Tim Bezbatchenko is back with a "global" Crew title

• He'll be Haslam Sports Group's "president of global soccer," overseeing the Crew and HSG's upcoming NWSL team.

Flashback: Bezbatchenko was Crew president from 2019 to 2024, overseeing the building of a downtown stadium, the renovation of Historic Crew Stadium and two MLS Cup wins.

• He had previously been GM of Toronto FC during that team's most successful era, including its 2017 MLS Cup.
• He left Columbus for a huge job — president of Black Knight Football Club, which operates four global soccer teams including Bournemouth in the English Premier League.

What they're saying: Bezbatchenko is a central Ohio native — he was born in Westerville and played youth soccer in Ohio — and the local ties helped bring him back home.

• "It's the perfect time for my family to return home, especially knowing firsthand [HSG's] long-term investment in and commitment to advancing soccer in central Ohio and across the country," he said in a release.

Between the lines: Luring Bezbatchenko back is a massive coup for HSG.

• Not only is he an Ohio native, he's one of the most successful executives in MLS history, one who grew with the league (he started his career at MLS HQ in New York) and Columbus (a day-one appointee after HSG bought the team in 2019).

👀 The intrigue: "President of global soccer" is an interesting title in an ownership group with two Columbus teams, especially for an executive who just returned from leading an operation with teams in England, France, New Zealand and Portugal.

• The team's release described his duties as overseeing "HSG's future investments in domestic and global soccer."

🤔 Multi-club ownership is the model many global soccer investment groups are following, and it appears to be the future — is HSG next?