Major League Soccer has engaged Korn Ferry to lead the search for a potential successor to Don Garber, whose contract expires at the end of 2027. The move comes as part of a comprehensive organizational review initiated last year to evaluate MLS' leadership structure and long-term governance. A league spokesperson confirmed the hiring to ESPN, emphasizing this reflects responsible long-term planning.

Garber, who became MLS commissioner in 1999 after working for the NFL, will be 70 when his current deal expires. The timing creates complexity as the current Collective Bargaining Agreement with the MLS Players Association also expires at the end of 2027, coinciding with the summer World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. The league's media rights deal with Apple expires two years later.

Sources indicate Garber hasn't decided whether to step down immediately or continue through at least the 2027-28 season. The hiring of Korn Ferry follows MLS's engagement of the Miles Group last year for succession planning. The league is also managing various personnel transitions, including the retirement of long-time deputy commissioner Mark Abbott and upcoming departure of MLS VP Gary Stevenson.