Dean Smith has been appointed as the new head coach of MLS side Charlotte FC and eagle-eyed fans have spotted something peculiar about his contract.
Smith has returned to management six months after leaving Leicester City. The 52-year-old was tasked with keeping the Foxes in the Premier League following the departure of Brendan Rodgers, but ultimately he was unable to do so.
The former defender made his first steps into management with Walsall in 2011 but it was at Aston Villa that he enjoyed his first major success.
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He led Villa back to the Premier League in 2019 with a 2-1 defeat of Derby County in the Championship play-off final at Wembley.
A spell at Norwich City didn't really work out but now Smith has a chance to experience something different with a fledgling MLS franchise after beating off competition from Frank Lampard to land the Charlotte managerial gig.
Charlotte FC were only founded in December 2019, and played their first MLS match in February 2022, while they recently hosted Lionel Messi after the Argentine's move to Inter Miami. With a clean slate to work with, the club from North Carolina have decided to do things a little differently.
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On Tuesday, the club announced Smith's appointment on their social media channels with the standard photos of the new manager signing his contract.
The terms of such contracts are usually kept hidden but, in this case, Charlotte decided to have a little fun.
Sharp-eyed supporters on X (formerly Twitter) zoomed in on the photo of Smith signing his contract and noticed some of the hilarious terms on the document.
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The contract is headlined 'Charlotte FC Very Official Head Coach Contract'.
The terms of the deal state that Charlotte's mascot "Mr Minty is allowed to have a recurring weekly meeting" with Smith, and that the manager must feature in at least one TikTok a month on the club's official channel.
Charlotte fans will have the chance to win the light-hearted contract through a competition on social media.
In a statement, Smith described the chance to manage Charlotte as a "unique opportunity", although he probably didn't expect to sign a contract quite like that one!
Featured Image Credit: Charlotte FCTopics: Aston Villa, Leicester City, MLS, Fan Reactions
