocate resources in the places I wanted them, which is long term in the spine of the team and also to have a slight preference for somewhat more experienced players in certain positions.” 

Time and again Lagerwey repeated his intention to take on less risk. There will be a concerted effort to steer Atlanta United from decisions that could set the club back and stall its progress. This approach, in part, addresses Atlanta United’s history of going for the high-risk signing (i.e. Ezequiel Barco, Pity Martínez, Jürgen Damm, Marcelino Moreno) when a more budget-friendly decision, or rewarding a current high performer already on the team, could’ve had greater upside. Barco, Martínez and Moreno were acquired for nearly $40 million.

“They had incredible success with winning the title and with (Miguel) Almirón and with (Josef) Martínez,” said Lagerwey. “They had a number of really good young players that came through here. It’s just really, really hard to sustain that. What I would say, humbly, is I don’t know if I can replicate that. I’m going to rely on stuff that I know, which is data and analytics and player development, and to try to adhere to a good process.”

Despite some big misses, Eales and Bocanegra were undeterred in their pursuit of Thiago Almada, who the club signed for a reported MLS record transfer fee of $16 million in 2022. Almada is currently performing at an MVP-caliber level after winning the World Cup with Argentina and will more than likely break another transfer record when he’s sold. 

That will again make Atlanta United a player in the global transfer market, potentially this summer. But in Lagerwey’s eyes, a club as ambitious as Atlanta must do more than make headlines for whom they buy and sell.

“The idea is that if you sign a player in their prime to build around, your objective is less about selling that player for the profit and more about winning championships,” said Lagerwey. “And that’s what we’re going for. Not to say that wasn’t the goal before.” 

Lagerwey stressed that patient assessment will become the new norm at Atlanta United, but that restraint shouldn’t be confused for complacency. 

“We had some deals in this window that we had to do for salary cap reasons and that’s a posture that I don’t want to be in again,” he said. “What I want to do is have optionality. We have to get these decisions right so that we don’t need to remake them 12 months from now, 18 months from now.”

Atlanta United has shuffled through multiple play styles and coaches, something Lagerwey also noted as reason for the club’s recent instability. 

“We’re going to have a systematized structure and process so that we make decisions that are replicable,” said Lagerwey. “Now, we’re not just doing a one off because someone’s trying to solve a problem. They’re saying, ‘How do we do this as a business would?’’ So I think that’s the hope. That you create that sustainable structure, as well.”

By definition, optionality provides added value and discretionary opportunities after an initial investment. This can be applied to virtually any industry, especially professional soccer, where acquiring and selling players drives the business. He intends to work closely with the Falcons in order to take advantage of their robust, NFL-level analytics department. 

How those capabilities translate to soccer will be worth tracking. In the meantime, Lagerwey has commissioned former Seattle Sounders vice president of analytics and research Ravi Ramineni to provide soccer-specific data analysis via Ramineni’s consultancy, SRC | FTBL. The emphasis on data and thorough analysis should then better inform both the front office and the team’s staff when roster decisions are made.

“You want that optionality for every player, but you also want, more importantly from a CEO chair, you want optionality for your team,” said Lagerwey. “So now you’re never in a situation where I have to sell this player because I have to have the money to go and do this other thing in the (salary) cap. We’re working with AMBSE. We’re never going to sell a player because we need the money.”

Lagerwey understood how to maximize the resources he had at a small market team like Real Salt Lake, and at a perennial title contender like the Sounders. His former clubs had vastly different expectations, but what they had in common was a distinct formula for success. 

RSL played at altitude. Manager Jason Kreis’ diamond midfield formation kept the ball on the ground and opponents on the run. With Kyle Beckerman at the base and playmaker Javi Morales as a No. 10, Lagerwey built a team that won an MLS Cup in 2009 and lost to CF Monterrey in the final of the CONCACAF Champions League.

“Even on a limited budget, we could punch above our weight consistently,” Lagerwey said. 

It’s natural to compare Seattle with Atlanta United and begin to envision what Lagerwey will incorporate down south. The similarities are obvious. Both the Sounders and United have ambitious owners, dedicated fan bases and impressive attendance numbers in NFL stadiums. Atlanta and Seattle have had success tactically by utilizing a play style that can be maximized on a fast-playing artificial turf. In their time together, Lagerwey and Seattle sporting director Craig Waibel assembled well-balanced rosters that excelled in that environment.

But in Seattle, Lagerwey’s influence was limited in his role as general manager. He said that having control of a club’s overall strategy was something that he has always wanted. As CEO of Atlanta United, Lagerwey will have the freedom to innovate on the business side and modernize the club’s sporting department.

“Now you can have a true strategic vision and say, ‘Here are the ways in which I want to market,” he said. “Here are the areas in which I want to invest. Here’s how we’re going to reallocate that revenue. Here is the plan. I think it allows you to have a more sophisticated approach because you can unify your revenue goals with your expense targets and you can make a five-year plan.”

It wasn’t a total reset, but Lagerwey oversaw another roster shakeup in Atlanta this winter that resulted in seven players leaving the club who were still under contract. That included Martínez, the club’s most influential player to date. The final year of Martínez’s contract was bought out and he moved to conference rival Inter Miami as a free agent in January. 

That left Atlanta United with a leaner roster, but one that is not short of talent. Lagerwey referred to those moves as a way to “level set what we wanted as a sustainable base.” Giakoumakis, 28, was signed as a designated player in February to replace Martínez as the club’s new center forward. The Greek striker scored his first goal for Atlanta last Saturday in a 5-1 win over the Portland Timbers. 

“Hopefully the idea then is to get some of these players in their prime age, at the peak of their powers and then build around them in a sustainable manner, such that you’re maybe lowering the number of player transactions that go on,” said Lagerwey.

Atlanta is at the top of the Eastern Conference after the first four weeks of the season. Mercedes-Benz Stadium is loud again. As it stands, the players and head coach Gonzalo Pineda are slowly winning back a fan base that had become disenchanted with the club’s direction. Atlanta United hasn’t won a playoff game since 2019.

“Where the team has been is not what is acceptable,” said Lagerwey. “This is a team that needs to be winning a playoff game every year and contending for championships very soon. Sooner than later. I don’t care about being competitive. I care about winning titles. The way you win titles is to build up and be sustainable. To de-risk some of these investments, but then to be purposeful.” 

Lagerwey called the next four years in this country “the most exciting years to be a soccer fan in our lifetimes.” But before this season started, fans in Atlanta weren’t sure exactly what to be excited about. Lagerwey understood why fans had begun to lose faith. Ponderous play and a high rate of roster turnover in recent offseasons led supporters to question their investment in the club. 

Lagerwey said that he’ll take a patient approach to the beginning of this season and then evaluate the team’s roster needs and overall performance in the summer. Atlanta is winning, but before the first match of the season, Lagerwey was asked what he would tell an Atlanta United season ticket holder who was on the fence about committing financially moving forward. 

In his answer, the business-centric theme of the entire conversation continued. 

“I’d encourage people to invest now,” he said. “I think it’s pretty clearly going to get better. Again, that’s why I came. That’s what I believe. That’s the stock that I bought. I have a decent track record at some other places. It’s going to get real fun again. It’d be a bummer if you stuck out the way down and you weren’t on board for the way back up. I think we’re on the way back up.”

(Photo: Atlanta United)