Pannes seemed to have quickly ingratiated himself to the Whitecaps fanbase before his ousterGETTY IMAGES
Whitecaps co-Owner & Exec Chair Jeff Mallett on Tuesday announced that CEO Mark Pannes is no longer with the club after just five months in the job, and it is "hard to see how Pannes leaving could be described as increasing the club’s 'effectiveness,'" a theme Mallett "hit on often" during the announcement, according to Matt Pentz of THE ATHLETIC. If social media and the general fan reaction to the decision is any indication, Pannes had "seemed to have very quickly ingratiated himself to what is a justifiably jaded supporter base." He spoke "early and often about the need to re-engage with the Vancouver community." For example, Pannes "called season-ticket holders who cancelled their packages after a challenging 2019." Pannes "seemed to be making legitimate progress." Now, it is "worth noting just how difficult an assignment" Pannes' replacement, Axel Schuster, is "being asked to fulfill in the aftermath." Schuster, who also will continue to serve as the team’s Sporting Dir, is being asked to "manage an entire club, adding all of those business-side responsibilities on top of building a winning roster from scratch." It also is "worth noting how few MLS teams have this type of highly centralized leadership structure, a group that includes none of the most successful teams over the last several years of the league." Mallett on Tuesday was "directly asked multiple times whether Pannes’ ouster had anything to do with cost-cutting, and resolutely shook his head" (THEATHLETIC.com, 6/17).
