The MLS playoff field is set after Decision Day, and teams that did not make the postseason are starting to make their moves.
Monday, Nov. 9 is MLS's version of "Black Monday," the day when coaches are fired after falling short of expectations as teams prepare to hit reset on failing projects.
This year, there is the added intrigue of the MLS calendar change, which will see a "sprint season" take place from February to May next year before the league starts playing its regular season with a summer start and a spring finish.
Here are the managers who won't be returning in 2027 after getting their marching orders on or before Nov. 9:
Raphaël Wicky - Sporting Kansas City
The former Chicago Fire boss' MLS return lasted just one season. While the cupboard was hardly full for a Sporting
KC team that openly admitted it was heading for an overhaul, SKC narrowly avoided being the bottom team in the league and set a league record for goals allowed in an MLS season with 81.
"The 2026 season has been challenging for many reasons, and we recognize that Rapha and his staff worked incredibly hard in difficult circumstances," President of Soccer Operations and General Manager David Lee said in a news release. “After a review of the season, Rapha and I met, and I decided to make the change."
Robin Fraser - Toronto FC
The former LA Galaxy defender was given two years to turn things around with TFC but wasn't able to get into the playoffs either in 2025 or 2026.
Toronto finished 12th in the Eastern Conference this season, with a 9W-13L-12D record good for 39 points.
The lack of improvement came despite major offseason spending that saw the club acquire American forward Josh Sargent, which it hoped would lead to a scoring boom with Djordje Mihailovic pulling the strings. Sargent netted 10 goals, but TFC was poor at the back in addition to lacking as powerful of a scoring punch as it needed to make the playoffs.
Pascal Jansen - New York City FC
Ahead of a watershed moment in NYCFC's history, with the club set to open a purpose-built stadium in Queens in summer 2027, the club has moved on from its manager, parting ways with Pascal Jansen.
Jansen was let go after two years of a four-year contract, with NYCFC finishing four points away from the final postseason spot in the Eastern Conference. In 2025, a fifth-place finish in the East saw the Pigeons make a run to the conference finals, where they fell to Inter Miami.
“This decision follows a thorough review of the season and reflects our ambition as an organization," NYCFC sporting director Todd Dunivant said in a statement. "The search for our next head coach begins immediately as we prepare for the 2027 Sprint Season and build toward the opening of Etihad Park.”
Nine MLS teams hired new managers heading into the 2026 season, and more changes are expected in the league beyond those announced on Monday.
Eight teams made in-season coaching changes and while some, like the Portland Timbers who hired ex-QPR boss Marti Cifuentes, made long-term appointments, many others are still being led by interims.
Former Philadelphia Union manager Jim Curtin will assume the head coaching role with Austin FC, with the club announcing in June he'd take over ahead of the 2027 campaign. Curtin was one of the hottest names on the coaching market, but another former MLS Coach of the Year also could find a new job.
Ex-Columbus Crew boss Wilfried Nancy has said he is interested in returning to the league, with a number of teams - playoff and non-playoff alike - linked with a move to hire the 2024 Coach of the Year.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Which MLS coaches were fired on 'Black Monday' after missing the playoffs?
