In less than a year, we will witness the long-awaited arrival of Major League Soccer in San Diego, San Diego FC.
The city's latest football project is underway and one of its most important arrivals, the team's first sporting director, is reportedly very close to being finalized.
According to popular Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano (for those who don't know him, he's the Adrian Wojnarowski of soccer), Carlos Avigna is in the midst of negotiations with San Diego FC, A formal announcement of the contract may be made soon. .
Avigna will be responsible for building San Diego FC's roster. This includes numerous draft picks, up to five players selected from other MLS teams (no, Messi isn't on that list), and the signing of several more players. Potential international stars will also be included to complete the roster, which can have up to 30 players, according to MLS rules.
A 33-year-old native of Mexico, Aviña has an extensive resume despite his young age. He began his career as the club's American Development Director in 2015, overseeing the progress and evolution of the affiliated teams. His excellent performance led to promotion within that organization, and he was named Director of Pro Football and Scouting four years later. Under his management, Club América won the 2018 Apertura, and his performance was followed by very important players such as Paraguayan Richard Sanchez, Colombian Nicolas Benedetti, Alvaro Fidalgo and Federico Viñas. was essential to achieving the contract. He has also played a key role in several multi-million dollar sales, such as Edson Alvarez joining Ajax for 15 million euros and Matheus Uribe and Marchesin joining Porto, adding large sums of money to the club's coffers. funds were left.
After his stint at Club América, Avigna made the leap to Europe as sporting director for Cercle Brugge, a small Belgian team that was struggling to maintain its place in the First Division at the time. Avigna has developed a very young team every year, improving and maximizing the performance of the players and organically improving the club. Cercle Brugge has become even more prominent and powerful. The team finished the season in 8th place and qualified for the playoffs with a shot at qualifying for the Europa League in 2023, finishing in 2nd place.
His management was so successful in Belgium that AS Monaco approached him. The Monaco club and Cercle Brugge are owned by the same owner, Russian oligarch Dimitry Rybolovlev, and the two teams have had an agreement and cooperation regarding player transfers since 2017. The deal also includes a manager, and Avinha's success in Belgium attracted the attention of AS Monaco, who ultimately hired the Mexican as sporting director last summer. Their hope was to compete with Paris Saint-Germain.
AS Monaco have failed to achieve their big goal of competing for the title with Paris Saint-Germain after signing key players such as Folarin Balogun from Arsenal for 30 million euros and midfielder Denis Zakaria from Juventus for 20 million euros. With 11 games remaining until the end of the season, Monaco are in third place, 13 points behind Paris.
Carlos Avinha's success in Europe has caught the attention of San Diego FC owners, and if the deal is finalized it will be his first experience in MLS. Avinya will have a big job ahead of her. In about 10 months, he will play for the club for the first time in its history. At the moment, he is one of only three players SDFC has committed to his 2025 appearance.