2019 Protagonist Soccer Club of the Year Ballot Results

There’s something about a surprise that seems completely appropriate for New Year’s Day. Everything you thought you knew was in the past and you wake up in a new world, completely different from what you thought. So welcome to the new year, peeps, nothing is what you expected.

When we announced the clubs for the voting a week and a half ago, I had every expectation that this morning I would be writing about the runaway win of one of the two big clubs nominated, Chattanooga FC or Detroit City FC. Both clubs have massive followings and it just made sense that, because of how the voting was structured, a dedicated group of followers could drive their club to the win. That didn’t happen this time, much to my surprise. While both clubs had strong showings, neither were able to push it over the line, and we have a different winner today.

The structure of the voting may some problematic to some, because it allows voters to vote as often as they want. That decision was actually intentional. Because bigger, legacy-type clubs have larger followings and bigger name recognition, they should be able to draw more voters, while smaller clubs will have more difficulty in generating votes. Allowing multiple votes from individual voters allows for a committed, but smaller group, to have a greater impact in the process. That is without a doubt what happened this year.

Our site has focused heavily on the NPSL, while the UPSL and other leagues get coverage, just in a more limited scope. There are a host of reasons why that is the case, and it might change in the future, but for now that is the state of things. This year, we added to that palette of coverage the WPSL and UWSL, the two strongest national leagues in lower division women’s soccer. With a limited staff, coverage is still in the early stages but we’re proud that we’re expanding and think the women’s game deserves the effort.

And that’s why it’s so exciting to announce that the 2019 Protagonist Soccer Club of the Year is Pensacola FC of the WPSL. Rather than rehash all the reasons why they are completely deserving of this award (check the nomination story), we’ll focus on their determination to continue voting even when other clubs began to drop off. Even late into the evening on New Year’s Eve, votes were coming in for Pensacola. There were votes for other clubs, but Pensacola was the bulk of the votes at a time when many people were turning to celebration.

Pensacola’s win typifies the kind of grit and determination that marks the lower leagues in this country and women’s soccer in general. Get up and grind, every single day, someday you’ll get recognized. Congratulations on the win to a very deserving club.

The Rest of the Ballot

Several other aspects of the ballot results should also be mentioned. We tossed in a second question, in which we asked, “who was the second option for each voter.” This question was included to see how clubs were perceived by other fans. Who garnered the most respect among other clubs’ fans. The results showed a massive showing for Chattanooga FC and Detroit FC, with the clubs grabbing almost 60% of all the votes cast. There’s something to be said for game recognizing game.

Finally, we included on the ballot a write-in portion, “What is the biggest problem facing grassroots soccer?” The results ranged from funny to serious, but the overarching subject throughout the responses was the lack of oversight and structure within the game, caused by the Federation’s inattention. MLS and USL were also big factors in the write-in voting, specifically efforts to expand into markets and stealing market share. Lack of money rounded out the majority of the answers, either due to low game-day attendance/fan support or lack of corporate sponsors.

Some answers deserved to be mentioned for sheer comedy: “Alexi Landas.” Not sure who that is, though it’s safe to guess its a misspelling of a particular soccer pundit’s name. “Need more Beer!!!!” Though I’m not sure if the voter was just ordering another round and slipped it into their vote? Another along that line was “Wives telling us we can't play” which is clearly the biggest problem facing at least one voter. And we can’t forget the need for more noisemakers, “Need more cowbell.”

My favorite response is a call to action: “Too many people who think they know best despite having no real success of experience, need more doers and less talkers.” Appropriately enough, it came from a Pensacola FC voter. And that’s advice we can all take into 2020. More doing and less talking.

- Dan Vaughn

Club of the Year Nominee: Pensacola FC

I wanted to introduce this nomination with a list of women from history who have been ignored or slighted due to their gender. I found scientists, social activists, politicians, religious leaders, all of whom died without proper due for their contribution to society. But it all feels too trite, too rote. We all know women don’t get their due in this society or almost 100% of societies that have emerged over the last 200,000 years of human development. And yes, even those that pretend that somehow this current American society is somehow different in this respect, know this. Won’t admit it, of course, but they know it. We all do.

Men have exploited our biological size (on average about 6 inches in height and 35 pounds in weight) to place ourselves at the front of the leadership line. That position in line has allowed us to define what makes a great leader (typically it looks like a man, you can check history) so we can continue to remain at the front of the line. We’ve consistently pushed (mostly metaphorically, but sometimes literally) women into household jobs and raising kids while we fought wars, plowed fields, created businesses, and built empires. Oh, we also enslaved our own kind, committed mass genocide, exploited the weakest of our societies, and destroyed the earth. Yes, we did many good acts, but those get mentioned all the time (usually by men propping up our fragile egos), so maybe we should let the other side of the ledger speak for once.

We’ve social norms, governments, laws, and religions to enforce these rigid ideas about gender, to the point that even in our “progressive” western societies, outspoken women are “shrill,” while men are “bold.” And no single vote will correct this problem, because it runs deep, to the core of everything around us. But maybe it’s time to decide that excellence, regardless of male, female, non-binary, deserves recognition. We can look back into history and admit we screwed up, as a species, in our treatment of our own. Because human excellence doesn’t need to be gendered. And that’s why you should vote for Pensacola FC for club of the year. 

For Pensacola FC, 2019 was one of unparalleled supremacy in the WPSL. Not only did the club score 54 goals, they only gave up 4. That’s an unbelievable goal differential of +49 in an 8-match season. But for David Kemp, founder and head coach, “it was fun!” It’s doubtful his club’s opponents saw it that way. After crushing their Gulf Conference in the regular season, Pensacola rolled into the playoffs. Their dominant goal scoring run would continue throughout - the first match was 4-1, the second 3-1, the semifinal 3-2, and the final ended 4-3 in OT. The club had scored 14 goals in 4 playoff matches against the best teams in the WPSL, including two clubs filled with NWSL reserves. Kemp highlights those final two matches, specifically the final, “the WPSL Semi Final and Championship games were incredible matches against 2 amazing opponents. We showed character coming from behind twice in the Final, and that shows just what type of group this was.”

And what a group. This year’s squad featured forward Uchenna Kanu, who represented her native country of Nigeria in the 2019 World Cup. At 22, she already has 4 appearances for her national team. Also, on the team was Briana Morris, who scored 13 goals in the regular season, and two very important ones in the WPSL Championship match. Three players scored in double digits during Pensacola’s 2019 campaign, though no one may have been as important as GK Kathryn Scheele, who’s 1.12 GAA smothered all WPSL opponents. The lineup was deep, and featured 4 All-Americans. Kemp highlights the big names, but always focuses on the stars who often get passed over. “We had so many performers who were not on the stat sheet, like Celine Rumpf and Heidi Ruth, who are integral to how we play. Their approach to training and playing this game are an example for everyone. We had tremendous success in the attacking areas this season, Bri Morris, Mollie Rouse and Hannah Godfrey all came through with strong seasons, as well as Ana Paula Santos being so adaptable to playing 2 or 3 positions for us.”

This is the third year in a row Pensacola FC has finished their season in the Championship match, but the first win in the final. When I asked Coach Kemp how Pensacola FC was influencing women’s soccer, he cautioned me but then pointed out that “we can be an example to other clubs and owners that you can be successful on a small budget and by promoting all the positive aspects of the game. We do everything with the ball, try to play a style that appeals to the players, and focus on improving the players.” When I asked Uchenna Kanu about her experience with the club, she mentioned that focus on improvement. “Everyone was always working harder than each order and making each other better. The training programs were well organized as well as the coaching staff. Overall, we had the opportunity to build relationships and long-lasting memories within the team. 2019 was an incredible season for me in general.”

I know that the vast majority of the readers of this site are male. I also know that the vast majority of our soccer coverage is focused on men’s soccer. And maybe we should think carefully about why that is. We are a nation that is DOMINANT in women’s soccer. Our national team is indisputably the best in the world, yet out women’s clubs go out of business and our professional league can only sustain 9 clubs. It’s time to recognize that the best soccer played in this country is played by women. And, if that is a fact, then Pensacola FC is one of the best amateur clubs in the world, certainly the best amateur club in the country. Following that logic, Pensacola FC deserves your vote, because they are the best, period.

- Dan Vaughn