It’s Time for Austin FC to Leave Its Past, and Its Coach, Behind

Josh Wolff (Courtesy of Austin FC)

Wolff out.

There, I said it. Happy now?

After Austin FC’s latest showing, a 1-0 loss at home to the Houston Dynamo Saturday that – barring an act of God – essentially eliminated the Verde and Black from the MLS Cup Playoffs, I’ve seen enough.

Wolff out. Ugh. I need to take a shower.

It’s never a good feeling to advocate for someone’s firing (provided they haven’t crossed any moral/behavioral lines), but there comes a point when it must be acknowledged that things simply aren’t working. We’ve reached that point between Austin FC and head coach Josh Wolff. It’s time for a new set of eyes, a new vision, and a new voice to lead the Austin FC locker room into the 2025 season and beyond.

Look, the record is what it is: a mediocre 44 wins, 59 losses, and 29 ties across Austin FC’s 3.9 regular seasons under Wolff. No deep runs in the U.S. Open Cup or Leagues Cup. Yes, Wolff did shepherd Austin FC to the Western Conference Final in 2022, but that already seems like a distant dream.

To be fair and realistic, Wolff has certainly faced more than his share of challenges and roadblocks during his tenure – too many to get into here. Anyone who thinks he alone is the sole reason why Austin FC has missed the playoffs three out of four years is kidding themselves, and the question of whether Wolff has truly been given a fair shake in his four seasons in Austin is legitimately debatable and likely a column for another day.

Even in recent matches against Toronto, LAFC, and Houston, Austin played well enough to conceivably win all three games. But, due mainly to poor finishing and bad luck, the Verde and Black managed just one draw and two losses that did their coach zero favors. After Saturday’s match, the frustration was obvious.

“I can sit here and tell [the players] to be more ruthless, be more shrewd in front of goal, be more clinical, but those are just words,” Wolff said. “In order to win games, we’ve got to score goals. And it gets old. It gets old for you guys. It certainly gets old for me as well.”

At the end of the day, though, “getting old” is the issue. In this business, four years is a sizable chunk of time. Only four – that’s right, four – active MLS head coaches have held their posts longer than Wolff. If the record doesn’t add up, then there must be some other undeniable reason for Austin to maintain the status quo.

There isn’t.

In so many ways, save for a handful of players, Wolff is the last linking factor tying the club to its expansion era ... Austin FC 1.0, if you will. So much else has changed. There’s a new sporting director in Rodolfo Borrell. A small army of designated players has cycled through the club like a car wash. Hell, even the Queso Fountain stand at Q2 Stadium is under new management since the club launched in 2021.

The fanbase is less engaged than ever. As much as the club continues to cling to “MLS’ longest active sellout streak” (remember, it’s tickets distributed, not tickets sold!), anyone with eyes can see that actual attendance ain’t what it used to be. The biggest tragedy of the Dynamo defeat was that it was met not with outrage, but with indifference. Flags don’t get any redder than that.

It’s time for Austin FC to finally cut the cord, not just on Wolff, but on Austin FC 1.0 in general. It was a great first chapter, filled with excitement and emotion, but also with disappointment and mediocrity on the field. The next chapter must be about winning.

By the way, Austin, you’re not the new kid anymore. When the 2025 MLS season kicks off, featuring expansion team San Diego FC, ATXFC will be only the fourth-youngest club in the league. The novelty has officially worn off. Want attention? Earn it. Do Borrell, Anthony Precourt, and the Austin FC brass truly think Josh Wolff is the club’s best chance to find that success? Can they afford to guess and be wrong?

Wolff is under contract through the end of the 2025 season. Cutting ties now will likely come with a financial sting. But ownership has shown a willingness to spend its way out of problems before, buying out the contracts of ineffective players like Emiliano Rigoni and Amro Tarek. Why avoid doing the same with an ineffective coach?

Borrell might prefer to wait until the end of the European soccer calendar (next May) to bring in a handpicked replacement. If so, so be it. But don’t do Wolff the disservice of bringing him back as a lame duck only to sack him halfway through the season. Assistant coach Davy Arnaud is more than capable of filling in on an interim capacity, as he did for Houston in 2019.

It’s time for a clean break, and a fresh start. Austin FC 2.0 is the future, Josh Wolff is the past, and #WolffOut is, unfortunately, the present.

Austin FC next faces Real Salt Lake at home on Saturday, Sept. 28, 7:30pm.

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