Timothy "Tim" Bezbatchenko was born on October 13,1981 and is an American retired soccer player and director of Black Knight Football Club.
20 Facts About Tim Bezbatchenko
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Tim Bezbatchenko played college soccer for the Richmond Spiders of the University of Richmond and was named to the Atlantic 10 Conference All-Academic team in 2003.
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Tim Bezbatchenko played for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the United Soccer Leagues' USL Second Division from 2004 to 2005, scoring one goal in thirty-one league appearances.
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Tim Bezbatchenko was responsible for youth and player development initiatives for the league, including the home-grown player signing process.
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Tim Bezbatchenko helped the Player Department manage the relationship between the Players Union and interpretation of the league's collective bargaining agreement.
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Tim Bezbatchenko served as a liaison with the US Soccer Federation and the Canadian Soccer Association.
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Tim Bezbatchenko was named general manager of Toronto FC on September 20,2013, after having spent three years at the Major League Soccer as Senior Director of Player Relations and Competition.
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Since joining Toronto FC, Tim Bezbatchenko has been instrumental in making changes to a club who had never made the playoffs in its 7-year history prior to his arrival.
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Tim Bezbatchenko's work focused on changes to the roster and creating a new vision for Toronto FC: to be a leader in player development, a leading edge organization in innovative practices and to be internationally recognized as a consistent contender for championships in North America.
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In 2014, with a number of key acquisitions made through signings and trades, Tim Bezbatchenko was a central figure in acquiring three Designated Players such as England international Jermain Defoe, American international Michael Bradley and Brazilian striker Gilberto.
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The 2015 season saw Tim Bezbatchenko make additional roster changes to build on the core group of players established in 2014, including the addition of two Designated Players.
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Tim Bezbatchenko added French midfielder Benoit Cheyrou and MLS talents such as Herculez Gomez, Robbie Findley, Josh Williams, Marky Delgado and Eriq Zavaleta through various trades and MLS drafts.
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Tim Bezbatchenko captured the 2015 Golden Boot as the league's top goal scorer and became the first player in club history to win the award.
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Tim Bezbatchenko went on to win the 2015 league MVP.
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Tim Bezbatchenko was named the President and General Manager of Columbus Crew on January 4,2019.
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Tim Bezbatchenko was named in a joint press conference with the new coach, Caleb Porter.
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In only two years with the club, Tim Bezbatchenko oversaw multiple milestones, including a new downtown stadium and training facility, along with a multi-year jersey sponsorship with Nationwide Insurance.
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Tim Bezbatchenko further aided the team in revamping the roster after losing multiple players due to the surrounding uncertainty regarding a move.
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Tim Bezbatchenko oversaw the launch of Columbus Crew 2, the reserve team for the Crew that debuted in 2022.
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On June 6,2024, it was announced that Tim Bezbatchenko would be leaving the Crew.