Kansas City, Mo. ? Bob Gansler, the longest-tenured coach in Major League Soccer history, has been fired by the slumping Kansas City Wizards.

General manager Curt Johnson said Wednesday that he asked for Gansler’s resignation after a 30-minute conversation Tuesday night. Gansler, 65, will be paid through the remainder of the season, Johnson said.

“This is a results-oriented business. I know that’s a cliche, but that’s the way it is,” Johnson said. “We’ve won six times in our last 26 games, and that’s not acceptable.”

Gansler, who was 86-85-51 with the Wizards, was hired to replace Ron Newman after Kansas City started the 1999 season 0-7. The Wizards finished last that year but had the league’s best regular-season record in 2000 on their way to winning the MLS Cup. They won the U.S. Open Cup and reached the MLS Cup finals in 2004, but slumped late and missed the playoffs in 2005.

They opened this year 3-0 for the first time in club history, but have lost six straight to fall to 6-10-2 and are tied with the Chicago Fire for third place in the MLS Eastern Conference with 20 points.

Gansler, a former U.S. national coach who helped the team break a 40-year World Cup drought, also said he would return to coaching at some level.

“Coaching is my vocation now, but it was my avocation before. It was my hobby,” he said. “Whether I coach for work or coach for a hobby, I’ll coach again.”

Assistant coach Brian Bliss, who played his last professional season in Kansas City and played under Gansler at the 1990 World Cup, was named interim coach.