Phoenix To Get USL Pro Team in 2013
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Monday, July 2, 2012 TAMPA, Fla. – USL PRO announced today it has awarded an expansion franchise to the Phoenix, Arizona market with the team commencing participation in the 2013 season.
The franchise will be owned and operated by BDR Sports, LLC, a consortium of Phoenix-based investors led by local developer Tim Thomas. Rui Filipe Bento, a longtime Phoenix soccer entrepreneur with vast experience in professional club management, will serve as its General Manager.
“This is an important moment for USL PRO as we continue to build for the future,” USL CEO Alec Papadakis said. “USL PRO is already experiencing a great deal of success on and off the field, and the addition of a solid group in Phoenix continues our plan of western expansion which will ultimately lead to eastern and western conferences. BDR Sports’ leaders possess the vision and experience to make professional soccer a success in Phoenix through USL PRO, and we welcome them into our family.”
“The Valley has waited a long time for a professional soccer team to call its own,” Thomas said. “For the first time in Arizona history we have a soccer program that affiliates its youth with the pros – a USL PRO team that will field the world’s best. Now that’s a kick!”
In addition to Thomas and Bento, other BDR Sports principals include Damon Del Deo and Shawn Diedtrich. Del Deo has a portfolio of businesses that includes logging, mining and various other real estate development projects. Diedtrich is a respected intellectual property and business attorney operating in the Phoenix area.
The Phoenix USL PRO franchise will host a launch event including the formal announcement of the team name, stadium, and coaching staff later this summer.
Story from www.uslsoccer.com
very nice to hear!
Thank you so much for being a place to turn for soccer information in AZ.
Are the NASL and USL Pro different leagues? Does the Monsoon play in neither? It seems like there is a ton of interest in getting something going in AZ, but why are we so fractured into all these different leagues? It seems like we should pool the resources and eventually push for a MLS franchise. Maybe that’s the goal?
I’m not as well versed as I should be about all the teams we have (or have been announced) in the the valley/Tucson. Maybe you could add a section to the side menu that lists the teams we have in AZ and the various stages of starting/running/succeeding they are having?
Hey Greg, thanks for reading.
The NASL and USL PRO are different leagues (though some advocate for their merger). The U.S. soccer system is often described as a pyramid. The MLS is at the pinnacle of that pyramid, with the NASL a step below MLS. The USL PRO is just under the NASL. Then there is a somewhat larger drop to the USL PDL (the league in which FC Tucson currently plays) and the NPSL (which houses the Monsoon). These leagues are more or less on the same level. Below that you have amateur leagues. Here’s a good Wikipedia entry.
The NASL and USL PRO both are leagues with full-time players, so in theory it’s a higher-quality product on and off the pitch.
A MLS team is a dream many soccer fans in AZ have, but MLS is very unlikely to put a franchise here without seeing some combination of significant success from a lower-division team and an ownership group with a large amount of cash.
Different leagues cost different amounts of money, bring different levels of prestige, etc. As far as most fans are concerned, I think seeing a professional team on the field in the Valley will be an exciting experience regardless of league.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
I’m so excited for this. Hopefully they won’t play far from Chandler. It sucks driving to Glendale and the downtown area!