How Toronto FC Used the Raptors’ Playbook to Sign Josh Sargent and Push for Global Relevance

Toronto FC’s new signing could debut in this weekend’s clash against FC Cincinnati.

Josh Sargent is Toronto FC’s newest Designated Player. | Toronto FC, John Todd/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images

It isn’t often that Toronto FC are the main show on Bay Street in Toronto, an address reserved for Canada’s biggest business, and at Scotiabank Arena, the home of NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and NBA’s Toronto Raptors. 

On Wednesday, though, it was all about the Reds. The in-arena studio was emblazoned with Toronto FC logos as the club introduced U.S. men’s national team striker Josh Sargent as its latest Designated Player in a deal that could rise to $27 million, smashing the MLS incoming transfer fee record.

Behind the blockbuster move is a more significant shift in how Toronto FC operates within Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment, learning from the infrastructure of the Toronto Raptors and the Toronto Maple Leafs to fuel the ambitious rebuild. 

Sargent, 26, who is coming to MLS for the first time after spending his entire professional career in Europe, is the latest in a long line of pricey Toronto FC DPs. Yet, he’s an entirely different approach. 

first look at ya boy 👀 pic.twitter.com/PEMEElB2E3

— Toronto FC (@TorontoFC) March 4, 2026

Most recently, DP honors fell to highly-touted Italians, Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi, both of whom the club bought out in 2025 after an infamous underperforming tenure. 

The approach marks a sharp departure from the club’s previous model under former president Bill Manning, whose recruitment strategy once leaned heavily on free agent lists, especially for the Italians. Ultimately, those signings were a significant portion of Manning losing his job. 

“I actually went to the TransferMarkt website, and I looked up the Italian national team on what players were coming out of contract,” Manning told reporters at the time. “I started writing down players that I thought were world class, that I thought would have commercial value in this market.”

Even after those missteps, it was clear that Toronto wanted to remain a financial power in MLS. To do that, they leaned on their unique position within MLSE. Overseen by Keith Pelley, president and CEO of MLSE, the organization has undergone swift changes, especially on the soccer side. 

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Pelley Has Toronto FC Leaning on NHL, NBA  

Toronto FC targeted Josh Sargent (center right) with a data-based approach. | Toronto FC

It was Pelley, who took on the MLSE top job in 2024, that saw TFC’s importance to MLSE in a different light. 

Alongside the club’s general manager, Jason Hernandez, he’s worked on an aggressive rebuild, bringing in 14 playerssince the Italians’ departure, while drawing on expertise from the Raptors and Maple Leafs. 

“Our aspiration, our goal and our promise to our supporters, to our fans, to everybody that’s involved in TFC, is that we want to contend for championships on an annual basis—which brings me to Josh Sargent,” Pelley said Wednesday.

“The world of soccer is considerably different than the NHL or the NBA, with all the global leagues and all the international players around the globe. If you take a look at the data, if you focus on individual player interactions, as we’ve had, and if you have a deep strategy, you can turn something around very quickly.”

As part of the rebuild and the club’s record-breaking valuation of Sargent, they leaned on an internally-built data tool, inspired by one used by the Raptors. Combining that tool with a restructured personal approach, the club landed on Sargent as its latest hope.

“We now have turned that [Raptors data tool] over and are using data far more with TFC,” Pelley added. “Data has led us to almost every decision that we have made, and it is detailed data that I believe is probably leading edge in the league, and that is the advantage that TFC has been part of a real strong entity like MLSE.”

Keith Pelley oversees the Raptors, Maple Leafs, Toronto FC and Argonauts. | Richard Lautens/Toronto Star/Getty Images

While no MLSE franchise in a major American league has enjoyed immense success since the Raptors’ 2019 NBA Championship, which coincided with Toronto FC’s run to the 2019 MLS Cup final, the system allows for intense collaboration. 

At the same time, the lucrative opportunities from the NHL and NBA undoubtedly help fund Toronto FC’s ambitions, allowing them to pursue Sargent even after Norwich City turned down an initial $20 million offer. 

“When I first saw Josh, I didn’t know that I’d hugged someone other than my wife like that in a long time,” said Hernandez of securing the U.S. attacker.

“There’s been so much time and energy committed to getting this done, and the fact that it is done is certainly … a relief for us and a bit of a final page in the chapter that we closed, and now opening the new chapter.”

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Toronto FC’s Global Ambitions

Jason Hernandez has big dreams for Toronto FC. | Steve Russell/Toronto Star/Getty Images

With the latest marquee signing, Hernandez has massive visions for Toronto FC; he wants to take the club to the biggest stage—the FIFA Club World Cup—and win some of the most significant trophies. 

To him, it makes every penny spent on Sargent worthwhile, even if it might be tough for the American to challenge the likes of former USMNT striker Jozy Altidore and the heights he helped Toronto to from 2015 to 2021.

“We consider ourselves more than just an MLS club. We want to be and hope to be competing in tournaments all around North America, and hopefully one day in some of the bigger tournaments that clubs can play for,” he said. 

“We align ourselves with what's happening in the world, and so I would imagine some of Josh’s contemporaries at the position are going to be in that [price] range of acquisition.”

Will Sargent be the key to leading Toronto FC to the promised land in MLS alongside the heights of Canadian foes, Vancouver Whitecaps and other highly-lauded MLS clubs? It’s unlikely. 

But the pursuit and the process behind it signal that MLSE’s resources and cross-sport infrastructure could give the club the tools to build its next contending era.

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