Kevin Payne Obituary

Kevin J. Payne was the president and general manager of Toronto FC. Kevin Payne died from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in Charleston, South Carolina, on December 25, 2022, at the age of 69

Kevin Payne was appointed national administrator of the United States Soccer Federation in 1989. In the fall of 1990, he was named the federation’s deputy executive director and director of marketing.

In 1991, he relocated to New York and became the executive vice president and, eventually, president of Soccer USA Partners, which owned all marketing, broadcast, and event promotion rights to the United States men’s national soccer team leading up to the 1994 FIFA World Cup.

From 1994 to 2012, he served as the president and CEO of D.C. United. He was also chairman of the technical committee and a board member of the United States Soccer Federation, as well as vice chairman of the United States Soccer Foundation.

Kevin J. Payne was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2021. Payne’s career included over 30 years of high-profile, executive leadership positions within U.S. Soccer and Major League Soccer.