Lansing Ignite FC was a professional soccer team based in
Lansing, Michigan, United States. The club began play in the newly-formed
USL League One
USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019. The Division III league is operated by United Soccer League, the same group that operates the Division II USL Championshi ...
in 2019 and ceased operations following their inaugural season.
History
The formation of
USL League One
USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019. The Division III league is operated by United Soccer League, the same group that operates the Division II USL Championshi ...
(originally announced as USL Division III) was first announced in April 2017, and league officials began touring the country looking for candidate cities for new soccer clubs. The city of Lansing was already home to
Lansing United, an amateur soccer team in the
National Premier Soccer League
The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's 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 affiliated to the Uni ...
. In 2018, United moved from NPSL to the
Premier Development League, another amateur league often considered the fourth tier of American soccer. The move was seen as a step towards establishing a professional team, as the PDL is managed by
United Soccer Leagues
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
, the same organization that manages League One as well as the second-tier
United Soccer League
United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...
.
In September 2018, the ''
Lansing State Journal
The ''Lansing State Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Lansing, Michigan, owned by Gannett.
Overview
The ''Lansing State Journal'' is the sole daily newspaper published in Greater Lansing. The newspaper had an average Monday through ...
'' reported that the owners of the
Lansing Lugnuts
The Lansing Lugnuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Lansing, Michigan, and play their home games at Jackson Field.
The Midwest League came to Lans ...
, a local
minor league baseball team, had presented plans to Lansing City Council for a professional soccer team to play at
Cooley Law School Stadium
Jackson Field is a baseball stadium in Lansing, Michigan, home field of the Lansing Lugnuts minor league baseball team. The Michigan State Spartans college baseball team also plays select home games at Jackson Field. The stadium is situated in ...
, also home to the Lugnuts. On October 8, the city council unanimously approved the plans, which are expected to cost the city $1 million over the course of a five-year contract. This also signaled the end of the Lansing United men's team, as United owner Jeremy Sampson became the new club's general manager; however,
Lansing United Women would continue to operate as planned.
On October 25, 2018, USL League One officially announced Lansing Ignite FC as its ninth founding member team, to begin play in 2019. On November 14, 2018, Lansing Ignite FC announced
Nate Miller as the inaugural head coach. On March 19, 2019, Lansing Ignite FC announced an affiliation agreement with
Chicago Fire of
Major League Soccer.
Lansing played their first USL League One match on 30 March 2019, beating
Richmond Kickers 3–2 at
City Stadium, Richmond. Lansing finished their first season with a 12–6–10 record, good for second place in USL League One. They fell in the playoff semifinal to
Greenville Triumph SC
Greenville Triumph SC is a professional soccer team based in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. The club began play in USL League One in 2019.
History
The formation of USL D3 was first announced in April 2017, and league officials began ...
, 1–0. On October 14, 2019, midfielder
Marshall Hollingsworth posted on
Instagram that the Ignite would be folding and that all players had been released from their contracts. Team President Nick Grueser said that the team would not give an update on the team's future until after the conclusion of the League One final.
On October 21, 2019, it was officially announced by USL League One that, despite a successful first season performance-wise, the Ignite would not be returning for the 2020 season.
Sponsorship
2019
First team roster
Coaching staff
Non-competitive
Preseason friendlies
Midseason friendlies
Competitive
USL League One
Standings
Results summary
Results by round
Results
USL League One Playoffs
U.S. Open Cup
Final roster
Final team roster
''As of January 10, 2019.''
Year-by-year
1. Top Scorer includes statistics from league matches only.
Head coaches
* Includes USL Regular Season, USL Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup. Excludes friendlies.
Average attendance
References
External links
*
{{2019 in American soccer
Association football clubs established in 2018
2018 establishments in Michigan
Sports in Lansing, Michigan
Soccer clubs in Michigan
USL League One teams
Association football clubs disestablished in 2019
2019 disestablishments in Michigan