Category Tampa Bay Rowdies
Sorry Atlanta, Florida remains the soccer hub of the south
Atlanta United, the reigning champions of America’s men’s major league league have never lost to Orlando City SC in nine matches in multiple competitions. The most recent setback for the boys in purple took place Friday night, a 1-0 loss at Orlando City Stadium. This followed a similar setback in the US Open Cup Semifinal […]
Tampa Bay to host USL showcase
The 2019 USL Experience will be hosted by the Tampa Bay Rowdies and held in the league’s home market. “We’re looking forward to bringing the USL Experience to the Tampa Bay region in 2019,” Rowdies Chief Operating Officer Lee Cohen said. “The level of youth soccer around Tampa Bay and throughout the country continues to rise […]
Tampa Bay area soccer fans owe Bill Edwards a big thank you
I’ll admit Bill Edwards hasn’t been my favorite owner of a soccer club in Florida. The somewhat gruff and yet flamboyant businessman who transformed St Petersburg’s downtown wasn’t a soccer fan when he bought the Rowdies in 2014, and did a great deal to irritate core soccer people during his tenure as owner. Edwards legacy […]
Orlando vs Tampa Bay – The ultimate rivalry
The rivalry between Orlando City SC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies is the ultimate Florida contest with statewide supremacy and so much more on the line. Here is my 1,500 word soliloquy for Prost Amerika, a Seattle-based national soccer site that is known especially for its wall-to-wall coverage of the intense rivalries in the Cascadia […]
Tampa Bay Rowdies make historic ESPN TV network debut Thursday night
This incarnation of the Tampa Bay Rowdies will make their debut on an ESPN TV network (not to be confused with ESPN 3 live streaming of NASL and USL games) on Thursday night with an ESPNU national telecast of a home game versus FC Cincinnati. The Rowdies are currently on a seven game winless streak […]
Fort Lauderdale Strikers begin new chapter with Bill Edwards acquisition
It’s all over other than the shouting and crying (for now). This morning in Pinellas Circuit Court, Tampa Bay Rowdies owner Bill Edwards gained control of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers name. What does this mean for the future of a club that is currently on hiatus? It is important to note Edwards summary judgement victory […]
Passage of St Petersburg referendum puts city one step closer to MLS
The Tampa Bay Rowdies and the Edwards Group released the following statement following the referendum results tonight in St Petersburg. Analysis below the statement: The Tampa Bay Rowdies took another important step towards bringing a Major League Soccer franchise to Tampa Bay on Tuesday, as St. Petersburg voters approved the Al Lang Stadium referendum by an overwhelming majority […]
“YES” vote on Tuesday referendum helps but still doesn’t ensure MLS in St Pete
The Tampa Bay Rowdies want to move from the second division USL to first division MLS. Tuesday’s city of St Petersburg referendum which will allow the city the flexibility to give the Rowdies a long-term lease for prime waterfront property is certainly low-risk for local voters as the Tampa Bay Times outlines (at least at this point […]
Rowdies MLS hopes get major boost with Tampa Bay United parntership
The one major critique against the Tampa Bay Rowdies MLS hopes were up until today that the Rowdies didn’t have a vertical youth system with a USSF Development Academy tie like so many other MLS aspirants and every current MLS club. The Rowdies in the wild-wild west of NASL where youth development and local infrastructure […]
Audio: Historic cross-continent soccer tour begins next week in St Petersburg before heading to Orlando and points beyond
Steve Bernasconi, the longtime communications guru with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers (who also worked with me at the NASL in 2012 and 2013) is embarking on a historic cross-continent eight month journey to explore the sport and the culture around it. The tour is about soccer but so much more – the sport has attracted […]
The Florida Squeeze 