The Alan Koch era at FC Cincinnati is over.

Koch was unable to see out his third season at FC Cincinnati, and the Major League Soccer team that fired him Tuesday. Assistant coach Yoann Damet will take over head coaching duties on an interim basis while the club conducts an international search for Koch's replacement.

During a Tuesday afternoon press conference downtown, team president and general manager Jeff Berding echoed the sentiments of an earlier news release and cited a deteriorating team culture in making the move to oust Koch.

"After a series of recent issues and a team culture that had deteriorated, we determined that it's time to make a change to return to a club-centered focus to the team and as a result, we dismissed Alan Koch as head coach of FC Cincinnati," Berding said. "This decision is not driven by recent game results themselves but rather the underpinnings that have led to those results. We have not come close to maximizing the talent that we have in the dressing room this year, nor have we seen a foundation that will set us up for success this year and into next year.

"Our whole locker room is committed to our club goal of earning an MLS postseason bid and we need to put them in the best position to do so."

The move to take Koch out of the head-coaching role comes at a turbulent time on the soccer side of the FC Cincinnati organization.

The team had scored one goal – a penalty kick – since winning at New England Revolution March 24 and is in the midst of a five-match losing streak.

By the end, players and assistant coaches were disgruntled. The environment around the club was toxic and friction between Koch and the front office came to the fore.

Koch sniped at the organization in a Wednesday news conference after losing 2-0 to Philadelphia Union. Fanendo Adi, arguably the best-known player on the team, sniped back following Saturday's loss.

There was a lack of respect for Koch on a number of levels and it became clear his words and actions had become ineffectual.

Koch's tenure with the club spanned from early 2017, deep in the club's time as a United Soccer League franchise, to Tuesday when FC Cincinnati was just 11 games into its existence as a MLS franchise.

Koch is the second MLS head coach to be fired this season, and the second in less than three weeks after Colorado Rapids removed Anthony Hudson from his post.

In his prepared remarks, Berding only thanked Koch for his work at the USL level and made no mention of his role in helping the team reach MLS.

"Look, I take full responsibility. I'm the president and general manager of the club and ultimately that makes me responsible for everything," Berding said. "I'll just share (that) every single day we're thinking of how I can do better. How the president can do better and how the 'GM' can do better. I'm very aware that ultimately I do bear responsibility but I am convinced that the change of the head coach was necessary, as I've said, to build a strong culture and foundation within that locker room to get the best out of the players and get results for the club and our city.

"That doesn't mean that I won't be doing some things differently as well. This is the change we're here to talk about today."

Damet, 29, becomes the youngest head coach in MLS. Berding described him as having the players' respect and trust.

Koch was unceremoniously named FC Cincinnati head coach on Feb. 17, 2017, following the unexpected dismissal of former head coach John Harkes. It was the eve of the club's departure for preseason camp in Florida, and FC Cincinnati was about to embark on a tumultuous league campaign that ran parallel to an inspired U.S. Open Cup run.

FC Cincinnati scrapped and fought its way into the 2017 USL Cup playoffs but gained international attention for its run to the Open Cup semifinals, which included victories against rival Louisville City FC, Columbus Crew SC, and Chicago Fire before an eventual extra-time loss to New York Red Bulls.

In the offseason that followed, Koch traveled all over the world to overhaul Cincinnati's USL roster, which included some players who would eventually be bound for MLS. FC Cincinnati had the highest payroll in USL in 2018, and the results reflected the team's skill level.

Cincinnati cruised to its first-ever league title, winning the USL regular-season championship with weeks to spare in the schedule. The Orange and Blue marauded through the league before being eliminated in the second round of the USL Cup playoffs.