John Kimball was named interim President of Utah Soccer Holdings, which includes Real Salt Lake, the USL Real Monarchs and NWSL Utah Royals, among other entities. Kimball will take a temporary leave from his current position as President of the Jazz' Vivint Smart Home Arena. The appointment follows a leave of absence taken by Chief Business Officer Andy Carroll, who -- along with Owner Dell Loy Hansen -- is under investigation by MLS for alleged misconduct and inappropriate behavior. MLS retained N.Y.-based law firm Sullivan and Cromwell LLP to oversee the investigation.
Kimball will be RSL’s BOG representative and will report to MLS Commissioner Don Garber. He served as RSL Senior VP/Business Operations in '03 and, after leaving in '13, joined Larry H. Miller Sports & Entertainment two years later. Garber said, “Kimball is an experienced sports executive who brings extraordinary leadership and stability to the organization. John was instrumental in the launch of Real Salt Lake and has a deep connection to the local soccer community. We thank the Miller family and Larry H. Miller Group of Companies CEO Steve Starks for their support during this important transition period.”
Hansen is currently in the process of selling Utah Soccer Holdings. A source told THE DAILY that multiple parties have expressed interest in Utah Soccer, with those groups involving billionaires. The source said that, as of now, the plan is for Utah Soccer to sell all three soccer clubs, Rio Tinto Stadium and related entities together, as opposed to parsing the various assets. Various people have expressed interest publicly, including Ryan Smith, co-Founder & CEO of Utah-based software company Qualtrics, along with Texans DE J.J. Watt and Toronto FC F Jozy Altidore.
