The Vancouver Whitecaps have parted ways with head coach Vanni Sartini, the Major League Soccer club confirmed Monday.
The Italian coach led the Whitecaps this year to a regular season record of 13 wins, 13 losses and eight draws, finishing eighth in the Western Conference. After winning a play-in playoff game against the Portland Timbers, Vancouver lost a best-of-three first-found playoff series to Los Angeles F.C.
Sartini took over coaching duties on an interim basis in August 2021 after the Whitecaps dismissed Marc Dos Santos and was officially named head coach that November.
He posted a record of 57-51-39 across all competitions.
In a statement, Whitecaps CEO Axel Schuster thanked Sartini for his passion and commitment to the club, adding that “it is now the right time for someone else to lead this group on the pitch with fresh and new energy.”