NC Courage chief soccer officer Curt Johnson resigns

Katie Schroeck / NC Courage Communications

Curt Johnson has resigned as chief soccer officer of the North Carolina Courage, the club announced on Wednesday. The club said it will immediately begin a search for Johnson’s replacement.

Johnson spent 14 years with the North Carolina Football Club, working directly with the Courage since the franchise’s relocation from Western New York in January 2017. Johnson oversaw the technical staff and player transactions in his role. He was part of the Courage’s three NWSL Shields and two NWSL Championships.

“We are incredibly grateful for Curt’s 14 years with the North Carolina Football Club,” Steve Malik, majority owner of the Courage and men’s pro side NCFC, said in a statement. “His expertise and vision have been vital to our sustained on-field success, and he’ll leave a legacy with the solid foundation that the Courage laid under his tutelage. His tireless effort and commitment have paved the way for a bright future, and he will forever be intertwined with the history of our club.”

Malik will work with senior VP and assistant GM Bobby Hammond to oversee operations in an interim capacity. Hammond has long worked closely with Johnson on player transactions.

The Courage are the fifth NWSL team actively in search of a general manager or equivalent technical leader.

North Carolina finds itself in a wider moment of transition as a club. Malik was in exclusive negotiations to sell the team to Avenue Sports Group, led by former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, but those talks recently fell through.

North Carolina is the only team among the 14 active NWSL franchises to have not changed majority ownership or governance in the past four years. Malik has been the majority owner of the Courage since purchasing the franchise rights from the Western New York Flash.

Johnson departs a club he is connected to at every level, from youth to professional, men’s and women’s.

He grew up playing youth soccer for the Capital Area Soccer Club, which became North Carolina FC’s youth club. He went on to captain NC State University’s men’s soccer team just minutes down the road from the Courage’s home at WakeMed Soccer Park before playing professionally.

Johnson became president of the Carolina RailHawks, as the club’s men’s team was previously known, in 2011. He worked on NCFC and the Courage in a dual role from 2017 through 2023, when he shifted entirely to Courage duties.

“As I reflect on my nearly 50-year involvement in soccer here in the Triangle, I’m so proud of all we’ve accomplished together,” Johnson said in a statement. “Soccer was unknown to most when I started playing and the soccer community has poured their blood, sweat, and tears into growing the game. I’m proud to have played a part in building a youth-to-pro club that everyone in the Triangle and the state of North Carolina can be proud of.”

The Courage also won two NWSL Challenge Cups and the inaugural Women’s International Champions Cup (ICC) in 2018 – defeating European champions Lyon – during his tenure.

Per the club, “Johnson and Malik collaborated on the timing of the resignation to minimize the disruption to the organization.”