Karolis Skinkys to step down as the Sporting Director of Kerala Blasters FC
Karolis has been a part of Kerala Blasters since 2020
Karolis Skinkys, the 38-year-old Sporting Director of Kerala Blasters FC, has decided to step down from his role following the end of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2025-26 season. The departure marks the end of over half a decade-long tenure as the Sporting Director of the club. The decision has been taken following the uncertainty looming around the club and the future of the Indian Super League.
Karolis, who joined Blasters in 2020 as part of a major strategic restructure by the management, was instrumental in the growth and success of the club’s sporting activities. However, in the recent past, the fans’ attitude towards Karolis has gone into turmoil.
Following back-to-back disappointing seasons, the fans demanded his exit from the club, and a no-confidence statement was issued by the Fan Advisory Board (FAB), citing immediate replacement of the sporting director due to the repeated failures in the recruitment and squad-building process, which have weakened the squad.
Despite this, in his tenure so far, the club managed to qualify for three consecutive playoffs for the first time in club history. The team also finished as runners-up in the ISL 2021-22 season, setting numerous club records along the way.
Karolis now steps down from the Blasters’ side after six years of association with ups and downs on the way.
Contributions of Karolis for Kerala Blasters FC
Under his guidance, the club made significant strides in its youth development activities. Along with improved performances of the youth teams, a great emphasis was placed on creating an effective player development model.
With a revised focus on setting a clear pathway into the first team, numerous academy players have been promoted to the first team over the last few years, including Mohammed Aimen, Mohammed Ahzar, Nihal Sudheesh, Vibin Mohanan, Korou Singh, Sachin Suresh, Ebindas, Muhammed Ajsal, Bijoy Vargheese and many more.
Karolis was also responsible for bringing in some of the best foreign players of the league, including Alvaro Vasquez, Jorge Pereyra Diaz, Marko Leskovic, Adrian Luna, Dimitrios Diamantakos, Ivan Kalyuzhnyi, Jesus Jiminez, Kwame Peprah and more.
He also brought in some notable Indian players into the Blasters side, including the likes of Prabshukan Singh Gill, Hormipam, Pritam Kotal, and Naocha Singh.
Fan protests and exit demands
The dissatisfaction of the fans grew following the 2021-22 season, as the team did not retain their key foreigners, Alvaro Vasquez and Jorge Pereyra Diaz, arguably the two best attacking players of the season, which helped the Blasters to reach the final of the Indian Super League. The fans argued that if the players who led the team to the final had been retained, the Blasters were certain to win some silverware in the upcoming seasons.
In the upcoming seasons, multiple departures of players like Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Aimen, Ahzar and others from the club added to the dissatisfaction on the side of the fans and parting ways with Ivan Vukomanovic intensified the frustration of the fans.
Following that, most of the sporting decisions taken, including the arrival of Mikeal Stahre and David Catala, did not largely benefit the club, as the period saw the Blasters struggling to fetch points and haggling in the bottom half of the table.
In the Indian Super League (ISL) 2025-26 season, the entire squad went through a revamp as players like Adrian Luna, Noah Sadoui, Koldo Obieta, Tiago Alves, Juan Rodriguez and Dusan Lagator, who displayed a decent performance in the Super Cup, were either offloaded or loaned away.
For the ISL, a completely new foreign roster was introduced, which failed to impress the fans and almost took the club to the verge of relegation.
At this point, the frustration of the fans peaked, and they started protesting and boycotting the matches, demanding an immediate exit of Karolis from the club. The Fan Advisory Board (FAB) issued a no-confidence letter against management with five non-negotiable demands, out of which the first demand read;
“In light of the above, we formally state that the fanbase has lost confidence in the current management of Kerala Blasters FC. As representatives of this sentiment, we place on record the following clear and non-negotiable expectations from the club’s leadership: Immediate replacement of the Sporting Director due to repeated failures in player recruitment, retention, and the absence of a coherent long-term sporting vision.”
Uncertainty and exit of Karolis
Following multiple turns of events looming over the club and the uncertainty regarding Indian Football, Karolis will step down as the Sporting Director of Kerala Blasters FC after their final match against FC Goa on the 18th of May, 2026.
As the future of Indian Football remains uncertain, if measures are not taken to mitigate the shortcomings immediately, more and more resignations can be expected from the top-level management of multiple clubs, and some clubs might also be forced to shut down their operations completely.
For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.
Niranjan R Prabhu is an Economics student from Kochi with an enduring passion for Indian football, especially as a devoted Kerala Blasters FC fan — a club he considers part of his life. Beyond the game, he writes on culture, Indian economic development, and sustainability, always eager to explore ideas in depth. His days are a balancing act between college, writing, and travel.