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Football news: Kevin Payne dies aged 69

Kevin Payne, who helped DC United become the first dynasties of the Professional Football League and continued to serve as president of Toronto FC, has passed away. He was 69.

The Washington Post reported that Payne died Sunday in Charleston, SC, of ​​lung disease.

The longtime football executive was inducted into the US National Football Hall of Fame as a builder in 2021.

“Kevin cares deeply about the sport and those involved in it,” said Djorn Buchholz, executive director of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. “His passion will be irreplaceable. We will miss him and we will ensure that his legacy is not forgotten.”

MLS Commissioner Don Garber called Payne “one of the league’s most successful club executives.”

“Kevin played a key role in shaping the league and helping build DC United into the first MLS dynasty — winning three of its first four MLS Cups,” Garber said in a statement. “DC United remains one of the most successful teams in league history.”

“Kevin has worked tirelessly for decades to develop the game in our country, and his work has left a lasting impact,” added US Soccer Federation president Cindy Parlow Cone. . “His legacy and contributions changed our game on every level and he will be fondly remembered as a friend and colleague.”

Payne led DC United from 1994 to 2001 and again from 2004 to 2012. He later became the first president of Toronto FC but was unable to replicate the previous success.

Payne helped DC United find themselves in their first MLS season in 1996. In their first four years in business, DC United won three MLS Cups and was runner-up the other year. His team won 47 games in the first two seasons.

As the league’s ownership pool dwindled, Payne found himself in charge of six teams run by AEG — Los Angeles Galaxy, Colorado Rapids, Chicago Fire, DC United, New York/New Jersey MetroStars and San Jose Earthquakes — helping to make the league. Successful matches remain afloat for some lean years.

He then returned to DC United as president and chief executive officer from 2004-12 before becoming president of Toronto.

Upon arriving in Toronto in November 2012, Payne joined a franchise that had failed to make it to the knockout stages since its founding in 2007, winning only 45 games in those six seasons.

He said he enjoyed the challenge.

“I personally like a challenge,” he said at the time. “I used to say to people, ‘What’s so exciting about being the coach of Real Madrid and spending crazy money buying the best players?’

“I really enjoy building things.”

At the time, Earl Cochrane was TFC’s player and team executive. Cochrane is currently the general secretary of Canada Soccer.

Payne usually wears one of his four MLS championship rings. But he won’t wear one at his TFC showcase until his wife Pam changes her mind.

“I told my wife this is weird. For the first time since ’97 – when I got the ring in ’96 – I won’t be wearing the championship ring,” he said after being announced as the owner. president of Toronto and general manager.

“And she said ‘I think you should put it on.’ I said ‘Well, I don’t want to be talking about DC all the time.’ She said ‘But you need to get people hungry for their own ring. Understand that that’s the goal.’

“So that’s why I wear it.”

Payne wore her 2004 championship ring to a press conference at BMO Field.

“We found the right person,” said Tom Anselmi, then president and COO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.

In January 2013, Payne hired former New Zealand international Ryan Nelsen as the club’s head coach. Nelsen previously played four seasons for Payne at DC United, leading the team to a fourth championship in 2004.

Payne and Nelsen inherit a horror show. Toronto (21-5-8) registered the worst franchise of 2012 in terms of wins (five), losses (21), points (23), goals conceded (62) and a winless streak (14).

The dismal performance in 2012 led MLSE to reduce the price of tickets for the whole 2013 season to the ticket price of the year the club was founded in 2007.

Payne hit back at the pre-season in 2013 saying he’s frustrated with the fitness of “some players.”

Payne used the scalpel to the limit, knocking out players during the trade for allocations to increase their resources. But the loss continued and Payne and Cochrane were gone in September 2013 as new MLSE boss Tim Leiweke cleaned the house.

Born on March 5, 1953, Payne played football in college and at the semi-professional level. After beginning her career as a radio journalist in New York City and as a special events operator in Vail, Colo., Payne moved into the football business in 1989. when he was hired as the country administrator of US Soccer.

Payne was appointed CEO and chief executive officer of US Club Soccer in January 2015 and holds the position until his retirement on December 31, 2021.

Payne was a member of the MLS board and its competition committee for the first 18 years of the league, a member of the United States Soccer board from 1994 to 2004 and a vice president of the Football Association USA.

He also served on FIFA’s Global Committee on Club Football from 2009 to 2012. In 2011, Payne was awarded the prestigious Werner Fricker Builders Award by US Soccer for his outstanding contributions. him in this sport.

He was also honored for his contributions to DC United when he was inducted into the Hall of Tradition in October 2015.



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