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Orlando City Founder Phil Rawlins Stepping Away From Day-To-Day Control Of MLS Club

Orlando City yesterday announced President Phil Rawlins is "stepping down" from his role, effective immediately, but the MLS club's founder will "stay with the team in a new role, Life President, serving as a consultant, an ambassador and will represent the club" on the boards for MLS, NWSL and USL, according to Roger Simmons of the ORLANDO SENTINEL. Orlando City CEO Alex Leitao, who assumed his role at the start of this past season, will "assume the club’s day-to-day operations." Leitao now will "report directly" to the club's BOD. Orlando City "will not replace Rawlins' presidential position" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 12/28). In Orlando, Mike Bianchi in a front-page piece writes fans should "not dwell" on whether Rawlins stepped down on his own or was kicked upstairs by Majority Owner & Chair Flávio Augusto da Silva, but instead instead should "marvel at and revel in the unbelievable, inconceivable miracle he accomplished in six short years." Rawlins "stunningly and cunningly transformed an NBA city and a college football town into an international soccer destination." He not only "co-founded one of the most popular brands" in all of MLS, but "cultivated one of the most rabid, raucous soccer fan bases in all of North America." An argument could be made that Rawlins is the "second-most impactful" sports exec in Orlando history -- right behind Magic Senior VP Pat Williams. Bianchi: "At least Orlando City wasn't so tone deaf as to let Rawlins disappear completely." If this indeed was a personal decision on Rawlins' part, Orlando City was "smart to talk him into staying with the club in some capacity" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 12/28).

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