Chattanooga FC
Finley Stadium Chattanooga, Tennessee | ||||
Capacity | 20,668 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Chairman of the Board | Davis Grizzard[1] | |||
CEO | Alton Byrd | |||
Head coach | Rod Underwood | |||
League | MLS Next Pro | |||
2023 | 1st, NISA Playoffs: Semi-final | |||
Website | Club website | |||
| ||||
Chattanooga Football Club is an American professional
In early 2019, the club made history by becoming the first to offer ownership shares to the public and its fans under the crowdfunding rules of JOBS Act.[2] In an attempt to raise $1 million, the team has currently raised more than $870,000 and has owners from all over the world.[3]
The team plays its home games at
History
Initial seasons (2009–2013)
Chattanooga FC was founded in 2009 by
After the struggles of its first season, Chattanooga FC's run in 2010 included winning the conference and it got them to the NPSL finals. The season ended with a loss in the 2010 NPSL Championship game to the
Chattanooga FC's 2013 season started with the expansion of the South Region into four divisions, with Chattanooga placed in the Southeast Division of the South Conference with 5 other teams.
Continued success and Hank Steinbrecher Trophy (2014–2017)
2014 started with former Chattanooga FC player
Although given the lowest seed in the Regional Playoffs, Chattanooga also played host to the Regional Playoffs.
The 2015 season saw 2014 standout midfielder Niall McCabe sign with Louisville City FC in March.[28] Chattanooga FC was also selected to host the US Soccer Amateur Championships on May 29–30, also known as the Hank Steinbrecher Trophy, in a competition matching the previous years winners of PDL, NPSL, and USASA Open and Amateur Championships.[29] In May, CFC opened league play winning the first two matches on the road in Georgia. U.S. Open Cup play started at home against Ocala Stampede in the first round. After a late goal by Luke Winter to tie the game in regulation, the game went to extra time, with Gregga Hartley saving two penalties, and converting the winning one himself.[30] Hartley was named TheCup.us 's Player of the Round.[31]
The 2nd round of the Cup was away at
In January 2017, Chattanooga FC announced a partnership with VfL Wolfsburg, which plays in the German Bundesliga, and has plans to have international friendlies with the team.[4]
Transitioning to professional status (2018–present)
A professional USL League One franchise, later named the Chattanooga Red Wolves, was established in 2018. Chattanooga FC accused the new team of trying to take over the local market after they hired then-current general manager Sean McDaniel.[35][36][37] The Red Wolves also unsuccessfully attempted to arrange a lease at Finley Stadium and takeover of Chattanooga's youth academy. The city's women's team was transferred to the Red Wolves organization in 2019.[38][39]
On November 15, 2018, the NPSL announced that it was creating a new, fully professional division and that Chattanooga would be one of its founding teams.[40] In anticipation of moving to a professional roster and schedule, Chattanooga began a fan ownership initiative that was partially modeled after the Green Bay Packers.[39] The initiative raised more than $800,000 with almost 3,000 new owners for the club from all 50 states and 25 different countries.[41]
On August 15, 2019, it was announced that Chattanooga FC would instead join the National Independent Soccer Association.[42][43] In preparation for the team's move to the professional ranks it was announced that Jeremy Alumbaugh, formerly the general manager of Saint Louis FC, as the team's managing director, while Bill Elliot would transition from his role as coach to Technical Director and Peter Fuller would take over the head coach role full-time.[44]
After having three years of success in NISA, winning all three Independent Cups and finishing first in the 2023 NISA season, Chattanooga FC announced that starting in 2024 that they would join MLS Next Pro, the other third tier professional soccer division in America, which serves as a reserve league for Major League Soccer. Chattanooga FC will become the fourth independent club to become part of MLS Next Pro.[45][46]
Supporters and attendance
This section's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. (June 2023) |
The predominant supporters' group of Chattanooga FC is known as the Chattahooligans.[47] Over the years, the supporter group has established several traditions, which the club has incorporated into home match proceedings such as a pregame Chattahooligan march-in[48] and the a cappella leading of the National Anthem.[49]
Chattanooga FC boasts the highest average and single-game attendance in the NPSL.
In 2014, Chattanooga FC continued its high attendance, drawing more than 3,000 in the final two home games of the regular season, as well as US Open Cup attendance of 4,058 against the
Rivalries
For the 2014 Season with 3 Tennessee clubs in the NPSL, the
Chattanooga FC has won the Volunteer Shield 4 times in the last 5 years: 2014, with a record of 4-1-0 against Nashville and Knoxville, 2015 with the same 4-1-0 record, 2016 with a 6-0-1 record, including against Memphis City FC, and 2018 with a perfect 4-0-0 record against Knoxville and Inter Nashville FC.
Starting in 2017, Chattanooga FC will compete with Asheville City SC for the "Blue Ridge Derby".[68]
Chattanooga FC | Knoxville Force | Inter Nashville FC | Memphis City FC | Nashville FC |
---|---|---|---|---|
5 (2014–16, 2018–19) | 1 (2017) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
In the spring of 2023, despite being in different leagues, One Knoxville SC travelled to Chattanooga for an exhibition match at Finley Stadium. The match was deemed the "Tennessee River Showdown." As of April 2023, It has yet to be announced if this will be a recurring rivalry, but it would only be natural for these teams to face one another more than once.
Players and staff
Current roster
- As of March 26, 2024[69]
No. | Pos. | Player | Nation |
---|---|---|---|
2 | DF | Robert Screen | United States |
3 | DF | Joseph Patrick Pérez | United States[70] |
5 | DF | Anatolie Prepeliță | Moldova |
6 | MF | Callum Watson | England |
7 | MF | Damian Rodriguez | United States |
8 | MF | Andrés Jiménez Aranzazu | United States |
9 | FW | Mehdi Ouamri | France |
10 | MF | Luis Garcia Sosa | Mexico |
11 | FW | Taylor Gray | United States |
12 | MF | Ethan Koren | United States |
14 | DF | Farid Sar-Sar | Argentina[71] |
15 | GK | Jean Antoine | Haiti |
16 | MF | Gavin Castle ([A]) | United States[72] |
17 | MF | Darwin Ortiz | United States[73] |
18 | MF | Min-jae Kwak | South Korea |
19 | FW | Carlos Rivas | Colombia |
20 | DF | Duvan Viafara | Colombia |
22 | DF | Milo Garvanian | United States |
23 | DF | Jesse Williams | Trinidad and Tobago |
24 | DF | Logan Brown | United States |
25 | MF | Jude Arthur | Ghana |
32 | GK | Jon Burke | United States |
33 | MF | Alex McGrath | England |
51 | GK | Michael Barrueta | United States |
58 | FW | Jesus Ibarra | United States |
71 | MF | Jalen James | United States |
- ^ Chattanooga FC Academy player.
Technical staff
Technical staff | |
---|---|
Head coach | Rod Underwood |
Assistant coach | Christopher Nugent |
Assistant coach | Omar Badran[74] |
Director of Goalkeeping | Juan Carlos Garzon[75] |
Director of soccer operations | Jordan Mattheiss |
Team management
Front office | |
---|---|
CEO | Alton Byrd |
Notable former players
- Juan Hernandez
- Mark Sherrod
- Niall McCabe
- Sean McFarlane
- Thomas Hunter
Year-by-year
Season | Tier | League | Conf./Split | Pos. | Pl. | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts. | PPG | Playoffs | U.S. Open Cup | Top goalscorer | Manager | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | League | ||||||||||||||||
2009 | "4" | NPSL | Southeast | 3rd | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 1.63 | Did not qualify | Ineligible | Omar Cooke | 4 | Brian Crossman |
2010 | Southeast | 1st | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 5 | 20 | 2.5 | National Final | Did not qualify | Chris Ochieng | 6 | |||
2011 | Southeast | 3rd | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 10 | 17 | 1.7 | Did not qualify | First round | Chris Ochieng | 6 | |||
2012 | Southeast, West | 1st | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 23 | 8 | 21 | 2.1 | National Final | Did not qualify | Luke Winter | 9 | Bill Elliott | ||
2013 | Southeast | 1st | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 18 | 4 | 21 | 2.1 | Regional Final | First round | Zeca Ferraz Luke Winter |
4 | |||
2014 | Southeast | 1st | 12 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 31 | 8 | 29 | 2.42 | National Final | Third round | Niall McCabe | 5 | |||
2015 | Southeast | 1st | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 28 | 6 | 25 | 2.5 | National Final | Third round | Luke Winter | 8 | |||
2016 | Southeast | 1st | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 3 | 28 | 2.8 | National semifinals | Third round | Samuel Goñi Will Roberts Luke Winter |
3 | |||
2017 | Southeast, West | 2nd | 12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 28 | 7 | 22 | 1.83 | Conf. Quarterfinals | First round | Felipe Antonio | 6 | |||
2018 | Southeast | 1st | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 30 | 16 | 28 | 2.0 | Conf. Final | Did not qualify | Felipe Oliveira | 7 | |||
2019 | Southeast | 1st | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 29 | 11 | 22 | 2.2 | Regional semifinals | Declined spot[76] | Felipe Oliveira | 5 | |||
2019–20 | 3 | NISA | Fall | Did not participate | Cancelled | Ian McGrath | 1 | Peter Fuller | |||||||||
Spring[a] | 6th | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | ||||||||
2020–21 | Fall, Eastern | 1st | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 2.25 | Semifinals | Cancelled | Zeca Ferraz Ian McGrath |
3 | |||
Spring
|
6th | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 1.0 | Semifinals | |||||||
Fall 2021 | N/A | 5th | 18 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 20 | 21 | 23 | 1.28 | N/A | Brett Jones Markus Naglestad |
4 | ||||
2022 | East Division[b] | 2nd | 24 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 44 | 21 | 49 | 2.04 | Semifinals | Third round | Markus Naglestad | 19 | Rod Underwood | ||
2023 | N/A | 1st | 24 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 12 | 52 | 2.17 | Semifinals | Third round | Markus Naglestad | 15 | |||
2024 | 3 | MLSNP | Western Conference | TBD | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 6 | 9 | 2.25 | TBD | First Round | Jalen James Alex McGrath |
3 | |
Total | 197 | 117 | 45 | 35 | 385 | 160 | 397 | 2.02 | – | – | Markus Naglestad | 38 | – |
Honors
Domestic
National Independent Soccer Association
- NISA Independent Cup
- Southeast Region:
- Champion (2): 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
- Southeast Region:
- NISA Leagues Cup (Regular season champion)
- Champion (1): 2023
- NISA Legends Cup
- Runners-up (1): 2021
National Premier Soccer League
- National
- Runners-up (4): 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015
- South Region:
- Champions (3): 2014, 2015, 2016
- Runners Up (1): 2013
- Champions (3): 2014, 2015, 2016
- Southeast Conference:
- Champions (8): 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019
United States Adult Soccer Association
- U.S. Soccer National Amateur Championship:
- Hank Steinbrecher Cup
- Champions (1): 2015
- Runners Up (1): 2016
- Champions (1): 2015
- Hank Steinbrecher Cup
Head coaches
- Brian Crossman (2009–2011[79])
- Bill Elliott (2012–2019[80])
- Peter Fuller (2019–2021 [44])
- Rod Underwood (2022–[81])
Stadium
- Finley Stadium; Chattanooga, Tennessee(2009–present)
See also
- NPSL Founders Cup
References
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