Photo credit: Tyler Birschbach
The following is a guest story by Minneapolis City SC chairman Dan Hoedeman:
MINNEAPOLIS — For the last two years we have opened our books and talked about what it takes to start and run a lower-division soccer club.
Why?
When we started the club, we had a bunch of vague ideas tied to clear principles that motivated things: create opportunities for local players, build the club we want as a community of empowered supporters, do good in the community, be radically transparent.
But why?
There, I’m not really sure. It seemed like what we should do if we were going to start a club.
That feeling of trying to do something beyond just playing games has motivated us from the very beginning. We open up our books, we talk about our year and what we learned, and we use real numbers because none of this information was available when we started and we thought it would help people. We also thought it was the right thing to do.
As we watch so many clubs start up aiming to not just follow in our footsteps but overtake us and as we see our rivals apply the lessons we have learned to their business we’re apprehensive — and happy. The level is rising. It’s rising quickly. It’s awesome to see that we are, in our own little way, helping to inspire that rising level.
It’s hard work to keep up, let alone keep moving forward. But starting a club and running it successfully at this level was always supposed to be impossible.
YEAR IN REVIEW
This (fiscal) year has been defined by generosity.
We were famously drawn away for all three U.S. Open Cup qualifiers, to Kansas City, Chicago and Rochester, N.Y. While the Kansas City club forfeited, we still traveled over 3,000 miles to play two games.
We could not have done it without the incredible support from our fans and the soccer community who gave over $16,000 to help our club have a shot at glory.
That gooses the revenue numbers a bit because a GoFundMe campaign is hardly something we would do every season to help the club operate, but it shows just how wonderful the people are who support us.
Not to mention that people who give to us, as a 501c3, support our mission of helping local players play soccer in a high-performance environment. Their generous donations have helped us increase the number of players whom we can support during the summer, according to their needs, with no questions asked.
Just looking at the donation number on our financial spreadsheet is an emotional thing. To think that so many people believe in what we’re doing…it’s humbling.
SHOW ME THE MONEY
When we started in 2016, we heard over and over how clubs at our level in this part of the country couldn’t make this work. That we wouldn’t last two years. That we were doomed.
We didn’t listen (obviously), but we kind of listened. Our launch-year budgets and efforts happened within strict budget controls.
That got us through the first year. That was all we needed to know that we had something special here, and that it was time to hit the accelerator. We still keep a very close eye on the budget — we want sustainable, fiscally sensible growth — but we have been able to take some risks by spending on marketing that helped us grow.
Our growth as a club is reflected in our revenue growth.
The money matters insofar as it allows us to do more of the things that we want to do as a club.
In 2016, we were loaned training field time from a local club. Except, sometimes they needed the field at the last minute and we were stuck training in the grassy area between the back of the goal and the stadium fence. By 2018, we had an entire indoor facility rented for training sessions that housed our practices, had room for our trainer to work with players and had space for our management and volunteer teams.
What I’m saying is that while our revenue has grown phenomenally, our costs have grown as well.
Part of that is down to the improvement necessary to keep up in the fiercely competitive National Premier Soccer League.
We have seen clubs in our conference scour the country for top Division 1 and NAIA talent, bring them to their clubs, arrange housing and jobs, and otherwise assemble a team with their pick of the players. We have seen clubs in our region operating on six- and even seven-figure budgets. We have seen coaching staffs hired, coach buses purchased and serious money, time and effort put into these clubs on and off the field.
In many ways, our growth was necessary just to keep up.
Of course, winning the conference title unbeaten as the top-scoring team in the entire country isn’t just keeping up, but it also serves to hide just how close and competitive this season was.
All credit to our players who were simply unstoppable.
All credit to our opponents who made us give everything we could on and off the field. It was a very close-run thing this season.
And it was supported by the budget. That consistent, indoor training facility was important. The high level, regular competition from our U23 side, which is pretty much all expense on the P&L, pushed our players to be at their best every single day. Every little thing we and our supporters do to make Minneapolis City a club that Twin Cities players choose — and they have so many choices — keeps us competitive in the face of the national recruiting our rivals do.
That’s a long way of saying that while we could trot out a competitive side in 2016 on less than $30,000, we couldn’t do that in 2018.
It will be even harder in 2019.
LET’S GET TO THE BORING FUN STUFF
Woo! Let’s dig into the financials.
A few things about the numbers. First, we use the cash accounting method. Second, these numbers represent just cash and don’t attempt to quantify in-kind or trade arrangements we have made. Third, our fiscal year is September to August. Fourth, these numbers haven’t been audited or anything but we did wait until the end of August before pulling them so they’re probably legit.
| REVENUE | BUDGET |
| Sponsors | $ 13,500.00 |
| Events | $ 5,475.00 |
| Merchandise | $ 21,057.00 |
| Game Day | $ 19,762.15 |
| Open Cup | $ 10,700.00 |
| Donations | $ 4,400.00 |
| Misc | $ 4,400.00 |
| The Club Shop | $ – |
| TOTAL | $ 79,294.15 |
| EXPENSES | |
| Sponsors | $ 800.00 |
| Events | $ 286.00 |
| Merchandise | $ 13,592.00 |
| Game Day | $ 2,864.77 |
| Facilities | $ 25,900.00 |
| Team Travel | $ 3,500.00 |
| Team Equipment | $ 10,219.00 |
| League Fees | $ 10,000.00 |
| Mktg & Misc | $ 6,000.00 |
| Open Cup | $ 10,500.00 |
| The Club Shop | $ – |
| Coaching | $ 1,200.00 |
| TOTAL | $ 84,861.77 |
| VARIANCE | $ (5,567.62) |
The Open Cup was obviously a surprise from our original budget, and so big of a surprise that the numbers shown above reflect where we thought we would be after our November game in Rochester.
We adjusted expectations at that point and planned for the season ahead.
At that point, we knew that Edor Nelson Field at Augsburg University was not going to be available because of construction. We knew this year was always going to be about how we dealt with not playing at home.
We expected it to have a financial impact. We were right.
First, the new stadium was more expensive than our Minneapolis home. And, while we continued to increase our number of Annual Members, we saw a sharp decrease in day-of-game ticket sales. With that came a decrease in at-game merchandise sales.
| REVENUE | BUDGET | ACTUALS |
| Sponsors | $ 13,500.00 | $ 12,000.00 |
| Events | $ 5,475.00 | $ 5,000.00 |
| Merchandise | $ 21,057.00 | $ 25,310.00 |
| Game Day | $ 19,762.15 | $ 20,075.12 |
| Open Cup | $ 10,700.00 | $ 16,438.34 |
| Donations | $ 4,400.00 | $ 5,417.35 |
| Misc | $ 4,400.00 | $ 4,589.51 |
| The Club Shop | $ – | $ 300.00 |
| TOTAL | $ 79,294.15 | $89,130.32 |
| EXPENSES | ||
| Sponsors | $ 800.00 | $ 746.34 |
| Events | $ 286.00 | $ 285.75 |
| Merchandise | $ 13,592.00 | $ 16,896.36 |
| Game Day | $ 2,864.77 | $ 2,864.77 |
| Facilities | $ 25,900.00 | $ 20,374.94 |
| Team Travel | $ 3,500.00 | $ 4,110.14 |
| Team Equipment | $ 10,219.00 | $ 6,447.67 |
| League Fees | $ 10,000.00 | $ 12,074.45 |
| Mktg & Misc | $ 6,000.00 | $ 6,021.12 |
| Open Cup | $ 10,500.00 | $ 16,442.24 |
| The Club Shop | $ – | $ 3,609.85 |
| Coaching | $ 1,200.00 | $ 600.00 |
| TOTAL | $ 84,861.77 | $90,473.63 |
| VARIANCE | $ (5,567.62) | $ (1,343.31) |
Because we knew that we were facing serious headwinds from the stadium, which was much more expensive and much farther away from central Minneapolis than Edor Nelson, we prepped for it.
We were given a gift when our contract with our former kit provider expired and we met Geison Moura, founder of Stimulus Athletic.
How could we help plug the budget issue the stadium construction was causing?
Merch. If we did it right.
Using Stimulus’ ability to create custom kits to the absolute fullest, with the wind at our back from a new logo voted on by our supporters, we launched two beautiful new shirts.
And then followed up with the shirt that got the next most votes.
And then our #MurderSleeves goalkeeper shirts blew up in the most unexpected way.
Here we are, not looking at a ~$6,000 loss but instead facing a much more comfortable ~$1,500 loss with pretty much all of that loss represented by merchandise inventory.
In fact, if we sold all of the inventory in hand we would be right at break even.
Some lessons:
- Design matters
- The right kit provider matters
- We can’t do this every year (and, as welcoming as Osseo was, we need to get back to a more central location)
YOU COME AT THE KING, YOU BEST NOT MISS
The one constant in lower-division soccer is change. Wrenching, unexpected, foundational change.
We are seeing more of that right now as independent leagues like NPSL Pro and NISA look to get started, and as USL D3 launches itself into proven NPSL markets. We see it closer to home even as new leagues like the UPSL arrive and we even see it when other lower-division clubs look to replicate the successes of existing clubs in their market instead of working together to build something with mass.
There is instability in the basics, like the drawing and re-drawing of Open Cup regions. Or in availability of stadiums. There is instability at a more macro level as declining attendance and TV viewership of sports pairs with declining youth participation in sports to paint a gloomy picture of the future, in the face of short-term increases in lower-division soccer attendance.
In other words, what the hell is going on?
I don’t know.
Photo credit: John Hoedeman
We believe in the club enough to have launched our new storefront in South Minneapolis. That is an investment that is part retail shop, part awareness vehicle, part community center for soccer culture. It cost money but we think it will pay out.
We believe in the club enough to keep going, and we’re careening into 2019 with a planned budget that is significantly higher than 2018. Weeee!
We believe that people are going to want to beat us on the field and off even more than they already do thanks to our success this past season. But I’m not saying that we are the king. We are not the king.
The king is the bottom line.
Underlying all of what we are doing is the relentlessness of the bottom line. We can increase our budget — we have to if we are going to grow — but when we do that we’re coming at the king. We can’t miss. At least not that much.*
I read with trepidation articles like the one by Andy Hayes of UPSL side USAi Old Bhoys. They lost TWENTY-THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS last year. That is from a total spend of $31,095.24.
That could have been us. Andy did a ton right with Old Bhoys, it’s just really hard to make money at this level. And if your revenue isn’t in line with your costs…
*Our total over three years of operating a lower-division soccer team in an MLS market shared with two other NPSL teams we have lost $7,000 on ~$172,000 of revenue. Not going to get us on the cover of Forbes but also not going to get us bankrupt.
Follow Dan on Twitter: @hoedeman.
Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.
Greenville Triumph SC manager and sporting director John Harkes joins co-hosts Kevin Johnston and John Lenard ahead of his expansion side’s inaugural USL League One match at South Georgia Tormenta FC. The former U.S. men’s national team captain touches on the current state of the USMNT, FC Cincinnati’s hot…
John, Ian and R.P. discuss the success — or not — of various business deals made across American soccer. They discuss the general move toward digital ticketing, the USSF ticketing structure (13:30), Chattanooga FC’s ownership drive (31:30) and try to answer if bad shirt sponsors affect soccer jersey sales…
Greenville Triumph SC has revealed the kits it’ll don in its inaugural season — and also announced a partnership with ScanSource as a primary shirt sponsor — as the team prepares to take the pitch in USL League One. The club held a press conference Wednesday afternoon at ScanSource,…
“MLS Fantasy Boss” Reid Connelly and 2018 MLS Fantasy spring champion Tod Modisette join co-hosts Kevin Johnston and John Lenard to preview the 2019 season from a fantasy perspective. The fellas go over some of the basic MLS Fantasy tenets along with what’s new for 2019, then turn their…
It’s that time of year again. With the start of the MLS regular season a week away, the 2019 MLS Fantasy game through MLSsoccer.com has opened up. That means it’s high time to launch Soc Takes’ annual points league. Click here to join the league, or by registering and…
WESTFIELD, Ind. — Co-hosts Kevin Johnston and Nipun Chopra size up the latest colossal news spewing out of Indy Eleven headquarters before venturing on to national and global soccer in Episode 3 of Soc Takes TV presented by Sogility. WATCH HERE Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to…
The Audi 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs return this evening with the Seattle Sounders hosting the Portland Timbers to kick off the second legs of the conference semifinals. The three other second legs go down Sunday. Here’s a visual of all the second-leg scenarios: Seattle Sounders vs. Portland Timbers (POR…
The eight remaining MLS sides will play out the second legs of the conference semifinals beginning Thursday evening with one match on the docket and finishing up with three more Sunday. Who do you think will advance to the Eastern and Western Conference finals? Let us know in the…
Welcome back to our series of previews for the upcoming MASL season. This edition focuses on the Southwest Division. If you missed the other parts, click here to read those. With that done, let’s jump back in. The Southwest Division has gained one team returning from a season-long hiatus,…
Welcome to another part of our MASL season preview series. This installment focuses on the Pacific Division and its four teams along the West Coast of the United States. As before, if you haven’t read the previous installments, click here. With that out of the way, let’s get back…
Welcome back to our preview series for the upcoming 2018-19 Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) season. If you missed part one, click here to take a look. The South Central Division is new for this season, comprising teams from the Eastern and Central Divisions last season. With five teams,…
Eight teams remain, four in each conference, with the second round of the USL playoffs set to kick off this weekend. Which four sides do you think will advance to the conference finals? Drop a comment below with your predictions. Follow John on Twitter: @JohnMLTX. Support Soc Takes on Patreon…
MLS and the USL are approaching or have already begun their postseasons. And while that does mean that there’s less soccer to appreciate, it doesn’t mean one has to turn to European leagues for entertainment. Why not play inside instead? Yes, it’s almost time for the Major Arena Soccer…
With the United Soccer League set to field three separate divisions for the first time since 2009, I think it’s time we talked about the history of the various USL-operated leagues, and of the USL as an organization. Consider this adjacent to my recent “Understanding the pyramid” piece. The…
The playoffs have arrived. Sixteen clubs will vie for the 2018 USL Cup in the league’s single-elimination postseason format. FC Cincinnati and Orange County SC earned the top seeds in the respective Eastern and Western Conference. Louisville City FC, the defending champion, is the No. 2 seed in the…
So, you’re new to American soccer. Maybe you caught the MLS bug, maybe your city just joined the USL, maybe you’re trying to figure out how the Open Cup works, or wonder what all this talk of divisions and tiers is about. That’s understandable! You’ve entered into something that…
Whenever people ask me what it is that I do, I answer that I write about soccer. I’ve been doing this to some extent for most of the past five years. Their follow-up question is, almost always, “Oh, so you play soccer?” or some other variation of the same….
FORT WORTH, Texas — In the aftermath of my first Supporting Local Soccer post on the Fort Worth Vaqueros, the team and the supporters’ group both reached out to me to have me back at another game on June 16. I gladly accepted. Tonight, I’m making my second trip…
INDIANAPOLIS — The Tampa Bay Rowdies‘ USL postseason hopes might need a respirator following their 2-nil setback to the Indy Eleven on Wednesday night at Lucas Oil Stadium. Goals on either side of halftime by defender Karl Ouimette and striker Elliot Collier saw Indy sitting alone in fifth place…
The past few years have been remarkably eventful for the United Soccer Leagues, LLC, and now the organization that has a strong grasp on lower-division professional soccer in the United States has unveiled a new look to highlight its growing position in the landscape. The company unveiled Tuesday new…
Co-hosts Jason Davis and Nipun Chopra return with Episode 4 of their Lower League America series, this installment entitled “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the USL.” The two discuss the history of the USL and also follow up on Episode 3 with a comment from NASL…
Justin Ashcraft of Mon Goals and our own Kevin Johnston link up to preview Saturday’s match between Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and the Indy Eleven. The two also briefly review the clubs’ 2-2 draw on Aug. 29 and size up the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Click the image above to…
The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is a well-known adult amateur soccer league, which will be one of two (the other being the United Premier Soccer League, or UPSL) “tier one” leagues in the upcoming USASA tier format. Therefore, understanding the health and longevity of the NPSL, prima facie,…
“That boy has been striking the ball very well,” Brian Darling says about George Davis IV during Louisville City’s draw against Indy XI in August 2018. Darling has been around the game for a long time – he earned his first USSF license back in 1979. Along the way,…
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indy Eleven signed Zach Steinberger in January, seemingly to become a focal point of new head coach Martin Rennie‘s offense. A versatile attacker who can play as a No. 10, winger, second striker or flat central midfielder, Steinberger experienced a breakout campaign with the NASL’s Jacksonville…
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indy Eleven made it nine matches unbeaten in a row with a 3-nil victory over New York Red Bulls II on Wednesday evening at Lucas Oil Stadium. Two early tallies by Eugene Starikov and a third right before halftime by Reiner Ferreira carried Indy to three…
INDIANAPOLIS — Now that September has arrived, the Indy Eleven are gearing up for the USL playoffs, which await in October. Luckily for them, they’re playing some of their most consistent, if unspectacular, soccer of the season. Indy played the Richmond Kickers to a 1-1 draw Saturday night at…
The USL season has passed the 75 percent point and we’re into the final weeks of the season. That means the playoff race is heating up! And yet, because of the sheer madness that is the USL, no team has been eliminated from the playoffs yet, and only…
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indy Eleven and Richmond Kickers battled to a 1-1 draw Saturday night at Lucas Oil Stadium. The result pushed Indy’s unbeaten streak to eight. Raul Gonzalez opened the scoring for the visitors in just the fifth minute, slotting home a low cross from Austin Yearwood. Dylan…
INDIANAPOLIS — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC center back Hugh Roberts shares his thoughts on his side’s 2-2 draw with the Indy Eleven on Aug. 29, 2018. Both clubs are currently in the playoff picture sitting among the top eight in the USL Eastern Conference. Support Soc Takes on Patreon for…
INDIANAPOLIS — There are no surprises here. The Indy Eleven have retained a core group of players from last season. A season which included record goal scoring and a championship run. Indy Eleven’s head coach Tim Hankinson is a seasoned leader and he is pragmatic with his approach. There…
Welcome back to the finale of our four-part 2019 USL Championship mega preview! It’s been a long, long journey and we appreciate you sticking around for the ride. This time, we’ll be wrapping things up with the last nine teams to cover in the Eastern Conference. If you haven’t…
Welcome back to the 2019 USL mega preview covering every single one of the 36 teams contesting the 2019 USL Championship season. The first two installments, covering the teams in the Western Conference, are already live. Click here for Part I and here for Part II. This time, we’re…
Welcome back to the 2019 USL mega preview series, covering every single one of the 36 teams contesting the 2019 USL Championship season. If you missed Part I, go check it out here. We left off halfway through the Western Conference, so we’ll pick up right there and dive…
It’s almost time for USL action once again. The league is back as the permanent Division 2 league with a new brand, loads of new teams and some exciting changes for the 2019 season. The USL is now fresh off a (relatively) quiet offseason. No teams folded, no new…
It’s the offseason, which means it’s the perfect time to do some quirky projects and put my Microsoft Excel skills to use. Below is a link to a sortable Excel spreadsheet with the record of every head coach to ever roam the touchline in MLS history. Toggle between the…
Welcome once again to Project 50/50, the series in which I initially attempted to find the single best untapped soccer market in each state, which has instead become finding the top two, three or even four markets in some states. You might have noticed that this series hasn’t been…
The MASL season is in full swing, and to make up for some lost time on the past two weeks, we’ll begin with a brief look at the first two weeks. Entering Week 3, Utica led the Eastern Division with three wins and a loss, followed by 2-1 Baltimore,…
We last left off with me making my playing debut in the Fort Worth Vaqueros Liga 7, in which I fell over, got winded and watched my team lose 3-2. One week later, the Liga 7 Free Agents would return to Sycamore Park for our second match of the…
DALLAS — On Thursday, FC Dallas officially launched its new USL League One team, named North Texas SC. It is the final USL League One team to be announced for the 2019 season, bringing the league up to 10 teams for its debut. FC Dallas season ticket members will…
Back in October, I wrote a brief post on signing up for a rec league to play organized soccer for the first time in my life. I actually registered back in late September and wrote that piece a few weeks later. Due to the torrential rain that plagued North…
2019 already has the makings of a historic year for soccer in North America with not one, not two, but four new leagues launching next year. This piece here should hopefully straighten things out by summarizing and explaining what we currently know. First up, let’s talk some USL. The…
I’ve supported FC Dallas in MLS since the 2011 season. The 2010 MLS Cup final was the first MLS game I ever watched, and their 2011 home opener was the first pro soccer game I ever attended. Over the past eight seasons, there’s been one overwhelmingly common complaint among…
We recently fired off another round of #MerchDay with some help from our friends over at Urban Pitch. #MerchDay is an opportunity for organizations to tweet out links to their online stores so fans can purchase merchandise to support their favorite club, supporters’ group or soccer-related charity. Below are…
INDIANAPOLIS — The ISC Sports Network unveiled its Top 10 Plays of the Year list from the 2018-19 Indiana high school sports season, and some late-game footy heroics at Michael A. Carroll Stadium captured the top spot. Chesterton High School hoisted the IHSAA Class 3A boys state title over…
It’s that time again. Yes, Indy Saints FC‘s Fantasy Premier League returns for the 2019-20 season. Compete with other Premier League supporters all season long for bragging rights. It’s free to play. Interested participants are to fill out this form, after which you’ll be sent the league code to…
Every so often, we attempt to get #MerchDay trending on Twitter, which is a call to arms to support football clubs and soccer-related entities at all levels by purchasing their merchandise. In no particular order, below is a list of all the recommendations tweeted out during the latest edition…
U.S. men’s national team manager Gregg Berhalter unveiled his 23-man roster for the upcoming 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup this morning. The tournament begins June 15, with the USMNT’s first match set for June 18 against Guyana in Group D play. The final will be held July 7 at Soldier…
WESTFIELD, Ind. — Usual suspects Kevin Johnston and Nipun Chopra return to the airwaves with ample U.S. women’s national team, Indy Eleven and FC Cincinnati chatter in Episode 6 of Soc Takes TV presented by Sogility on the ISC Sports Network. WATCH HERE Support Soc Takes on Patreon for…
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Futsal and Indy Parks and Recreation have teamed up to offer drop-in futsal every Tuesday evening at Garfield Park from 6-8 p.m. beginning April 30. The weekly futsal games will be held indoors at the park’s Burrello Family Center. It’s $3 at the door to play….
WESTFIELD, Ind. — Co-hosts Nipun Chopra and Kevin Johnston share their thoughts on the Indy Eleven, FC Cincinnati and Sogility, the soccer-specific training facility where the show is filmed, in Episode 4 of Soc Takes TV on the ISC Sports Network. WATCH HERE Support Soc Takes on Patreon for…
The US Open Cup returns to Nippert Stadium where FC Cincinnati will host Louisville City FC on Wednesday May 31. The United Soccer League rivals are familiar with each other, but this will be their first meeting in the USOC. Both teams advanced to round three of America’s famed…
Injuries continue to hamper the Indy Eleven roster. A familiar name returns to the report, but there are still options for head coach Tim Hankinson. The Soc Takes crew has carefully considered the available personnel for this weekend’s matchup vs. FC Edmonton. There is a problem though. The gang…
This 2017 NASL season was always going to be odd. Eight teams are going to become mighty familiar with each other and league tables don’t always tell the full story when trying to consider the best of the best. Miami FC is a safe pick for the leagues best…
The word ¨upset¨ is commonly used in these situations. Sometimes the clear favorite loses to the underdog, but Indy fans aren´t upset. They are fuming. There will be no excuses and no media spin will sugar coat this sour taste. The Indy Eleven failed to advance against an amateur…
There is no question about it. If this were the Oregon Trail, the Indy Eleven would have snake bite. Teams get injuries and players need rest, but this season’s injury list has been off the charts already through six games. The best news out of all of this is that…
Well, there is no denying it. This North American Soccer League season is unpredictable at best and these Power Rankings are subject to change. I mentioned last week that this 2017 NASL season has the potential to be the most interesting in North America and I think that still…
The NASL Spring season in now officially in progress. Eight teams play in this seventh edition of the second-division competition. There are 34 matches with opportunities to take points in the standings, but what the standings can’t show is the value of individual matchups. That’s where the power rankings come…
Indy Eleven went to California for their NASL season opener against San Francisco Deltas on Saturday night. Indy started their campaign similarly to the way they had last year, with a point on the road. The Eleven drew the Deltas 1-1 with a solid effort and newcomer Tanner Thompson…
The Indy Eleven now have 20 players announced for the 2017 spring season. The additions of Tanner Thompson and David Goldsmith bring much-needed depth to the NASL’s returning runner-up. For Indy, the signings are none too soon. The season kicks off for the boys in blue this Saturday in San Francisco…
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC hosted bottom-dwellers Rotherham United FC in a must-win matchup at Molineux Stadium on Saturday. The home side had been without a win in their last seven attempts. Their last league win had been on Jan. 31 against Barnsley. Since then, Wolves have been in an absolute…
Preseason match No. 2 is in the books. The Indy Eleven played the USL’s Swope Park Rangers to a 1-1 scoreline, but I still don’t care about the score. The fact is that I only care about form and there is a lot to dissect here. People will try…
There are varying opinions as to how much stock to place in preseason matches. Obviously there is offseason rust to remove and there are chemistry problems to work through, but preseason is more than that. Jobs are won and lost. Field positions can be tested and depth charts can…
