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NYCFC will name Todd Dunivant its next chief soccer officer, sources briefed on the deal tell The Athletic.
Dunivant will leave USL Championship’s Sacramento Republic to join NYCFC. The 44-year-old has been Republic’s GM since 2018 and was also named club president in 2020.
In 2019, when Sacramento was initially set to join MLS as an expansion team, Dunivant was expected to remain the club’s GM. Sacramento’s bid ultimately fell apart when lead investor Ron Burkle pulled out of the expansion package.
Dunivant takes over for David Lee, who left this fall to take over as Sporting KC’s CSO.
At NYCFC, Dunivant inherits a strong squad led by USMNT goalkeeper Matt Freese, center back Thiago Martins and attacking midfielder Nico Fernández, who was signed this summer. Costa Rican forward Alonso Martinez, who led the team with 17 goals in the regular season, tore his ACL last month on international duty, putting his status for 2026 in doubt.
Head coach Pascal Jansen impressed in his first season as head coach, guiding NYCFC to the Eastern Conference final, where the club fell to Inter Miami 5-1 last weekend.
As for Sacramento, this season it finished second in the Western Conference before being upset in the first round of the playoffs by Orange County SC on penalty kicks. The club made the USL Championship playoffs in all but one of Dunivant’s seasons in charge, and it also made a memorable run to the U.S. Open Cup final in 2022.
In his well-respected MLS playing career, Dunivant appeared in more than 300 matches over 13 seasons. He played for the San Jose Earthquakes, LA Galaxy, New York Red Bulls and Toronto FC, though is best known for his time with the Galaxy.
Dunivant won MLS Cups, two Supporters’ Shields and a U.S. Open Cup trophy. He was named to MLS Best XI in 2011 and was a four-time Humanitarian of the Year winner.
Dec 2, 2025
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