Peter Vermes out at Sporting KC after supporters call for resignation | OneFootball

Sporting Kansas City announced it has mutually parted ways with manager and chief soccer officer Peter Vermes on Monday, less than 24 hours after the team's most visible supporters groups published a letter calling for his resignation.

The move ends the longest managerial tenure in the history of MLS, extending back to August of 2009. Vermes' teams won the 2013 MLS Cup and the 2012, 2015 and 2017 U.S. Open Cups, and qualified for a club-record eight straight playoff appearances from 2011 to 2018.

But the club had finished no higher than eighth in the Western Conference in the past three regular seasons, and was stuck in a club-record 13 match winless run in all competitions dating back to last Septeber.

Supporters get involved.

The pressure building around the embattled Vermes reached a new level this weekend.

After SKC's latest defeat, a 2-1 loss at FC Dallas on Saturday, The KC Cauldron and South Stand Supporters Club published a letter sunday calling for Vermes to resign. It expressed gratitude for many of the higher points of his tenure, but in no uncertain terms called for new leadership.

"We cannot and will not accept this level of mediocrity," the letter reads. "The hard truth is this: for Sporting KC to reclaim its rightful place as a dominant force in MLS, a change in leadership is necessary. Peter Vermes must resign as manager. This is not a request -- it is a demand from a fanbase that refuses to watch its club wither under outdated tactics and unchallenged authority. His tenure has run its course, and a fresh vision is required to lead Sporting KC into the future."

A miracle, but not a turning point

Sporting have lost all but one of their 13 winless matches dating back to last September. The club would still be without a point this season if not for a comeback from three goals down in a 3-3 home draw against Minnesota United on Matchday 4.

But SKC was unable to build on that near-miracle result, getting outclassed 2-0 by an LAFC side missing Denis Bouanga, Olivier Giroud and Jeremy Ebobisse on Matchday 5, and then losing at Dallas Saturday.

Kansas City has finished 12th, 8th and 13th in the West in the last three seasons. The club also reached the 2024 U.S. Open Cup final, losing 3-1 in extra time to LAFC.

That final came early during the current 13-match winless run, as did two losses in the first round of the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup. The remaining 10 matches came in 2024 or 2025 regular season play.