Akron City FC is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

club based in Akron,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, United States. Founded in 2021, the men's team plays in the

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The NPSL is a semi-professional league, comprising some teams that have paid players and some that are entirely amateur. The league is officially ...

(NPSL), a national semi-pro league at the fourth tier of the

American Soccer Pyramid The United States soccer league system is a series of professional and amateur soccer leagues based, in whole or in part, in the United States. Sometimes called the American soccer pyramid, teams and leagues are not linked by the system of prom ...

, in the Rust Belt Conference of the Midwest Region. The team plays its home games at Green Street Stadium on the campus of St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in Akron. The team's colors are sky blue, red and white.

History

Founding and inaugural season

Akron City FC joined the NPSL as an expansion franchise in 2021 and took part in its first competitive season in 2022. On September 16, 2021,

Kia Zolgharnain Kia Zolgharnain (born November 10, 1965) is an Iranian-American soccer coach and former player who is the current head coach and technical director of Akron City FC. As a player, Zolgharnain was a forward who led the American Indoor Soccer Ass ...

was named as the technical director and was responsible for player acquisition for the new team. Akron City played their first NPSL game on May 14, 2022. In front of 1,051 fans, the team secured a 2–1 victory over Pittsburgh Hotspurs. The team would not win again until its final game on July 15, 2022 against the Erie Commodores. Kia stepped down as head coach after three games due to medical reasons and assistant coach Jay Stepp assumed head coaching duties for the reaming of the season. Cedric Tschami was elevated to top assistant. Despite the team's final record, four of their losses were by one goal and they played to four draws. One of those draws was against eventual Rust Belt champion and Midwest Region finalist

Cleveland SC Cleveland SC is an American semi-professional soccer club based in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio region. Cleveland competes in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) as part of the Midwest Region's Rust Belt Conference. The club was established ...

, avenging their two worst losses of the season. In that game, Akron City FC scored early and held a 1-0 lead for over 70 minutes before conceding the equalizer in the 86th minute. Despite the results on the field, the 2022 season was a great building block for the future. The team drew over 1,000 fans twice and averaged 625 fans for the season, well above league averages. The team secured 19 sponsorships, proving the business community was on board with the cities newest sports asset.

Kit manufacturers

*2022–: UN1TUS *2023–: UN1TUS

Shirt sponsors

*2022–: Hoppin' Frog Brewery, Springside Athletic Club, Cleveland Clinic Akron General, Circle K *2023–: Sgt. Clean Car Wash, TL Worldwide Transportation, Circle K, Cleveland Clinic Akron General, Hoppin' Frog Brewery

Players and staff

Current roster

''2022 Inaugural Season Roster'

Current Standings

NPSL Rust Belt Conference

Year-by-year

Managerial history

Stadium

* Green Street Stadium, St. Vincent–St. Mary High School; Akron,

(2022–present)

References

External links

Official website

Twitter

Instagram
{{Ohio Sports Association football clubs established in 2021 Sports in Akron, Ohio 2021 establishments in Ohio Soccer clubs in Ohio