With the departure of Caleb Porter, the New England Revolution are in the market for a new head coach again, less than two years after hiring the two-time MLS Cup winner. And if there’s one reason above all, it’s the Revs’ struggles at Gillette Stadium.
That was the message from sporting director Curt Onalfo as he faced the media on Tuesday, one day after making what he called the “hard change” to part company with Porter.
“It’s pretty simple. If you look at our record, our away record was solid. If we had a better home record, we wouldn’t be having this press conference,” said Onalfo, who’s been with the club since 2019.
“It’s a results-oriented business, and we have to find a way to win games at home. Our fans deserve it, the organization deserves it, and that’s a main, major focus for us.”
Faltering in Foxboro
New England were 5W-8L-4D at Gillette in league action last season, and with a 3W-9L-3D record at their place in 2025, they won just 25 percent of their 32 MLS home matches under Porter. For Onalfo and the rest of the Revs’ brain trust, improvement in that department is the foundation upon which any further growth will take place.
“We need to win games at home,” he said. “Once we start doing that, and we can continue with the road form, all of a sudden we can start talking about, ‘OK, how do we make the next step to be able to win a championship?’ And our home form has not been good over the last two years – and this year especially.”
As mentioned, the Revs’ away mark is a more solid 5W-5L-5D this year, though they’ve won just twice across all competitions since the end of May, which led to a deepening sense of concern around the team.
Positive outlook
Part of Onalfo’s frustration is his viewpoint that the first team’s results contrast sharply with New England’s wider organizational evolution. The Revs have made notable progress in player development at the academy and MLS NEXT Pro levels, opened a state-of-the-art $35 million training facility a few years ago, posted solid attendance figures over the past few seasons and are hot on the trail of a soccer-specific stadium in Everett, Massachusetts.
“In a lot of ways, our club is thriving, but we have not gotten the results that we need to get, and in this business, you have to make change,” said Onalfo.
“I’m still very optimistic, and they should be as well,” he added later when asked what his message would be to the frustrated Revs faithful. “We have great fans. We actually continue to build our fan base – our ticket sales group here, I meet with them weekly … and I hear about the hard work that’s being put in there, and our fan base continues to grow.
“And as that continues to grow, and the results continue to come and our home record gets better, we’ll be in situations where these conversations are more positive than they are right now.”
Next steps
Porter led a major roster overhaul last winter, with over a dozen comings and goings, including several holdovers from the side that won the 2021 Supporters’ Shield, and maintained until the very end that his group was on the right track.
Somewhat surprisingly, Onalfo agreed, underlining leadership’s conviction that the current squad has “underperformed” and can be competitive in a talent-rich Eastern Conference. That may influence the tenor of the Revs’ upcoming discussions with managerial candidates.
“We feel like we’ve assembled a much improved roster, and one that should be further up in the standings, and one that should be in contention for playoffs,” said Onalfo. “So in part of the search, it’ll be important for the new head coach that would be coming in to have a good feel and like our roster.
“So there’ll be some of those conversations, but like anything, whenever you have a new head coach, there’s going to be changes, and we know that.”
Onalfo said the search for Porter’s successor started immediately, and he provided no specific timeline for the hiring process.
In the meantime, assistant Pablo Moreira, who worked with Porter at multiple destinations dating back to his tenure at the University of Akron more than a decade ago, will man the helm on an interim basis as the club seek a positive conclusion to a difficult campaign.
“I’m very optimistic about the roster, about this club, and where we’re going,” said Onalfo, “and it’s just, when it turns, it turns. And so I steadfastly believe in our future.”
