At 9:06 p.m. ET on Thursday night, U.S. Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro announced his resignation via Twitter. The move followed a week of intense backlash over the latest round of court filings in the federation’s equal pay lawsuit with its own women’s national team players; backlash that included a pregame protest from the players and public condemnation from many of U.S. Soccer’s sponsors. Former U.S. women’s national team player Cindy Parlow Cone will now serve as president of U.S. Soccer, becoming the first woman to hold the role.



“It has become clear to me that what is best right now is a new direction,” Cordeiro’s resignation letter read. “The arguments and language contained in this week’s legal filing caused great offense and pain, especially to our extraordinary women’s national team players who deserve better. It was unacceptable and inexcusable.”



Cordeiro’s decision was an abrupt one.