Garth Lagerwey an obvious target for Fire

The question isn’t whether the Fire should remove sporting director Georg Heitz. It’s who should replace him. And there’s a pretty big name out there who would check all the boxes Heitz doesn’t.

Unlike Heitz, Seattle Sounders general manager and president of soccer operations Garth Lagerwey knows how to win in Major League Soccer. An Elmhurst native, Lagerwey won an MLS Cup with Real Salt Lake before moving on to the Sounders, where he has won two more league titles. This spring, Lagerwey and Seattle climbed the tallest mountain in North American club soccer, as the Sounders became the first MLS team to win the CONCACAF Champions League.

Crucially, Lagerwey’s contract is up at the end of the season, giving Fire owner Joe Mansueto a chance to flex his economic muscle and sign perhaps the league’s best executive.

Even though the Sounders have struggled since winning the Champions League and might miss the playoffs, nabbing Lagerwey won’t be easy. Other teams that need a top soccer decision-maker will come calling if he wants to leave Seattle. Atlanta United is in the market for a new leader and would give Lagerwey the chance to rebuild a franchise that has slipped on the field since its rapid rise to the top of MLS but maintains a prominent place in its sports market that the Fire can only dream of.

The Fire obviously would be a greater challenge, but Mansueto has to present an offer that would make it incredibly difficult for Lagerwey to refuse.

If that also means giving Lagerwey a say in the business side of the franchise, so be it. If Lagerwey wants to hire a new coach instead of keeping Ezra Hendrickson, so be it. If Lagerwey isn’t interested or is hesitant to join a losing organization and Mansueto needs to give him a historic financial offer to get him to come home, so be it.

This is Mansueto’s time to act because the 2022 Fire built by Heitz were one fiasco after another.

They squandered a pair of 2-0 leads at home in 3-2 losses and endured a 10-game winless streak that undid their hot start. They bowed out of the U.S. Open Cup in their first match, losing to a team in the third tier of American soccer. On-field discipline was an issue, the depth was lacking, there weren’t nearly enough goals and the designated players didn’t live up to their status.

Most important, there are no tangible signs of progress. Under Heitz, the Fire finished 11th in the East in 2020, 12th last year and could plummet to 13th this season. 

Lagerwey could change all of that, and maybe the Fire’s woes could be used to recruit him. Nothing Lagerwey could do would be as difficult but potentially as impactful for American soccer than restoring the Fire, a team that has dragged down the sport in the third-biggest U.S. market.

If Lagerwey can’t be pried from Seattle, Mansueto should look for somebody with MLS experience who can navigate the league’s tricky rules. Of course, as the Nelson Rodriguez era proved under former owner Andrew Hauptman, that’s not a guarantee of success.

However, Lagerwey is no Rodriguez, and Mansueto is no Hauptman. Mansueto can show that again by getting rid of Heitz and making it impossible for Lagerwey to pass on the chance to restore the Fire.