LA Laguna FC was an American soccer team based in the

Los Angeles area Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Cou ...

, United States. Founded in 2010, the team played in the Premier Development League (PDL) (now

USL League Two USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syst ...

), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The team will play some of its home matches at

Santa Ana Stadium Santa Ana Stadium, also known as Eddie West Field or the Santa Ana Bowl, is a city-owned and operated 9,000-capacity American football and soccer stadium located in downtown Santa Ana. The field was named after Eddie West, a writer for the Ora ...

and others at Citrus College and Pomona College starting in May, 2016.

History

After acquiring the PDL franchise rights to the Springfield Storm franchise that used to play in the PDL out of

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimat ...

, the team began life as Los Angeles Storm under head coach Chris Volk, and made their debut in PDL competition in 2010, one of several teams joining the Southwest division as it expanded to nine teams. Playing at Citrus Stadium on the campus of Citrus College in

Glendora, California Glendora is a city in the San Gabriel Valley in Los Angeles County, California, east of Los Angeles. As of the 2020 census, the population of Glendora was 52,558. Known as the "Pride of the Foothills", Glendora is nestled in the foothills ...

, Storm made an inauspicious start, tying 1–1 with the

San Fernando Valley Quakes San Fernando Valley Quakes was an American soccer team based in Calabasas, California, United States. Founded in 2006, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2008, whe ...

, but quickly recovered to register impressive back-to-back victories over

Fresno Fuego Fresno Football Club U-23, formerly Fresno Fuego FC, was an American soccer team based in Fresno, California, United States. Founded in 2003, the team played in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The club drew an av ...

and

Bakersfield Brigade Bakersfield Brigade was an American soccer team based in Bakersfield, California, United States. Founded in 2005, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2009, after whi ...

. However, Storm's mid-season form proved to be their downfall, as the team slumped to five defeats in six games (including a humiliating 0–4 to the eventual divisional champions

Southern California Seahorses Southern California Seahorses are an American soccer team based in La Mirada, California. Founded in 2001, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games in the stadium on the cam ...

), ending their first season playoff hopes. A morale-boosting 5–0 win over

in their penultimate game was a positive, but eventually they finished sixth in the table.

David Niemeyer David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

was the Storm's top scorer in their freshman year, scoring 7 goals in his 15 games, while MLS-bound Mexican midfielder

Erasmo Solorzano Erasmo is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Claudio Erasmo Vargas (born 1974), Mexican race walker *Erasmo Carlos (born 1941), Brazilian singer and songwriter * Erasmo Catarino (born 1977), Mexican singer, winner on the TV show ...

was the assist king with 3. Goalkeeper

Lance Friesz Lance Friesz (born September 16, 1983, in Mission Viejo, California) is a former soccer player. Early life and soccer career Friesz grew up in Laguna Niguel, California with his parents and younger sister, attended Dana Hills High School, and ...

was also a standout – so much so, that he was drafted by

Los Angeles Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pla ...

in the offseason. The Storm's second year began in terrible fashion, suffering a 5–0 defeat to the

on the opening day of the season. They did not register their first victory – 2–1 over new boys

San Jose Frogs San Jose Frogs was an American soccer team based in San Jose, California, United States. Founded in 2005, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2008, when the franchise ...

– until their third game, and from then on the Storm's season was one of see-sawing inconsistency. Back-to-back 3–1 wins over

Orange County Blue Star Orange County Blue Star was an American soccer team based in Irvine, California. Founded in 1997, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Southwest Division of the Wester ...

and

Lancaster Rattlers FC Santa Clarita (FCSC) is an American soccer team based in Santa Clarita, California, United States. FC Santa Clarita also known as the Santa Clarita Storm make just north of Los Angeles home, as they compete in the United Premier Soccer League ...

was followed by a 1–5 disaster at home to

, which was followed by a 5–1 thrashing of

... and so it went. By the end of the season, Storm were struggling to pick up wins wherever they went, but at least they started seeing some consistency; however, the four ties in their last six games ultimately consigned them to 5th place in the table, outside the playoffs for a second year.

Ross Schunk Ross Schunk (born April 28, 1986 in Portland, Oregon) is an American soccer player who last played for Colorado Rapids in Major League Soccer. Career College and Amateur Schunk attended Woodrow Wilson High School, where he acquired his skill ...

was by far their outstanding goalscorer, tallying goals 10 in a season which included a hat trick at home to

Alex Bengard Alex Bengard (born March 13, 1979) is a retired American soccer player. Career College Bengard played one year of college soccer at Mt. San Antonio College before transferring to California State University, Dominguez Hills. During his senio ...

registered 5 assists. 2008 saw a name change, with Storm becoming Los Angeles Legends following a merger between two local youth soccer organizations, and a coaching change, with

Azusa Pacific Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private, evangelical Christian university in Azusa, California. The university was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900, in Whittier, California, and began offering degrees in 1939. The uni ...

soccer coach Phil Wolf taking over the reins from Chris Volk. The Legends started the season in magnificent form, downing

1–0 in their opening game, and then registering two back-to-back 5–0 home victories over

and

, the first of which featured a hat-trick from striker Davis Paul. Legends' blistering early-season success saw them qualify for their first ever

US Open Cup The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country. The 2023 U.S. Op ...

, where they faced USL2 side (and eventual quarter-finalists)

Crystal Palace Baltimore Crystal Palace Baltimore was an American professional soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, US. Founded in 2006, the club was originally named Crystal Palace USA and was affiliated with English side Crystal Palace. The club was a member of t ...

at home in

Azusa Azusa may refer to: Relating to California From a Native American language, likely Tongva language, Tongva ''Asuksagna:'' *Azusa, California, a city in the United States *Azusa Pacific University, a Christian-based institution in Azusa, California ...

. Sadly for the Legends their foray into the Cup was a short one, as they were beaten 2–1 off a late winner by Baltimore's Pat Healey. Legends continued the year as high scoring entertainers: they put six past

in mid-June, then conceded six away at

in the very next game. However, as the season wound down, the team's early season form deserted them, as four defeats in their last five games left them out of playoff contention. Legends ended the year a comfortable mid-table 6th; Davis Paul was top scorer, knocking in an impressive 10 goals, and contributing five assists for his strike partner,

. Legends relocated from the San Gabriel Valley to

East Los Angeles East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...

in 2009, hired a new head coach in the shape of ex-

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. G ...

striker Brent Whitfield, and signed ex-

defender

Mike Randolph Michael Horace Randolph (born December 3, 1985) is an American soccer player. Career College and Amateur Randolph attended Canyon Hills Junior High, where he played basketball, and Ruben S. Ayala High School. He is said to be one of the best ...

to lead a new-look team; the change in fortunes on the field as a result was remarkable. Despite losing their opening two games of the season 3–2 to

and 3–0 to

, the team bounced back magnificently, and embarked on a 12-game unbeaten run through the middle of the season which kept them in the hunt for the divisional title throughout the year. Legends were the division's high-scoring entertainers; they put six past Lancaster in the return game, hammered Fresno 7–1 on the road, beat

Ogden Outlaws Ogden Outlaws is an American soccer team based in Ogden, Utah, United States. Founded in 2006, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Southwest Division of the Western ...

5–0, and overcame

4–3 in a seesaw game in early July. Each of these four games was highlighted by hat tricks from player/coach Brent Whitfield, who would eventually go on to score 14 goals in his 9 appearances for the Legends, good for third nationally. Legends briefly topped the division as the regular season wound down, but a 2–0 loss to Fresno in their penultimate game handed the division to the

Hollywood United Hitmen Hollywood United Hitmen was an American soccer team based in Los Angeles. The team was founded in 2009 and played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) and the USL Premier Development League (PDL). The team played its home games in Cougar ...

, with whom they had previously been involved in an astonishing 0–0 tie which featured seven red cards. The Legends secured second place in the division, and a first trip to the postseason, with a 1–0 win over

Ventura County Fusion Ventura County Fusion is an American soccer team based in Ventura, California, United States. Founded in 2006, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games in the stadium on the ...

, but Fusion got their revenge in the divisional playoff semifinal with a 2–1 victory which ended Los Angeles' title hopes at the first hurdle. During the 2009–2010 offseason the Legends were bought out by the owners of the long-standing Los Angeles-based amateur side LA Blues, and re-branded themselves as the Los Angeles Azul Legends. The team's new logo was unveiled on their new website in April 2010. During the 2010–2011 offseason the team re-branded themselves again, this time as the Los Angeles Misioneros. The team's new logo was unveiled on their new website in January 2011.

Players

Current roster

''As at April 29, 2012''.

Notable former players

''This list of notable former players comprises players who went on to play professional soccer after playing for the team in the Premier Development League, or those who previously played professionally before joining the team.'' *

Joe Barton Joseph Linus Barton (born September 15, 1949) is an American politician who represented in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 2019. The district included Arlington, part of Fort Worth, and several small towns and rural areas south ...

Tony Beltran Anthony Benjamin Beltran (born October 11, 1987) is an American former soccer player who spent nearly all of his entire professional career at Real Salt Lake. Career Youth career Beltran was a two-time Parade All American at Claremont High Sc ...

* Javier Castro *

Kraig Chiles Kraig Chiles (born May 14, 1984) is an American soccer player currently playing for the San Diego Sockers in the Major Arena Soccer League. Career Youth and college Chiles played high school soccer for Poway High School in Poway, California, ...

* Gabriel Farfan * Michael Farfan *

* Erlys García * Maxwell Griffin *

Lester Moré Lester Oriel Moré Henningham (born 15 July 1978) is a Cuban former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is the Cuba national team's all-time record goalscorer, with 30. Club career Moré played for over a decade for his hometo ...

* Kyle Nakazawa * Davis Paul * Adrien Perez *

* Brent Whitfield * Gerson Mayen * Edwin Miranda * Vincent Weijl * Mohammed Takiyudin

Year-by-year

Head coaches

* Chris Volk (2006–2007) * Phil Wolf (2008) * Brent Whitfield (2009) * Salvador Moran (2010) * Lloyd Kinnear (2010) * Marlon Iván León (2011–2012) * Ever Morataya (2012–2013) * Cruz Hernandez (2014) * Fabian Sandoval (2015–present)

General Managers

* Freddy Avellaneda(Club Administrator) (2011–present) * Jose Antonio Jimenez (2012–present) * Daniel Collazo (2014–present)

Stadia

* Citrus Stadium;

(2006–2007) * Cougar Stadium; Azusa, California (2008) * Keegan Stadium at Bishop Mora Salesian High School;

East Los Angeles, California East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...

(2009–2010) * Ayala Stadium;

Chino, California Chino ( ; Spanish for "Curly") is a city in the western end of San Bernardino County, California, United States, with Los Angeles County to its west and Orange County to its south in the Southern California region. Chino is adjacent to Chi ...

1 game (2009) * Stadium at

Crenshaw High School Crenshaw High School is a four-year public secondary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District, located on 11th Avenue in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The school first opened in 1968 and currently enrolls arou ...

;

Crenshaw, California Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw is a neighborhood in the south region of the city of Los Angeles. It is divided between the upscale, principally home-owning Baldwin Hills residential district to the south and a more concentrated apartment area to the no ...

4 games (2010–2011) * Stadium at

Morningside High School Morningside High School is a public high school in Inglewood, California. It is the second largest high school after Inglewood High School in the city. History In 1951, the first two classes of students came to the Morningside Park area of Ingl ...

; Inglewood, California (2011) * Stadium at George Washington Carver Middle School;

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

(2012; 2015–present) * Stadium at

California State University, San Bernardino California State University, San Bernardino (Cal State San Bernardino or CSUSB) is a public research university in San Bernardino, California. Founded in 1965, it is one of the 23 general campuses of the California State University system. The m ...

;

San Bernardino, California San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 ce ...

(2013–2014) * Stadium at Linda Esperanza Marquez High School- Citrus College- Glendale Sports Complex; Huntington Park-Glendora-Glendale, California (2014) *

(2016) *Stadium at Citrus College (2016) *Stadium at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...

(2016)

Average attendance

Attendance stats are calculated by averaging each team's self-reported home attendances from the historical match archive at https://web.archive.org/web/20100105175057/http://www.uslsoccer.com/history/index_E.html. * 2006: 338 * 2007: 512 * 2008: ''not yet available'' * 2009: 155 * 2010: 716 * 2011: ''not yet available'' * 2012: ''not yet available'' * 2013: ''not yet available'' * 2014: 3930

References

External links

Official Site
{{Greater Los Angeles Area Sports Association football clubs established in 2010 USL League Two teams Soccer clubs in Greater Los Angeles Sports in Santa Ana, California 2010 establishments in California ko:로스앤젤레스 아줄 레전즈 it:Los Angeles Legends nl:Los Angeles Legends