Opinion: Why Will Kuntz deserved to win the 2024 MLS Sporting Executive of the Year

Photo: LA Galaxy

Major League Soccer’s decision not to name LA Galaxy General Manager Will Kuntz as MLS Sporting Executive of the Year is the most head-scratching award decision this year.

LAFC’s John Thorrington was announced as the award winner on Tuesday, but looking deeper at Kuntz’s body of work with the LA Galaxy leaves you wondering if that was the right choice.

Thorrington and Kuntz worked together at LAFC from 2017 to 2022, assembling rosters that won the MLS Supporters Shield and MLS Cup. Kuntz had begun to build a reputation as a key member of the Black and Gold’s front office.

During Kuntz’s time with LAFC, the LA Galaxy still had yet to keep up with MLS trends in the transfer market.

As teams started to build their clubs around younger, high-potential players from South America, LA was still using formulas from the late 2000s to build its roster.

Big name Designated Players at the tail end of their careers, such as Steven Gerrard, Zlatan Ibrahimović, and Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, caught the eye of the casual soccer fan, but that never led to silverware of the club. LA was among the biggest spenders in MLS but only made the playoffs twice from 2017 to 2023.

The LA Galaxy also failed to find quality role players who fit well with the club’s playing style and did the under-the-radar work needed to elevate a team’s floor for nearly a decade.

Enter Kuntz. Since becoming the Galaxy’s General Manager in December 2023, LA has taken its much-needed evolution to reclaim the title of one of MLS’s Super Clubs.

Instead of relying on agent recommendations for transfers, the club has developed a solid scouting infrastructure to identify up-and-coming talent. Kuntz doesn’t want to buy big-name players and hope they still have the blockbuster effect of winning games; rather, he wants to push the ceiling of players so they can grow into MLS superstars and build their legacies in Blue, White, and Gold colors.

Take DP’s Gabriel Pec and Joseph Paintsil for example. Paintsil is just now entering his prime years, and Pec, not the Galaxy’s first-choice target, was a very raw prospect, but the potential was overflowing. Both players are key pillars to the Galaxy’s success in 2024 and their push for the MLS Cup.

The pair have been the ideal fit for Riqui Puig, a player the club committed to building around with his contract extension this season. Puig is in the midst of his best MLS season with players that truly complement his strengths. Paintsil and Pec were heavy investments, with a reported $20 million being spent to acquire them, but they’ve been worth every penny.

It’s hard to hit on Designated Player signings in MLS, especially two in the same offseason, but Kuntz did that on his first try when given the reigns to lead the LA Galaxy.

It’s not just been on the attack where Kuntz’s acquisitions have found success; other areas of the pitch have increased their value since joining the Galaxy.

John Nelson’s career was trending negatively, but Kuntz and the Galaxy signed him to play a backup role in the left-back position. Julian Aude’s injury in the middle of the season allowed Nelson to show his talents. He’s been playing at a starting caliber level and has become a key starter in the back line. John McCarthy and Emrio Garces have also been diamond in the rough signings that have become so instrumental to the Galaxy’s resurgence to relevancy in 2024.

One major transfer coup that isn’t talked about enough is Miki Yamane. He established himself as one of the best right back in Japan and had no reason to play abroad to prove himself. Kuntz flew to Japan to meet with Yamane personally and convince him to join a project that had more “If” in the sales pitch than actual proof of a foundation of success after the turmoils of the 2023 season. Yamane joined the club and has been the most consistent player for LA Galaxy all season long.

The Galaxy will always have the allure for big-name players past their primes. Who doesn’t want to end their careers living by the beach and practicing with palm trees around the training pitch.

Despite the salary constraints, Kuntz found a way to fit German midfielder Marco Rues into the squad for the playoff push. In most cases, Reus would be a Designated Player but signed a Targeted Allocation Money contract to stay under the salary cap and play in Los Angeles. Not many GM’s across the league could pull off signing a big-name player to a non-DP contract, but he’s done that twice now (Gareth Bale and Giorgio Chiellini during his time with LAFC).

Thorrington has undoubtedly been successful with LAFC over the years, but this season has left more questions than answers for the Black and Gold following their elimination to the Seattle Sounders.

Is Oliver Giroud going to bounce back after looking out of place in his first season with LAFC? Will there be major reshuffling with many contracts coming to an end? Are the questions about Head Coach Steve Cherundolo valid, and will he enter the hot seat in 2025? These are major questions that Thorrington and the LAFC fanbase have to think about until the next season begins.

Meanwhile, Kuntz and the LA Galaxy don’t seem to have those urgent questions heading into next season. The future of the backline is set, the LA Galaxy has been able to develop its depth pieces into starting quality players under Greg Vanney, and the future of their DP’s is locked in for the next few years.

The best sporting executives don’t allow questions to arise about their roster-building approaches or about their management of the salary cap. It’s a shame MLS couldn’t reward Kuntz for checking off both of those boxes in 2024. He rebuilt the Galaxy back to a superclub and, potentially, back to MLS glory.