The Venues OCB Will Visit in USL League One

This year marks the return of Orlando City B after the side took a hiatus during the 2018 USL season. Playing in the newly formed USL League One, the Young Lions will play their home games at Montverde Academy, home of the Orlando City Academy. There are 10 teams that will compete in this new league during the 2019 season and today we’ll look at the other nine venues OCB will visit.

Chattanooga Red Wolves SC – David Stanton Field

While Chattanooga FC has built up a strong following in the amateur ranks of American soccer, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC is another team that has been formed in the city, beginning play this year. The new club has already shown its commitment by announcing the groundbreaking of a new soccer-specific stadium which is expected to be completed for the 2020 season. In the meantime, the team will play its inaugural season at David Stanton Field on the campus of Chattanooga Christian School. The stadium currently seats 3,500 but the club is building temporary stands that will allow the capacity to increase to 5,000.

FC Tucson – Kino Sports Complex

Recently purchased by USL Championship side Phoenix Rising FC, FC Tucson will be playing the 2019 season at Kino Sports Complex, where the club has spent its young existence. Inside the complex is the North Stadium, which was built in collaboration between the club, Pima County, and the local soccer community. The 1,800-seat stadium has permanent stands on one side as well as a beer garden and kid zone behind the south goal.

Forward Madison FC – Breese Stevens Field

Built in 1926, Breese Stevens Field has had a long history of hosting soccer games as the University of Wisconsin men’s and women’s teams played there until the early 1990s, and the Madison 56ers of the UPSL has played games there. However, Forward Madison FC will be the first fully professional soccer team in the city, adding a new chapter to the historical stadium. As the season will be played during the summer, the club will be the sole tenant of the stadium for much of the season.

Greenville Triumph SC – Legacy Early College

Similar to the temporary home of Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, Greenville Triumph SC will play its home games at a local school and build temporary stands to seat attendees. The location is the soccer field at Legacy Early College — a local high school in Greenville, SC. With the stands built by the club, the stadium will have a capacity of 4,000 spectators.

Lansing Ignite FC – Cooley Law School Stadium

Following in a long line of lower division American soccer teams, and currently one MLS team, Lansing Ignite FC will be playing its games in a downtown baseball stadium. The club has agreed to a five-year deal to share the facility with the Lansing Lugnuts of the Midwest League, a single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The 7,527-seat downtown stadium will provide a good location for the new club.

North Texas SC – Toyota Stadium

While OCB is returning and Toronto FC II is dropping down a division, FC Dallas has finally launched its long-awaited second team, North Texas SC. As OCB once did, the new team will share the home of the senior team, Toyota Stadium. The 20,500-seat stadium will likely be largely empty considering that it’s a developmental team in a large stadium, but the players will experience high quality facilities. Given the likely poor ticket sales, this is a team that could end up moving to a new venue in the next couple of years.

Richmond Kickers – City Stadium

City Stadium has been the home of the Richmond Kickers since 1995. The 9,000-seat facility once hosted the University of Richmond football team before a new stadium was built. Since 2010, the stadium has been used exclusively by the club. Recently, the Kickers agreed to help fund a renovation project that will keep the team at this nearly 100-year-old ground. The stadium will also bring back memories for Orlando City fans as the first team played several games there between 2011 and 2014 and OCB played there in 2016 and 2017.

South Georgia Tormenta FC – Erik Russell Park

Moving up from the fourth-division USL League Two, South Georgia Tormenta FC will continue to play its home games at Eagle Field at Erik Russell Park, home of Georgia Southern University’s men’s and women’s soccer and track and field teams. The 1,000-seat stadium is likely only a temporary home for Tormenta FC at this point, as the club has been vocal about attempting to build a new soccer-specific stadium in Statesboro.

Toronto FC II – BMO Training Ground

The developmental side of Toronto FC, TFC II has been playing second division soccer in the USL over the past few seasons but is dropping to USL League One for 2019. The Baby Reds previously played their games at the Ontario Soccer Centre, but are making a move home, playing at the BMO Training Ground, home to the club’s academy and training home of the first team. Like OCB, this will allow the team, which will largely be made up of academy graduates, to play at the facility in which they train daily.

While more teams are already lined up to join the league as early as 2020, these 10 teams will play the inaugural season of USL League One. It will be made up of new and existing teams that have come from up from the fourth division and down from the second division. These are the stadiums OCB will visit during its first year back.