Bay FC at a crossroads with organizational shakeup

SAN JOSE — Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes are on the horizon for Bay FC.

On Monday, the second-year soccer club announced that head coach Albertin Montoya will be stepping down from the position he has held since being hired in 2023 as the team's inaugural head coach at the conclusion of this season.

“I have so much love for these players, staff, and fans," Montoya said in a statement. "We’ve built a culture and a style of play that I believe will compete for championships for years to come. I want to thank everyone at the Bay FC organization for their support. I look forward to finishing this season strong and for this club continuing to accomplish great things.”

Also announced in its press release was Kay Cossington will be leading the sporting efforts of the club going forward, including the selection of the club’s next head coach. Cossington has already begun working with Bay FC Sporting Director Matt Potter and other training staff at the club, providing advice and direction on the next phase of the Bay FC system.

Cossington is the CEO of Bay Collective, a multi-club global organization dedicated to holistic excellence and the growth of women’s football. Bay FC is the first club served by Bay Collective, supporting the team’s commitment to player centricity and developing athletes on and off the field.

Bay FC chairman Alan Waxman said in a statement he appreciated everything Montoya did for the club in its first two seasons.

“I want to thank Albertin for his leadership and dedication in helping launch this club and establish its foundation during our startup phase," Waxman said. "Albertin’s knowledge and passion for the game led Bay FC to record-breaking early success, including making the playoffs in Bay FC’s inaugural season and setting the mark for regular season wins by an expansion franchise which was an incredible feat. On behalf of everyone across the organization, we want to express an immense amount of gratitude to Albertin for his contributions."

Waxman also stated his excitement for Cossington's role with the team.

“Kay has a vision that we are fully invested behind. Bay FC’s startup phase is ending and we’re moving to our next phase of growth. We are only getting started and excited for what’s next," Waxman said.

According to the press release Cossington is one of the world’s foremost experts on women’s football and the first ever Women’s Technical Director at The English Football Association (FA). Cossington’s focus throughout her career has been on holistic development designed specifically for women across all levels of the sport. From training to playing styles to infrastructure and long-term career advancement, she was the chief architect responsible for the transformational success of the England women’s football system over the past decade.

This news came at an interesting point with seven matches left in the 2025 campaign. Bay FC is currently 12th in the NWSL standings, nine points behind Racing Louisville for the eighth and final playoff spot. The club is on a four-match losing streak and has earned just two points in its last six matches. The glimmer of light for the team making the playoffs is dimming with each match they have failed to win. Scoring has been an issue as they have scored one goal or fewer in four of those past six matches.

Bay FC is missing their leading goal scorer, Penelope Hocking as she's dealing with a injury and hopes to be back before the season ends. However, Racheal Kundananji, Rachel Hill, and rookie Karlie Lema have not been able to pick up the slack despite having playmakers Taylor Huff and Caroline Conti in the midfield.

Defensively, Bay FC have been without their two best center backs in Abby Dahlkemper and Emily Menges, who have been out with their respective injuries. Montoya has had to patch together his backline for the majority of the season by moving midfielder Joelle Anderson to center back and inserting Kelli Hubly at times. The recent addition of Sydney Collins should help stabilize the backline for the rest of the season. Collins made her home debut and first start this past weekend against the Kansas City Current.

There were a lot of expectations going into 2025 after Bay FC's impressive 2024 campaign. They set an NWSL record with 11 victories and became only the second expansion team to make the playoffs in its inaugural season. So where did things go wrong this season?

Some feel the club has a dark cloud hanging over its head since the end of last season due to the investigation against Montoya for alleged violations of the Policy to Prevent and Eliminate Workplace Discrimination, Harassment, and Bullying that surfaced back in March. Two formal complaints were filed about the team. While the investigation cleared Montoya of violating the policy, it did conclude there were shortcomings in his communication style.

Last season the two players that were marketed by the team to be the faces of the franchise were Venezuelan national Deyna Castellanos and Nigerian national Asisat Oshoala. Both are gone. Castellanos was granted her free agency at the end of last season and signed with the Portland Thorns. Oshoala, who came off the bench primarily this season, was loaned out to Al Hilal in the Saudi Women’s Premier League back on September 2nd.

There had been speculation in the media that Castellanos was one of the players who filed complaints against Montoya after she saw her role slowly diminish in the second half of the season after she came back from an injury. Some of that speculation also involved Castellanos not being happy that one of her best friends on the team last season, Scarlett Camberos, was transferred to Club América Femenil of the Liga MX Femenil halfway through the season.

It can be argued that Montoya might have lost the respect of his players this season due to the allegations that he has been cleared of, but you wouldn't know it from his current players who recently vouched for Montoya after their latest loss, a 2-0 shutout to the Current.

"Our culture is great," wing back Maddie Moreau said. "Our players have bought in (to the coaching system). I can't say that other teams have experienced this and feel the same way with confidence that I do on our team. I mean I think any game could be our game.”

I've personally witnessed at training sessions that are opened to the media, Montoya and a group of players always play a game of "Tech Ball" together just before practice starts. It's a game that consists of two teams volleying a soccer ball over a slanted ping pong table. Think of it as ping pong on steroids. You don't see that kind of interaction between players and coach if the environment was a toxic one.

Sports is a results-oriented business. Thus far Bay FC have not earned the results with a 4-10-5 record for just 17 points. Only the Chicago Stars and Utah Royals have a worse record than Bay FC. One could argue that Montoya not being able to match or exceed management's expectations of the club is a reason for his resignation.

So where does the club go from here? How do they finish the season with seven matches remaining? They would have to win out just to match last season's win total, something is highly unexpected. Will the players go for broke and play beyond their capabilities to finish strong for their head coach and send him off with a second consecutive playoff berth? And I forgot to mention that the NWSL Championship Game will be played at PayPal Park this year.

Even if the team whimpers across the finish line outside the top eight of the standings, there will be a lot of questions left unanswered. Since Cossington will be leading the search for the next head coach, what will she be looking for to help to take the club to the next level to compete with the Kansas City's, Orlando's and Washington's of the league? Will gender play a role in who they hire as the next head coach? What coaching style and philosophy will Cossington seek to bring in to a team that believes in their current coach's system? Will the team look to continue to bring in more pieces to help the team complete or will the new head coach want to tear everything down and create their own vision of what Bay FC should play

It will be the biggest offseason yet for Bay FC, but there are still seven more matches left in this season before any of those questions can begin to be answered.

Bay FC returns to action on Saturday, September 13 at 2:00 p.m. when they take on the Orlando Pride at Inter & Co Stadium. The match will be broadcasted on the ION Network.