Paulo Fonseca has reportedly turned down Atlanta United in its pursuit to fill its vacant managerial position.

The news was first reported by MaisFutebol, an outlet in Fonseca’s native Portugal.

Atlanta United president Darren Eales and vice president Carlos Bocanegra fired Gabriel Heinze on July 13 after just 17 games with the franchise. The team was mired in an eight-game winless streak and was dealing with allegations filed by the Major League Soccer Players Association about Heinze’s training schedules.

Atlanta United will play at Montreal on Wednesday and at Columbus on Saturday. The team’s winless streak is now at 11 games and it is eight points behind the seventh-place team in the East for the final playoff spot.

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Arthur Blank speaks during the “Empower Her. Inspire All.” event hosted by AMB Sports and Entertainment at The Interlock in Atlanta on Tuesday, November 11, 2025. A new expansion franchise of the National Women’s Soccer League was announced at the event. (Abbey Cutrer / AJC)

Credit: abbey.cutrer@ajc.com

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The DeKalb school district is suing to recover money spent on cellphone lockers, plus money spent on implementing social media guidelines and hosting associated events, lost teaching time and to hire extra school counselors. (The New York Times file)

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