San Diego FC rewards Tyler Heaps with a multi-year extension
Credit: SDFC
Tyler Heaps was rewarded with a multi-year contract extension following San Diego FC’s record-setting inaugural season. Heaps, the club’s Sporting Director and General Manager, has assembled the roster from scratch into instant contenders.
The 34-year-old has rapidly ascended the ranks to become the youngest Sporting Director in Major League Soccer in August 2024. Before joining SDFC, he accumulated 10 years of experience in soccer, holding various roles at Right to Dream, AS Monaco, and the U.S. Soccer Federation.
In a statement, San Diego FC’s CEO Tom Penn said that Heaps has been “instrumental in shaping the foundation of the Club.”
A month after joining the club, he appointed Mikey Varas to become the first-ever head coach. In their first season together, they earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, setting MLS records for most wins (19) and points (63) by an expansion team. They reached the conference finals before being eliminated by the Vancouver Whitecaps.
“From the very beginning, our goal was to build something meaningful for this city and to lay the right foundation for long-term success,” Heaps said in the statement. “I’m incredibly proud of the work that has gone into building this Club from its inception through our first season – from assembling our staff and roster to seeing the connection grow between the team and our supporters.
After a record-breaking inaugural season, Tyler is here to stay 🙌 pic.twitter.com/UQjii8iheO
— San Diego FC (@sandiegofc) February 24, 2026
Following the Tuesday announcement, Heaps told the media that agreeing to the new deal was “an easy decision at the end of the day.”
San Diego FC has been busy on the contract extension front ahead of their second campaign. Varas, star winger Anders Dreyer, and young defender Luca Bombino received extensions in January. Jeppe Tverskov, team captain and midfielder, was extended in October.
Dreyer, the club’s second-ever Designated Player, was a home run addition by Heaps. The MLS Newcomer of the Year had 38 goal contributions (19 goals and 19 assists) during SDFC’s debut season. The Danish winger accounted for 59.4% of San Diego’s 64 goals and was a 2025 MLS All-Star. He finished second in the Landon Donovan MLS Most Valuable Player voting.
There’s no telling where San Diego FC would be right now without Dreyer.
Tverskov has been exceptional at commanding the midfield. Last season, he had 13 assists, completed 90% of his passes, and logged the second-most minutes on the team. He was also named to the 2025 All-Star team.
The new club excels at identifying young talent and providing them with valuable playing time to learn and develop. The players have adopted the play style of dominating possession, high tempo, aggressive strategies, and numerous short passes.
In the MLS SuperDraft, held before its inaugural season, the team selected Manu Duah from UC Santa Barbara as the first overall pick. Duah, 20, made a position change from midfield to center-back defender. It’s safe to say he has exceeded expectations and solidified a spot on the starting backline.
With the 24th pick, they added defender Ian Pilcher from the University of North Carolina Charlotte. Pilcher, 22, played 1,295 minutes last season and started 13 games, including all five playoff matches. He had an incredible, crucial save against Minnesota United FC in the semifinals.
Bombino, 19, joined SDFC on loan from LAFC and quickly became a regular starter on the left back—he started 30 games last season. He’s under contract through the 2028-29 season with Club Options for the 2029–30 season.
Bryan Zamblé is the most recent signing and has already shown promise. The 18-year-old Right to Dream graduate spent seven years in the academy developing his skills for this moment. It took him four minutes to score his first-ever MLS goal against CF Montréal.
Zamblé is a prime example of what the future holds for the club. The list of young contributors goes on and on. It’s an exciting development to watch.
A goal we’ll never forget… pic.twitter.com/nskDcmraQ7
— San Diego FC (@sandiegofc) February 22, 2026
A player who did get away from the club was San Diego native Milan Iloski. With a hobbled frontline, SDFC agreed to a loan from April to July last season from its sister club FC Nordsjaelland.
Iloski quickly became a fan favorite, scoring 10 goals despite having limited playing time. In his first MLS start, he scored four goals in just 12 minutes. A performance forever woven into SDFC’s history. The city believed they had finally found the striker they needed—that wasn’t the case.
With half a month remaining on his loan, both sides agreed to mutually terminate after failing to agree on a new contract—one of the few mishandled situations since its inception. Iloski went back to FC Nordsjaelland and then joined Philadelphia Union shortly after. He’s become a regular starter for one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.
Perhaps the biggest issue on the current roster has been Hirving “Chucky” Lozano, the club’s first Designated Player. Lozano produced when healthy, scoring 11 goals and providing 10 assists (including playoffs). However, he was disciplined by the club late last season and is no longer in their sporting plans.
The Chucky signing made sense from a marketing perspective, but he wasn’t an ideal fit into the system—and the team has won plenty of games without him on the pitch. It’s important to note that Chucky joined the club in June 2024, before Heaps and Varas were hired.
Heaps is now tasked with offloading this expensive asset while continuing to improve the roster.
The sporting director deserves praise for acquiring forward Amahl Pellegrino during the summer transfer window. His contributions helped mitigate for Lozano’s absence. The Norwegian international has tallied six goals and three assists since his arrival.
Through three games in 2026, San Diego FC has looked strong. In the Concacaf Champions Cup, they advanced to the Round of 16 following their 4-2 aggregate win over Pumas UNAM. They followed that up with a dominant 5-0 win over CF Montréal to open the 2026 MLS season.
San Diego has nine different goal scorers, showcasing its ability to find different ways to put the ball inside the net. David Vazquez, Alex Mighten, Duah, and Bombino scored against the Pumas, while Chris McVey, Onni Valakari, Marcus Ingvartsen, Pellegrino, and Zamblé added goals against the Canadian team.
“His commitment to building the right culture and setting a clear direction has positioned SDFC for long-term success,” Penn said. “What we’ve accomplished so far is only the beginning, and I believe that under his leadership the Club will continue to grow and achieve lasting success in the years to come.”
