LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles FC fired head coach Marc Dos Santos on Sunday night, late in his disappointing first season in charge.
General manager John Thorrington announced the dismissal. LAFC didn't immediately name a replacement for Dos Santos, who was Thorrington's hand-picked successor to MLS Cup-winning coach Steve Cherundolo just nine months ago.
“Marc has given a great deal to this club over the years, and we are grateful for his commitment, care and contributions to LAFC,” Thorrington said in a statement.
LAFC undeniably has underachieved this season under Dos Santos, Cherundolo's assistant for four seasons and the former head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps. Despite a talented roster headlined by Son Heung-min and Denis Bouanga, LAFC sits sixth in the Western Conference standings at 11-9-8 after winning just one of its past nine games across all competitions.
Dos Santos has incurred LAFC fans' ire for his static tactics and substitution plans, and his club has been booed at home by its normally supportive base. Thorrington finally saw enough after LAFC lost 1-0 at FC Dallas on Saturday, dropping the club to 1-4-5 in MLS matches since July.
Dos Santos was only the third head coach in the history of LAFC, which began play as an MLS expansion club in 2018.
Bob Bradley immediately built a contender at the arena now known as BMO Stadium during his four seasons in charge, and Cherundolo led the club to the 2022 MLS title and the 2024 U.S. Open Cup before he resigned last year after four successful seasons, ostensibly to move back to Germany. But Cherundolo then agreed in July to coach the U.S. under-23 team through the 2028 Olympics.
Dos Santos' tenure started inauspiciously when Thorrington hired a head coach from within the organization for the second straight time, disappointing fans who wanted to see new tactics after Son's ballyhooed arrival last year.
LAFC started Dos Santos' MLS tenure impressively with a 3-0 win over defending champion Inter Miami in front of 75,673 fans at the Coliseum. But LAFC has struggled to make headway in the conference race, and it was bounced from the CONCACAF Champions League in May.
LAFC's next match isn't until Oct. 10 against Vancouver. The club has six games left in the regular season.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer
FILE - Marc Dos Santos, coach of the United States' Los Angeles FC stands on the bench prior to a CONCACAF Champions Cup second leg semifinal soccer match against Mexico's Toluca in Toluca, Mexico, on May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano, File)
MEDINAH, Ill. (AP) — President Donald Trump returned to the Presidents Cup as honorary chairman for the second time, getting a loud cheer and keeping his remarks brief.
“These people want to see golf,” he said Sunday.
And just like his last visit to the Presidents Cup in 2017, he saw the Americans win. They rallied with the best performance on the final day in tournament history.
“Our team played unbelievable golf. They went in with a massive deficit, and they came out with a tremendous victory, just a great comeback,” Trump told reporters when he landed back at Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington.
His visit to Medinah Country Club in suburban Chicago marked the fourth time Trump has gone to a golf tournament this year. He arrived early and participated in the closing ceremony, helping with the presentation of the trophy to the winning U.S. team.
Security was tight. The Secret Service would not let spectators cross from one side of the first fairway to the other except for when Trump took a break from greeting players to go inside a suite.
Trump also was honorary chairman at the 2017 Presidents Cup during his first term. He showed up at Liberty National, across the Hudson River from Manhattan, toward the end of the competition when the Americans were assured of winning. He posed with U.S. players during the trophy presentation.
This time, he arrived before the start of the 12 singles matches in the final session. Flanked by PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, Trump greeted players and caddies on both teams. In between player introductions, he watched the action on the videoboard at No. 1.
Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world and among several golfers who have played with Trump, patted the president’s shoulder as he walked onto the tee. U.S. captain Brandt Snedeker also visited the president a couple of times.
“He told me I was going to bring some energy today for you guys, you guys need it, and I told him if we did this, he gets all the credit,” Snedeker said after the U.S. closed out the victory. “Thank you, President Trump.”
Trump signed three hats for fans, and he responded to sections of the crowd clamoring for his attention by pointing, waving and offering a thumbs-up. When a fan yelled “We love you Donnie!” right before Chris Gotterup's tee shot, Trump waved discreetly.
He congratulated both teams during the closing ceremony. He also posed for photos and handed out challenge coins to Team USA and their significant others.
Trump was introduced by Rolapp at the beginning of the session, prompting Trump to remark “the fake news media will say I got a very bad reception.”
The president spoke briefly, noting that Rolapp had asked him to make a short speech.
“I said, ‘No, I don’t have the courage to make a speech. These people want to see golf. They don’t want to hear speeches,’” Trump said. “I’ll only say this: Our country is doing great, better than ever before.”
Unlike regular golf tournaments, the first tee is boisterous with a flag-waving crowd and music at the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup, which Trump attended last year at Bethpage Black on Long Island in New York.
The Americans lost the Ryder Cup to Europe, but they rallied past the International team for their 11th consecutive Presidents Cup win.
Before the horseshoe-shaped grandstand was filled, the loudest buzz was Air Force One flying over Medinah, louder than any of the commercial airlines that have been flying over the course every 70 seconds throughout the week during descent to O'Hare International Airport.
“They were nice enough to name me chairman or honorary chairman, so it’s an honor. It’s a very big event, one of the biggest events in golf by far,” Trump told reporters Sunday morning as he left the White House. “You have the Ryder Cup, and you have the Presidents Cup, and this is a big one, and so it’s a great honor. So, I’m going there.”
It's a traditional role offered to leaders of every country where the tournament is played.
The Presidents Cup began in 1994 to include international players from non-European countries who were not eligible for the more famed Ryder Cup. The name of the tournament comes from including the head of state of the host country as honorary chairman.
Then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was part of the trophy presentation at the last Presidents Cup in 2024 at Royal Montreal.
President Bill Clinton was in office in 2000 when he attended for one round at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia. The first time Trump attended in 2017, the start of the week was the biggest display of presidents when Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama sat together on the first tee for the opening round.
Trump this year was at the Cadillac Championship at his Trump National Doral near Miami in early May. He also attended the LIV Golf event at his Trump National Bedminster course in New Jersey in August.
Earlier this month he attended the Irish Open at his course in Doonbeg, Ireland.
Associated Press writers Darlene Superville and Doug Ferguson contributed to this report.
See AP’s full golf coverage here
President Donald Trump hands the Presidents Cup trophy to captain Brandt Snedeker after the Presidents Cup golf tournament final round against the International team at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
President Donald Trump signs a cap at the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump, left, greets USA teams' Russell Henley at the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump points towards fans from the first tee box prior to the Presidents Cup golf tournament final round singles matches between the USA and International teams at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
President Donald Trump speaks as PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp listens at the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump, right, speaks with PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp at the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters upon arriving at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Air Force One, with President Donald Trump on board, flies over the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
USA teams' Scottie Scheffler hits from the first tee during the first round four-ball match at the Presidents Cup golf tournament against the International team at Medinah Country Club, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Medinah, Ill. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
President Donald Trump walks to board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
President Donald Trump talks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
