Professional soccer is coming to Huntsville—Details inside
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Huntsville soccer enthusiasts, today is your lucky day. Mayor Tommy Battle announced this morning that Huntsville will soon have its own minor league soccer team. Read on for all the details we have.
A partnership with Nashville
Battle announced that Huntsville’s team will be the result of a partnership between the city and Nashville Soccer Club.
“When we started building our MLS team in Nashville, we talked a lot about the key ingredients that made Nashville a perfect soccer city: great energy, strong business community and a real civic pride. It’s quite obvious in spending time in Huntsville that the same raw ingredients exist here. We could not be more excited about bringing an MLS NEXT Pro team to Huntsville and the amazing stadium project.”
Ian Ayre, CEO, Nashville SC
The team is expected to begin competing during the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro season.
A new purpose for The Joe
We’ve been keeping you updated on all the renovation progress at Joe Davis Stadium, which many Huntsvillians know as the home of the Huntsville Stars.
“Soccer has consistently been one of the most popular and fastest-growing sports in our region. When the City decided to renovate Joe Davis Stadium and convert its playing field to a multi-use field, we hoped pro soccer would find a way here. Today, we are proud to deliver this exciting sports amenity to our community.”
Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle
Here’s a recap of what you can expect at the new-and-improved Joe:
- Seating capacity for 6,600 fans
- Synthetic turf field
- LED sports lighting + full-color animation
- New restrooms + concessions
- Box seating
- Renovated locker rooms
- + more
BONUS: Soon, you’ll be able to live, work and play near the Joe.
The next steps
The next step happens this Thursday, July 14, at the bimonthly City Council Meeting. There, the city will present an agreement for NSH NEXTCO LLC to lease Joe Davis Stadium, which they will operate.
Then, the Nashville SC will establish Huntsville’s professional soccer team. You’ll hear more about the team’s schedule and identity as the project progresses. Huntsville’s team will compete in the MLS NEXT Pro league, which currently has 21 clubs in cities like Chicago, Houston, Kansas City, Orlando, Portland and Vancouver.
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