Josh Wolff being sacked as Austin FC's head coach signals the end of a short chapter, yet eventful, for the Texas club. Since Austin joined MLS in 2021, Wolff had been at the helm, guiding the team through its early days as an expansion team. Now, he leaves the club with a four-season record of 45 wins, 60 losses, and 30 draws after yet another infuriating season that finished without playoffs and a flat season closer.
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The sacking of Wolff seems inevitable and needed. After all, following a successful 2022 season where Verde & Black reached the Western Conference Finals, they struggled to replicate that performance in the two subsequent years. Fans and management clearly had high expectations, failing to make the postseason once again-forced the club in a new direction. The sacking is not only about results, but reflects the Austin's bigger ambition to become a force in MLS.
The Wolff Era
Josh Wolff took up the mantle to lead Austin FC from scratch. He was more than a head coach for the club; he was the first one to ever hold that title in its history. He was supposed to be involved in the process of building up an identity for the franchise. And to a large degree, he did just that. In his purview, Austin FC won an enthusiastic and feisty fanbase, and throughout the season showed flashes of talent and competitive capability.
But flashes are never enough in soccer. A first successful season in 2022-which finished all the way through to the Western Conference Finals-seemed to be the beginning of something more. The seasons since then have been one in which the team have shown a trend where they cannot manage to put together consistency and improve on that success. The 2-1 loss to LA Galaxy that finally knocked Austin out of the 2023 playoffs was just another in a line of setbacks that defined the team's decline.
Club owner Anthony Precourt, in an official statement, thanked Wolff for his part in the club's growth. Of course, Wolff will go into the memory books as an integral part of the foundation. However, like all cycles, his needed to end for the club to breathe new life and pursue new success.
The Rebuild Challenge
With this, Austin FC reaches a crossroads. Already, the search for a new head coach has started, fronted by the experience of Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell, who has plied his trade at football powerhouses such as Barcelona, Liverpool, and Manchester City. So far, Borrell has made it amply clear that high performance and consistency are the name of the game for the club-two things that have noticeably been lacking in the campaigns of late.
Improvement is the main desire, at least, for Austin's future. The changing of the coach isn't about simply changing the figure on the sideline, but about creating an opportunity to redefine the identity of the team on and off the pitch. Mainly, taking full potential from players like Sebastián Driussi-a star in the team-along with young talents Dani Pereira and Owen Wolff, will be a challenge for the new coach.
It means an uphill task for the new head coach: first, to bring stability and results into a club that has shown its potential, yet is still struggling for recognition among the cream of the league. Of course, the question of trust will play a big role herein: management trusting this new leadership, as well as fans and players, that he will again lead them onto a path of success.