Atlanta United President Darren Eales will be honored as the Best Executive by the World Football Summit at its awards ceremony in Madrid next week.
Eales will be the first MLS executive to be honored by the organization. He received more votes than runners-up Victor Blanco of Argentina’s Racing Club and Shaun Harvey, former chief executive of the England Football League.
Eales led Atlanta United to an MLS Cup last season in just its second year. The team also led MLS in attendance in 2017 and 2018 and is on pace to do so again this season. The club has added two more trophies, the Campeones Cup and U.S. Open Cup, this season and is currently in third place in the MLS Eastern Conference with a chance to finish the regular season as the first seed.
“Building our club from the very beginning has been an incredible experience for me personally, and I am very proud of what we have accomplished in such a short time,” Eales said in a statement provided by the team. “I am happy to be recognized on behalf of our owner, Arthur Blank, the players, coaches, staff and fans of Atlanta United; the award is truly a reflection of their outstanding work and support.”
Additionally, Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be honored as the best stadium in world soccer when it receives the award for Best Venue. It is the first time an MLS stadium will receive this award from this group.
“Atlanta United is doing an excellent job and is playing a key role in the growth of MLS, which is arguably experiencing the best time of its history as we will be discussing in several panels during WFS19,” Jan Alessie, director of the WFS, said in a statement from the club. “Attendance and TV rates have boosted in the last few years and each day more and more Americans cite soccer as their favorite sport to watch, which is excellent news for the industry. Football still has some way to go in North America, but the US is already leading the way in crucial areas like developing smart stadia,” he said.
This will be the World Football Summit’s fourth awards ceremony.
About the Author
