A Case of the Mondays

The Conundrum in Colorado

Mondays can be tough. For those who follow lower division soccer in the US, and in particular those who follow the UPSL and its Colorado Conference, this past Monday was downright jarring. Most people woke up to a post by Athletic Club Sloan’s Lake’s (ACSL) Director Max Fowler. This tweet laid out two pieces of information. The first, that ACSL had been expelled from the UPSL with immediate effect. This was particularly shocking given the fact that ACSL had just hosted the UPSL Spring Playoffs. The second, was that ACSL, along with FC Boulder (FCB) and FC Greeley (FCG, also referred to in documents as FC Colorado) had founded an organization known as the ProRel United States Footballing Association (ProRelUSFA). Later in the day, the UPSL made this news official by announcing:

“Colorado-based clubs ACSL, FCB, and FCG have each had their respective UPSL memberships terminated, effective immediately, due to the conflict of interest these teams represent. Specifically, the league no longer associates with the individuals Max Fowler, Don Harmon, or Lance Williams, nor the clubs they own, direct or manage.

The UPSL now considers this a legal matter and will not make any further statements at this time.” True to word, UPSL has not released further statement in any form, and despite some thinking that it may be discussed on The UPSL Podcast the League has maintained silence. They declined to respond to an inquiry for comment.

This issue raised some pretty big questions. First, this was an odd introduction to the organization known as ProRelUSFA. It is obvious that UPSL saw this organization as a conflict of interest, and maybe the start of a potential competitor, but the founders do not see it that way. Max Fowler described ProRelUSFA as, “…a trade organization founded by and made up of professionally run clubs across the competitive pyramids and across all league, nationally, regionally and locally, to help new and established clubs better meet best practices and procedures.” With lower league soccer fraught with danger due to the razor-thin margins most clubs operate on, as we found out recently with Kitsap Pumas, it’s easy to see why clubs might want to share what works to help those clubs around them. “It’s no different than a Realtor’s Association or trade guild [that] helps maintain and teach standards that ensure the survival of all,” added Fowler, showcasing the fact that ProRelUSFA had no desire to compete with UPSL as a league.

Don Harmon, who’s cut ties with the UPSL is seemingly even more impactful, given the fact that he is the director of FCB, the UPSL Colorado Conference, and the Women’s Division National Director, painted the organization in a slightly different light when reached for comment on their goals. “That’s the beauty of it, the members decide how it works best when applied…It can be an association sanctioned by or parallel to USSF…why not if that’s what the members propose and agree to.” This type of thinking would certainly explain UPSL’s concern to a greater degree, but if it is member-run, the UPSL could become a stakeholder in this type of venture.

That is not how UPSL saw it, obviously. Fowler stated plainly, “We believe it is very clear that we are not in breach of any of the UPSL’s stated rules or regulations…We have never been reprimanded or engaged in any formal process before this email. There was no formal process or procedures, no form or due process, and no form of appeal.” This was seemingly a case of a misunderstanding between UPSL and its member clubs. However, the nature of ProRelUSFA’s formation may have muddied the waters a bit.

“We were never called to clarify our actions, there was no due process or procedures, and it was wholly a result of rumors and innuendo as the document in question was under a non-disclosure agreement as we were establishing the trade association. Mainly because we felt it a good idea and wanted to protect our intellectual property.” This quote from Fowler indicates that the three founding members were under an NDA concerning the formation of ProRelUSFA. This, along with contact with clubs across UPSL and indeed all American lower division soccer leagues, could easily have lead UPSL leadership to believe their member clubs were planning a revolution inside their walls. This does not explain the lack of communication between the parties, but it could explain their concern.

Ultimately, the swiftness and opacity of UPSL’s response, coupled with the equal swiftness and transparency of ProRelUSFA has driven a strong response from many lower division fans on social media and UPSL are looking at a potentially long and tricky Fall Season which had been looking so promising given the Spring Season’s exciting conclusion.

- Phil Baki

Club of Immigrants

Often, when we discuss soccer, we lump the players on the field, the coaches on the sideline, the general managers in the box, the owner in an office, all into a massive machine, one that wins or loses games, disappoints or thrills fans, lifts the trophy at the end of the season or falls somewhere short of the mark. It’s easy to treat a soccer club like a golem, designed to work for our pleasure, to fill our evenings with bliss. Each element of our creation is mixed into the mass to give us a goal here, a defensive stop there, but always the target is deliver the result we want, a championship. But this golem is not a mix of mud and sticks, a mindless worker striving for our approval, instead it is an organization that is made up of people, each with their own mind, their own strengths and weaknesses, their own backstories, their own hopes and dreams.

While we watch our clubs play, we rarely place our feet into the cleats of those that race across the field. How did that keeper end up in the box, guarding the net? What inspired that coach to live his life to this point, now standing next to the bench? And what about the last player on the end of the bench, earnestly staring towards his coach, hoping for a nod, what does he dream of someday being? The reality is that each of those individuals has a story, a path that led to this point and a series of goals that stretch into the future. The humanity of those that play the game may be varnished over by the colors of the kit, but for those on the field, this is real life.

San Jerónimo, Jalisco, Mexico

If you ask Mario Alcalá where his roots lie, it’s far from North Texas. You’d have to cross the entire state of Texas, hop the southern border of the United States, cross another couple of states (Mexican this time), past Guadalajara, to the tiny pueblito of San Jerónimo in the Mexican state of Jalisco. And tiny hardly describes the place, really it’s not much more than a spot on the map. A city with the population of less than 500, that you could blink and miss. But that tiny city in Mexico was the home of Mario’s ancestors. He often notes with pride, if you look at it in Google Maps, you can spot a soccer field in the tiny town. The importance of the sport to this tiny town is multiplied in Mario’s mind and his history. Going back in time almost 100 years, his family lived in that city and, some of them anyway, played soccer. And not just played the sport, excelled at it. They were good enough to have a team that was like family and would stay together across generations, thousands of miles, and eventually span a border. That team had the same name as it does today, Inocentes.

The team of the 1930's was populated with names that still fill the names on the backs of kits today. They played together, competed with other teams, and had pride in their tiny town’s team. As immigration began to sweep players north into the United States, the bonds that had formed on the soccer field held. Better jobs, chances for prosperity, education for their children drew families from the tiny town southeast of Guadalajara. These families moved to Texas over the decades, settling in and around Ft. Worth.

It’s not easy to uproot your family and plug them into a whole new way of living. The decision to do it is only made when all other options are exhausted. No matter how good the promise of a new country may sound, it’s still a sacrifice of life as you know it. The familiar sounds of the tiny village in Mexico would be replaced by the cacophony of a bustling metropolis. While many immigrants do speak English, speaking the language is another hurdle to cross for the first generation, particularly those of Spanish-speaking countries. The only solution to maintain one’s culture and survive is to build a tiny bubble of home in your new country. A place where Spanish can be spoken without  judgement, where food can taste just as it did in their Mexican homes, and where the game of soccer was the only futbol that mattered. While every generation of immigrants seeks to fit in and connect with their new culture, preserving the one they grew up in is a task for the soul, one that strengthens and grows the connection across generations.

The Game that Binds

Mario Alcalá, a third generation immigrant, is the president of Inocentes FC, who now play in the UPSL Central Conference - North Division. Based in Ft. Worth, the club’s history in the city goes back to the generation before Mario and his brothers. Inocentes has existed in the United States since the 1970s. As the families from San Jerónimo came to this country, they brought their love of soccer with them and what else to name the team they played on but Inocentes? Originally, the team competed in the the local Hispanic leagues. With their natural chemistry and common heritage, Inocentes won multiple championships in every league they competed in. Mario’s father and uncle both played for Inocentes in 1979 and now serve as influencers on the newest generation to wear the Inocentes crest.

But the generational connection isn’t limited to the Alcalá surname. Many of the players on this year’s UPSL side are the sons of players who played for the club in the 90’s. The little bubble that rose from Mexico and settled in Ft. Worth continues to provide a place for talent to germinate, eventually filling the roster of their local club. That talent was the reason Alcalá decided the club should head to greater competition. According to Mario, “the initial idea was to try and add the team into the NPSL,” but after an ex player recommended the UPSL they “looked into the league, spoke to Matt Khala (central conference commissioner), and we were sold on the league.” Inocentes made the leap from playing the local clubs to the UPSL.

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UPSL

Often thought of as football country, Texas has a strong soccer culture that begins in the countless youth leagues that fill the fields on the weekends. The same talent pool that produced players like Clint Dempsey, Reggie Cannon, Brek Shea, and Lee Nguyen, has encouraged the growth of countless youth programs developing the stars of tomorrow. The depth of talent, the level of coaching, the years of team play all combine in the state, making it the perfect spot for lower tier leagues to set up shop. Amatuer teams began popping up across the state, filling the conferences of the ever-expanding UPSL. This expansion is ongoing as the Central Conference has divided itself again, from North and South, to now include a Heart Division. Three divisions, 23 clubs (and counting), it is clear that Texas soccer is on the rise.

And that rise caught Inocentes and carried them into the UPSL. Standing out from a crowded Texas market could be a challenge for a new club, but to Alcalá, there’s a difference between Inocentes and other clubs. “When you have a group of people who are motivated by something other than money, it allows you to make decisions based on what is best for the team and not the bottom line. This philosophy allows us to create a culture that everyone wants to be a part of and I think that is what separates us from other teams in our state.” The 2018 Spring Season was the first year for the club to play in the league, but they played like it was their tenth. While some expansion clubs struggle to find chemistry and get wins, the Ft. Worth team played with confidence and skill. They dominated their division, finishing the regular season without a loss. Led by Captain Jorge Rodriguez and top scorer Anthony Powell were dominate in the UPSL Central - North. With regular season perfection locked up, Inocentes continued their run in the playoff, winning two more matches and booking a trip to the UPSL 2018 Spring National Playoffs in Colorado.

It doesn’t require a map to know that transporting a team from East Texas to Colorado is no small matter. So a club with roots in the community spanning back across generations did what it had done since it formed; it asked the families to provide a way for the team to get to the playoffs. And the community, full of transplanted families, many of which had sons and cousins and nephews on the club, came together at a team fundraiser to raise money for the trip. The outpouring support allowed the club to rent a bus and drive to Colorado.

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The playoffs were not as easy as the regular season had been for Inocentes. Their opening National playoff match was against Florida Soccer Soldiers, who had won the Southwest Conference. The playoff match ended 2-0 and, as quickly as it began, the playoff run was over. After the match, Mario was asked about the result. “It hurts even more because I thought we deserved a better result, but unfortunately this game isn’t about deserving.” The next day, Inocentes won their consolation match against Boise Cutthroats on PKs. Inocentes finished their inaugural UPSL season 7-4-1.

The Timeline Keeps Stretching

Maybe the game isn’t about deserving, but it’s definitely about heart and passion. And Inocentes FC has that in spades, from generations of immigrant soccer players. Without a pause, Mario and Inocentes began plans to prepare for the next season.  New blood is the first step. “We are bringing in new players to solidify the existing team and create even more depth. We are also fielding a U-20 team that will compete in a local amateur league to allow us to find and develop local talent in the Fort Worth area.” That drive to bring new faces into team colors will pay dividends as the team continues to grow. More fans, more interest, and more winning. The long term goal? “Long term, we want to build the team within the community like Chattanooga FC and Detroit City FC have done in their respective cities. We believe you do that by listening to the community and creating a product that everyone can be a part of regardless of their culture, economic situation, or otherwise.” A soccer club so influenced by their past, opening doors to those different from themselves. From the humble beginnings in San Jerónimo, Inocentes has traveled through the miles, years and generations to embody what many call the American Dream.

- Dan Vaughn

Steelheads and Clear Eyes

There is a new club less than an hour north of Seattle, and they are calling themselves “The Steelheads” after a Twitter vote. Snohomish County FC will be joining the Western Washington Premier League (WWPL) in 2019, the club’s third year of existence. They have spent the last two seasons playing non-league friendlies, picking up an all-time record of 7-2-7 against other clubs, communities colleges, and U18 and U19 teams.

The Beginning

The club was formed in 2017 for high school players in the area. Steelheads coach Daghan “Dagi” Kesim supports this sentiment, saying, “There are a lot of talented players and soccer fans in Snohomish County. They needed the next level of play. I personally think it was a great idea.” The club’s General Manager, David Falk, had similar reasons, but pointed to the local indoor soccer team, the Snohomish Skyhawks, who have been playing for more than ten years, stating, “Every spring and summer the highest level of Snohomish-area players look outside of the county to see where they can compete on other regional clubs. We wanted to give them the option to stay at home.”

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After they got the idea, they tried to get things rolling, but that did not mean going all in from the start. Falk is a big believer in working within your means, saying, “You can go from idea to club pretty quickly – but that doesn't mean it will stick.” This is why they spent the past two seasons taking things slow and building up to their end goal. Falk was brought on to the team, more recently, but Coach Kesim has been with the team since the beginning. Kesim said, “It has been an idea for years, just didn't have the right people to help out. I like working with people who follow through on their promises... Since David arrived to help, it became an organized entity that I am proud to be a part of.”

If you’ve ever been around a team, you know that a club doesn’t just spring up overnight. Falk described it perfectly, saying, “You need players, coaches, and people to do some organizing work during the week. There is more paperwork than some soccer people like, but it is part of the process. Things like getting fields, creating and running websites, insurance, business licenses. When you get those accomplished, being a true club feels more real.” Snohomish County FC, or SnoCo FC for short, has all of this and is becoming one of the best teams in the region on the social media side of things. It has all the makings of a great club, except for one: a home field. Snohomish County is a huge space with a total area of 2,196 square miles, so there are plenty of places to choose to play. The club has held its friendlies at multiple locations. Community liaison, Ruth Nicholson, said, “We are currently seeking a home stadium after sampling a variety of options this past summer. A group of our board, Founders Club, and players are in the process of finalizing that location now,” when asked about the status of the club’s home venue.

So, they have the business side down, they’re working on getting a home field, but what about the most important part of a soccer team, the players themselves? The team was initially built from both recruiting and open tryouts. Coach Kesim believes that recruiting will get a little easier now that the team has joined an actual league. 2018 saw forty players try out, which according to Falk, “Was a boost for our roster but also a bump for our finances via tryout fees.” The club also had a few individuals get solo tryouts throughout the season and has built a strong relationship with both Edmonds and Everett Community Colleges. Many of the players currently on the team will play with their college team or with the Skyhawks in the fall.

The team decided to join the WWPL because, as Falk put it, “It seems like the next natural step for us. We are fortunate the WWPL was formed this year and that we have been accepted for 2019. We have already played a few of the teams,” with Nicholson adding, “Realistically, we had two and a half options for league play. The WWPL offers the opportunity to help build a diverse league in Western Washington from the ground up.” The original plan was to join in the league’s inaugural 2018 season, but it reorganized after the 2017 season. Between bringing in David Falk as the new GM and bringing in other staff members, the deadline was missed, so the team scheduled friendlies and kept on moving forward.

The Future

Like any growing organization or company, the Steelheads have goals, two of which stick out. The biggest goal to Ruth Nicholson is “to build a sense of community around soccer in Snohomish County that provides an opportunity for players beyond the high school and (community) college level,” while Falk sees the main goal being on the business side of things. Falk says that they “Need business partners to help us defer costs so our Founders and players can concentrate on supporting the club and our players on match days.”

One thing is clear, though. Like any other small community club, the Steelheads need the support of their community. No team, lower league or major league, can survive without its community’s backing and support. All kinds of support are needed. Some of the ways people can support, according to Nicholson, are through “Fan support. Monetary support (game tickets, merchandise, concessions). Sponsorships to build a sense of community to support/build partnerships with local businesses while helping fund club operations. Visibility to recruit and support local soccer players.”

The monetary and fan support can come from joining the club’s Founders Club, a group of fifty supporters of the club. The Founders Club currently has fifteen members, so you can still join. It costs $100 up front, but with your membership, you get representation on the Steelhead’s Board, an inaugural scarf, and a lifetime pass to SnoCo FC games. You can find out more information on the Steelhead's website.

The team needs the community’s support. That has never been more evident than now, as just recently, the nationally recognizable Kitsap Pumas shut their doors less than a hundred miles away. Falk hopes to lead this team to much better things, saying, “I am all too familiar with the list of clubs that have played and folded in Washington. It goes far beyond the Pumas. I like to say that the Steelheads are a “slow boil” kind of club. We have not over-promised or over-extended ourselves. We are what we are, and we are doing things with sensible finances in mind – and trying to have enough people around that we can all share in building the club.”

Lower level teams in the Pacific Northwest have historically struggled, especially compared to how well the Portland Timbers and the Seattle Sounders of MLS do and how strong their fan bases are. However, SnoCo is already off to a good start with an average of around a hundred supporters at each game. Ruth Nicholson pointed out that the club has “players from at least 17 different high schools in Snohomish County, so we have a grounding in our communities here. We are truly home-grown in a way that MLS teams are not.” David Falk says, “Survival is sexy,” and if the Steelheads can continue to operate within their means and not get too flashy, then they will be fine. When comparing themselves to the MLS team just down the road, Falk said, “The Sounders bring soccer to the nightly news. They are “soccertainment” for people in the big city. The Steelheads are something else – an organized community club for players, families and local supporters.”

The club isn’t just asking for support, though. It believes it can bring great things to the area and have a positive impact on its community. Coach Kesim and Ruth Nicholson agree that this team should be “an example of what our youth players in Snohomish County can aspire to,” and that its “players are great examples to the younger players.” On top of being a positive influence, the organization can provide “a low-cost community-oriented sporting event to attend with the whole family,” according to David Falk.

Overall, it is a club that has shown in the past couple of years that it can operate successfully on its own. Joining the WWPL should amplify this and help this team expand, but that cannot happen without the local support of the soccer fans in the Snohomish County area. The Steelheads are doing everything right off the field, are a classy organization, and look to be a quality piece of entertainment for everyone in the community. Keeping the good things going will be hugely important to the team and its front office, and I completely believe that it can keep these good things going.

- Aarik Long

License to Thrill

Milwaukee Bavarians Outlast Sporting Arizona in wild UPSL Spring Final

 

If the United Premier Soccer League was hoping for the perfect end to their 2018 Spring Season, then it was probably pretty pleased when the National Playoffs produced Milwaukee Bavarians Soccer Club and Sporting AZ FC of Chandler, Arizona as the two national finalists. These are two teams of absolute quality demonstrated on the national stage. Sporting AZ showed its skill by defeating Phoenix Rising of the USL in the US Open Cup earlier this year. Bavarians were fresh off of a USASA Amateur Cup victory, their fifth time lifting that trophy. However, great clubs often meet and sometimes the games do not live up to the billing. With Bavarians outlasting Sporting AZ 3-2 across 90+ enthralling minutes, this match absolutely did.

Things started fairly quickly for Milwaukee. With Sporting sitting a bit deep early, Bavarians were dominating the ball and creating the more concrete chances. It took just a quarter of an hour for them to open the scoring, with Nick Marshall rising highest in the box on a corner to direct a glancing header inside Sporting’s right hand post. From there, the game changed. Sporting created a couple good chances, with particularly good combinations down the right between Tony Cascio and Eijin Kishimoto. Sporting looked sure to equalize, but having been denied a clear cut chance at one end, it conceded a clear cut chance at the other when Nick Wilson was sent through on goal by some excellent combination play. He made no mistake one-on-one with the keeper and things were looking bleak for Sporting right before the halftime whistle.

Having conceded just before the half, Sporting could have easily seen this game as gone, but refused to quit. It started the second half strong but once again was hit when it seemed likely to score. Braden Andryk of Bavarians played a ball toward Scott Lorenz at the top of the 18 yard box. The former Sporting Kansas City and Fort Lauderdale Strikers man turned and made absolutely no mistake as he fired a rocket into the top right corner, leaving Sporting keeper Andrew Weber with no chance.

This felt like the dagger. For Milwaukee, the 3-0 lead, even with 37 minutes left to play, felt solid. For Sporting, it just did not feel like its day. But things started to turn in the second half as Sporting again created chances and looked to get back into the game. David Alton and Paul Lamarca had chances and there was an indirect free kick given from six yards out that Bavarians kept out by sticking all eleven players between the posts. Then, a foul in the box by Bavarians’ first goal scorer, Nick Marshall gave Sporting its chance. Alejandro Aguilar converted fantastically from the spot to give AZ a glimmer of hope. That turned into a spark just a minute later when Tony Cascio went storming down the left hand side and crossed for Daniel Arrubla who smashed a low, hard shot into Bavarians net. Suddenly, it was 3-2 and with 20 minutes still to play, anything seemed possible.

The comeback was not to be, however. Sporting AZ earned another penalty in the 79th minute but in a decision that will surely be critiqued, Aguilar did not take the penalty. Lamarca stepped up and although he put plenty of power behind it, the ball cannoned back off the crossbar and the last true chance for an equalizer vanished into the distance along with it. The remaining minutes had a few more glimmers, but the light had burned out along with the legs of the players of both teams. Three matches over three days turned the Final into a war of attrition, which Bavarians were able to win.

This showcase for the UPSL, all of which was streamed for free on MyCujoo, should serve as a reminder of the level of quality at the amateur levels of the game. In addition, it should serve as a reminder of the quality of the organizations and people involved in them. Milwaukee Bavarians and Sporting AZ are great examples of how clubs should operate and they put on a great show. Luckily, the UPSL Fall Season is right around the corner, so we do not have to wait long to see great clubs entertain us again.

- Phil Baki

Divergence: The Death of Kitsap Pumas

Two Roads…

A fork in the road is a metaphor that often makes it easy to differentiate between the correct decision and the wrong one in a given moral dilemma. It can also be used to describe the differing fortunes of similar organizations. It was 2009 and Kitsap Pumas, a semi-professional soccer club from the suburbs of Seattle faced off against that most hated team in that area, the Portland Timbers. This was not the Portland Timbers you know now, with the large crowds, the brilliant tifo, the culture of amazing support. This was the USL1 team, who played in front of their biggest crowd to that point (2,128) against this startup club from Kitsap who had nothing but a ticket to the 2nd Round on their mind. Kitsap Pumas lost but this matchup represented the divergence in fortunes between the clubs. Portland Timbers have gone on to worldwide prominence and recognition amongst the strongest franchises in Major League Soccer. Kitsap Pumas, on the other hand, are shutting down operations after ten years, and American soccer’s grief will be short-lived.

The death of a lower league club in the United States is often more akin to the death of a bird than something taken seriously. I cannot help but picture the episode of the American version of The Office when Dunder-Mifflin’s Scranton Branch holds a brief, if heartfelt funeral for a bird that flew into the window. Thus, Liviu Bird, the ironically named manager of Kitsap Pumas spoke almost exactly in tune with how people handle losses in the semi-professional game. “People talk to me as if somebody died, but clubs come and go at this level all the time.” The history of Kitsap Pumas is not so simple though, as this was not the typical flash in the pan type of club that Liviu refers to. There are clubs up and down the system in US Soccer that spring up and fold in the same year. This was an institution in Pacific Northwest lower division soccer that will be inevitably mourned by fans of quality soccer across the nation.

Kitsap Pumas was founded in 2009 by Robin Waite, a former minority owner of the Seattle Sounders before their move to Major League Soccer. At the outset, Pumas were not your typical lower division team. They did not want years of lower league anonymity, they did not want to dominate the youth soccer scene in a given area, or collect club dues. The Pumas were hell-bent on creating a competitive, professional club in the suburbs of Seattle. They began play in the United Soccer League’s Premier Development League (PDL) in 2009, making an immediate impact on the Pacific Northwest by defeating the reserves of the USL teams in the area, the Timbers and Sounders. The Pumas also began to have an impact at the PDL level, making the National Playoffs in the PDL five times and winning a PDL Championship in 2011. A club making waves like this could be impactful in a different system but why has such a high-profile semiprofessional club like this just died?

Professionalism or Death

There is nothing that could emphasize the ambition of a club like Kitsap Pumas quite like the idea that the current manager, Liviu Bird, was recruited to manage from a job writing for Sports Illustrated. That is an incredible statement, with Liviu leaving his job at one of the most read sports publications on the planet for the manager job at Pumas. This club was not another amateur set up, or a youth club that wanted to field a first team. This club had legitimate ambitions. “The goal was always USL,” added Bird. “We started as a professional PDL team with the idea that as the league expands and has a heavier West Coast presence that we would jump into that league.”

The club supported those ambitions by maintaining a semi-professional presence and recruiting fantastic players out of the Seattle area. They saw that area in USL as their niche. They could be the “other professional soccer team” near Seattle. This did not work how they wanted to however, with the club facing another proverbial fork in the road in the 2011 US Open Cup. Pumas had earned a 3rd Round berth, and were facing the Seattle Sounders, who had just made the move to MLS from the original iteration of the USL. Sounders defeated Pumas in the Cup and in the intervening years, rather than Pumas moving to USL, it was a Seattle Sounders Reserve team that made the move. This began to represent a pattern in the Pacific Northwest, the local team was being shut out by the “major league” team.

“The Soccer environment here is pretty toxic,” Bird added when pressed. This line, while seemingly general, says quite a bit about the literal State of soccer in Washington. He went on to say that once the promise of movement to a professional division of US Soccer was off the table, “The community stopped caring after awhile.” This apathy towards Kitsap seems out of character given the reputation of soccer culture in the Pacific Northwest. It is often hailed as a haven of the sport and a vibrant supporter culture due to the support for the MLS clubs in the area. However, this has not translated to success for clubs in the lower divisions. A spokesman for Kitsap Pumas’ supporters group highlighted some of the issues in the Seattle area. “The Seattle pro sports teams pull away entertainment [money] from here. There have been a pro basketball team, a summer baseball team for college players…and a couple junior hockey teams that have folded due to lack of attendance.” The reputation that supporters earned at the professional level has so far not extended to the lower division clubs in the area.

Random Guys in New Orleans

This proclivity of American consumers to favor professional teams despite their being more local options seemingly flies counter to modern trends. The stereotype is quite the opposite when it comes to the Pacific Northwest. However, due to the nature of this business, the impact of supporting a professional team about an hour and a half away instead of the local option is often greater than supporters are willing to hear. The impact could be the club ceasing to exist.

This is where the story enters the realm of the surreal. Bird attended the NPSL Annual General Meeting and had the “We were in New Orleans and obviously a real party atmosphere. There was a stilt-walker who told me ‘Oh, I’ve heard of the Kitsap Pumas, I’ve heard of you guys. My brother’s from Portland and he told me about you guys.’” The support and adoration of many lower division sides comes from outside the area that can really affect their situation. The power of social media can drive popularity and interest for clubs, but ultimately the community will decide their fate. Kitsap decided the Pumas’ fate.

“Although we weren’t getting a lot of fans, and weren’t making tons of money, it still made sense and we were still getting something out of it. That’s not really the case anymore.” There are professionals across American soccer that have constantly sacrificed time, money, and sweat trying to provide players and coaches with more opportunities. For many team owners below the professional level, this is a passion. The reward is not material, but it is in the people who can be given a shot to pursue their dreams. “This club has helped me grow as a player, as a coach, as a person. I wouldn’t even be coaching if it weren’t for this club.” That quote from Liviu Bird highlights why clubs like Kitsap Pumas need local support, and why it is a shame that the club is shutting its doors.

Lower league American soccer is not in trouble due to the demise of Kitsap Pumas. That is the good news. The bad news is that one of the iconic lower division clubs is shutting its doors. Other clubs will step up, the void will eventually be filled, but there is now a gap of opportunity that exists west of Seattle. Clubs like Pumas will continue to stop operations if the support does not exist. Rather, help create memories like Kitsap Pumas have given to us. “It would take me many, many hours to describe all the experiences and memories that I have but there are highlights I will take with me forever,” Bird reminisced. Kitsap Pumas, thank you for those memories.

- Phil Baki

The Story in the Storm

Sometimes, it’s just the right confluence of factors that creates a story. There has to be three elements to bring it into existence. The obvious first element is the thing. By the thing, I mean the event, the subject, the action, the center of the issue. Without the thing, you would have nothing to focus on. Speaking of focus, that’s element two: the person bringing light to the story. Without that person, the story becomes the tree in the forest that no one heard fall. Finally, there’s the audience. Without the audience, the person has no one to show the story to. Someone has to care or you’re just farting in the wind.

On Friday, August 10th, the UPSL Playoffs began in Boulder, Colorado. Teams from all over the country, division and conference champions, headed there to begin the final push for the Championship. The clubs involved this year: Mass United FC, Milwaukee Bavarian SC, Inocentes FC, Florida Soccer Soldiers, Sporting AZ FC, Boise FC, FC Boulder, and Santa Ana Winds. These clubs came from every corner of the American map to meet in the mountains of Colorado for what was sure to be an epic battle to the end. The quarterfinals would be played that Friday evening and excitement was high on lower tier soccer Twitter.

The matches were stacked that evening, with Mass United FC/Milwaukee Bavarian SC and Sporting AZ FC/Boise Cutthroats FC starting at 5pMT. The other two matchups of the evening would take place at 8pMT (after the first two matches had concluded). As a start-up website, we all agreed that being active on Twitter during the first night of the playoffs was good business sense. Three of our writers, Aarik Long, Phil Baki, and Steven Ramirez, volunteered for different parts of the evening and Ryan Stallings and myself would run the site Twitter, adding bits of commentary from our personal handles.

The story, as described in the first paragraph, would be the Sporting AZ FC/Boise Cutthroats FC match. Not that the other match wasn’t interesting, don’t get me twisted. Remember, something has to happen to draw the eye, to pull in the reader, to spark the audience into existence. And so, with all the introductory information out of the way, allow me to give you a tour of the hurricane.

The match feed went live and at 5:04pmMT Aarik tweeted that the match had begun. The first half was a back and forth affair. Both teams testing each other, neither successfully. Phil and Aarik traded match updates from their accounts, giving the rundown of the action. Halftime came and with it the story.

The first sign of trouble from our reporting was Phil at 6:03pMT: “Dude, there’s a discussion about an ineligible player being fielded by Boise. Oh damn…” Three minutes later, again from Phil, “The match is seemingly being called by UPSL officials: Boise fielded an ineligible player and Sporting Arizona are going to advance by virtue of a forfeit.” The conditions had been created for a story, but the final push happened two minutes later: “There are some animated conversations happening off-camera right now. This is wild...and they just cut the feed off.”

There are few things more jarring, when following a match remotely, than a feed simply being cut. We checked the league Twitter, but they hadn't posted anything since the match had gone live. I messaged both Aarik and Phil trying to find out information.  Phil had reached out to a contact on one of the clubs and gave me this update: "So Boise sent on a sub after like 33 mins and the guys in the booth joked that they didn’t have a #19 on the roster. Well it turned out he wasn’t on the official roster and shouldn’t have played. A bunch of discussion hit off and one guy called Yan [league commissioner Yan Skwara] and was adamant he was going to DQ Boise. An hour later, we still have 0 idea. It’s a shitshow." 

Aarik had also updated his twitter, giving us a dire take on the issue.

Now before you judge us on our reaction, be aware that there was zero information on a national level. Even at the match there was confusion as to what actually happened. From our perspective, a big story had broken at the National UPSL Playoffs. There was going to be a forfeit of what was, at the time, a tied match between two very talented clubs. This was THE STORY.

An hour and a half later, the league twitter announced that "after a long delay the second half between Sporting AZ FC and Boise FC has resumed." Aarik had a slightly less constrained response, typing like a grandfather on facebook in all CAPS, "I TAKE THAT BACK!! WE ARE BACK UNDERWAY IN COLORADO!!!" After the long delay, the entire tenor of the match had changed. All the momentum had shifted to Sporting AZ FC and in the 49th minute they broke through. They followed that first one with a winner and the match ended 2-1. But what had happened during half time?

As the match wrapped, I reached out to a league source for information about the delay. His response was flavored with the sort of restraint that you might expect from a person that was invested in how the match was reported. He first cautioned me that 1. he had just arrived on site 2. he was gathering information 3. everything was "purely heresay from reliable sources." Then he gave me what he knew at that moment: "The initial delay was because Boise FC was thought to have played an ineligible player in the first half. Sporting AZ wanted to protest and the game was halted by inexperienced UPSL on-site staff until player was cleared and the game was resumed. The long delay caused confusion and more delay as a result."

Now, at some level, the match was settled, Sporting AZ had won regardless of any protest, so the questions left to answer were focused on the procedure. I reached out to both clubs for response, one said they would wait for the league to publicly respond, the other didn't respond. And with that, everyone went to bed with a "wait and see" for the morning.

The next morning, there was a message from the league in my inbox. Some of the original messaging had been incorrect.  "Sporting AZ never filed, or even threatened to file, a protest. Sporting owner Tim Marchisotto worked diligently to help rectify the situation in site." This was certainly in contrast to the original information we had received and we were encouraged to "retract our first reporting." Sadly twitter doesn't work that way, so instead we posted the new information and stated that the original information was incorrect. The league continued to clarify "The issue was created by the facilities manager, who feared an insurance issue stemming from a "potentially" non-registered, non-insured player. Also turns out player is registered and totally legit."

Sporting AZ released a statement that same morning via twitter:

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Aarik reported on twitter on the statement from Boise Cutthroats FC - "Joint statement from @OfficialBoiseFC Owner Hector Palacios and Head Coach Jeromy Tarkin: "We are extremely dissappointed with how the entire situation was handled. As mentioned in a previous statement from the UPSL we did NOT play an ineligible player. At the break, we felt we had all of the momentum and had this not happened the result may have been different. With that being said, we recognize that Sporting AZ is an excellent team and commend them on playing as well as they did after the delay. We move on with our heads held high and have put this behind us. We have another game to get prepared for."

With all sides accounted for, this hurricane of a story seems to have been nothing more than a misunderstanding between the club, the match officials, the league, and the rest of the world. There is a conspiracy theorist streak in me that wants to say this is a cover up, but in this case it seems to be as simple as the league and clubs seem to be stating. The fact remains, however, that this confusion clearly influenced a great match. Boise Cutthroats leadership certainly thinks so. And while they were classy and professional in their response, what was done cannot be undone. Sporting AZ FC may have won, regardless of the hour and half delay, anyway, but who can know for sure. This match was a bruise, maybe not to the level of a black eye, on what was a fantastic national playoffs. And that's the story. 

 

UPDATE 8/15

After finishing this article and preparing it for publication, Boise Cutthroats issued another statement on the matter. The purpose of the statement, to "provide our fans and supporters an explanation of what happened and encourage the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) to issue a formal apology to both clubs for the severe mishandling in determining the eligibility of a Boise Cutthroats FC player during halftime." According to Boise, the whole disqualification arose because a league official only took the first page off a clipboard, leaving behind the second [insert facepalm emoji]. The issue was further magnified, again according to the club, by the league official ignoring the coach and being disrespectful to those raising issue with the decision. This behavior was apparently acknowledged by League Commissioner Yan Skwara the next morning. In this statement, Boise went on to point out that Sporting AZ FC had been treated differently by the official in charge of the match. The purpose of that claim, however, was not to protest the match result, but to demand fair treatment.

Boise wrapped up their statement demanding the UPSL go further in acknowledging their mistakes, claiming "they haven’t recognized that they as leadership could have handled this whole situation better.  They have simply pointed their fingers at their own people while creating concern with our local supporters." So this whole story comes back to a single page left on a clipboard, an official who refused to listen to reason, and a league who may or may not have apologized effectively to an aggrieved club. 

Dan Vaughn