The Miami FC is an American professional

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 ...

team based in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

that competes in the

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

, the second 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 ...

. The club began play in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

(NASL) in the 2016 season. Following the demise of the NASL, the club participated 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) and the

National Independent Soccer Association The National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States. The league is in the third tier of American soccer and began play in 2019. NISA initially used a fall-to-spring season format with a ...

(NISA) before moving to the

for the 2020 season. The team currently plays its home games at

Riccardo Silva Stadium Riccardo Silva Stadium is a college football and soccer stadium on the campus of Florida International University (FIU) in Westchester, Florida. It is home stadium of the FIU Panthers football team and the Miami FC soccer team from the USL Cha ...

on the campus of

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...

History

North American Soccer League

The club was announced on May 20, 2015, as the 12th North American Soccer League franchise with plans to begin play in the 2016 season and later confirmed it would play out of "Ocean First Stadiums" (Now Riccardo Silva Stadium) on the campus of FIU. The team, co-owned by media entrepreneur

Riccardo Silva Riccardo Silva is an Italian businessman and investor. He is owner of Silva International Investments, which has investments in a range of companies across media, sports, entertainment, art, and real estate. He is also the president and co-own ...

and former

Italian national team The Italy national football team ( it, Nazionale di calcio dell'Italia) has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing bo ...

defender

Paolo Maldini Paolo Cesare Maldini (; born 26 June 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer who played primarily as a left back and centre back for AC Milan and the Italy national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of a ...

, came only one year after former

English national football team The England national football team has represented England in international football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in England, which is affilia ...

star and

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

legend David Beckham announced his intent to launch an MLS team in city. In September 2015,

Alessandro Nesta Alessandro Nesta (; born 19 March 1976) is an Italian professional football manager and former player. Usually deployed as a centre-back, he is widely considered one of the best defenders of all time. He was best known for his pace, artistic tac ...

was appointed as the club's first coach. On November 20, 2015, Italian sportswear company Macron were announced as the club's kit suppliers on a three-year deal. Nesta resigned as coach following the completion of the 2017 season, on 17 November.

National Premier Soccer League and 'Miami FC 2'

In January 2018, following the suspension and later cancellation of the 2018 NASL season, the organization announced the creation of "The Miami FC 2" in the National Premier Soccer League with 12 members of its 2017 NASL roster. The intention was for Miami FC's players to play with Miami FC 2 while waiting for the NASL's proposed winter schedule to take effect. The team hired

Paul Dalglish Paul Kenneth Dalglish (born 18 February 1977) is a Scottish former professional footballer. Playing career Dalglish, son of former Scotland international Kenny Dalglish, was born in Glasgow though spent his childhood in the city where his fa ...

as the new head coach on January 25. The team played its home matches at its former training grounds on the campus of St. Thomas University in

Miami Gardens Miami Gardens is a city in north-central Miami-Dade County, Florida. It is located north of Downtown Miami with city boundaries that stretch from I-95 and Northeast 2nd Avenue to its east to Northwest 47th and Northwest 57th Avenues to its west ...

. The team went on to dominate the

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...

in the NPSL's Sunshine Conference. Only one loss to

Jacksonville Armada FC Jacksonville Armada FC is an American professional soccer team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They most recently played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid, during the 2018 season while ...

in the regular season led the team to finish top of the table and in the conference playoffs the beat the Armada, 3–1, to win its first NPSL trophy. After advancing in the national playoffs, including winning the NPSL South Region, Miami FC 2 won the organization's first ever league championship when it defeated

FC Motown FC Motown is an American soccer club based in Morristown, New Jersey. Founded in 2012, the team currently plays in both the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) and USL League Two. In 2020, the team joined the newly formed Northeast Elite Soccer ...

, 3–1, for the NPSL National Championship on August 4. For the

2019 NPSL season The 2019 National Premier Soccer League season is part of the 107th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States and the 17th season of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL). Miami FC, formerly "Miami FC 2," are the defending champio ...

, the team returned to playing as Miami FC and repeated its previous year's success by finishing atop the regular season table and winning the Sunshine Conference over

Miami United FC Miami United Football Club is an association football team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Founded in late 2012, the team made its debut in the Sunshine Conference of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) in 2013. The team plays its ...

, 3–2. It won the South Region for a second straight year before becoming the first club to win a second NPSL National Championship when it defeated the

New York Cosmos B New York Cosmos B were an American soccer team based in the New York metropolitan area that played in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth tier of the United States soccer league system, as the reserve team of New York Cosmos. History T ...

, 3–1, and earning the organization's eighth trophy in three years.

National Independent Soccer Association

On November 15, 2018, the NPSL announced that Miami would be a founding member in a new professional league, commencing with the "

NPSL Founders Cup The 2019 National Premier Soccer League season is part of the 107th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States and the 17th season of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL). Miami FC, formerly "Miami FC 2," are the defending champi ...

" competition from August to November 2019, followed by a full league schedule in 2020 at either division 2 or 3 level. However, on July 24, 2019, it was announced that Miami would instead join the

(NISA) for the inaugural Fall 2019 season. The team went undefeated through seven games during the regular season, clinching the top playoff spot in the East Coast Conference. On November 9, Miami won the NISA East Coast Championship over Stumptown Athletic, its ninth trophy in three years.

USL Championship

On December 11, 2019, former

club

Ottawa Fury FC Ottawa Fury Football Club was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Ottawa, Ontario. The club competed in the North American Soccer League and USL Championship and played its home games at TD Place Stadium. The Ottawa Fury FC were diss ...

announced that it had sold its franchise rights to the Miami FC ownership group, and the club would begin competition in the league beginning with the 2020 season. Following the conclusion of the 2021 season, head coach and technical director

left the team. On November 29, former

Inter Miami CF Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami, known as Inter Miami CF or simply Inter Miami, is an American professional soccer club based in the Miami metropolitan area. Established in 2018, the club began play in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the 2020 ...

assistant coach

Anthony Pulis Anthony James Pulis (born 21 July 1984) is a Welsh association football, football coach and former player who is currently the head coach of Miami FC in the USL Championship. A Journeyman (sports)#British English, journeyman for much of his ca ...

was named Miami FC's new head coach.

Sponsorship

Record

Year-by-year

Average attendance

Stadium

Players and staff

Current roster

Staff

Individual records

Top goalscorers

''(Appearances listed in parenthesis next to total)''

Most appearances

''(Goals scored listed in parenthesis next to total)''

Managerial records

Club culture

Miami FC draw the bulk of their support from the suburbs in the south and west of Miami. The club's mascot is ''Golazo'', a seven-foot-tall

Kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

bird with blue and orange feathers.

Rivalries

The closest team geographically was the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

with games between the two sides often labelled the FL Clásico. Fixtures with the other two teams in Florida, the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...

and

Jacksonville Armada Jacksonville Armada FC is an American professional soccer team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They most recently played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid, during the 2018 season while ...

are also keenly contested. These four teams competed for the

Coastal Cup The Coastal Cup is a trophy and soccer competition among the USL Championship (USL) teams based in Florida. Established in 2010, the trophy was originally awarded to the best team in regular season play among Florida-based franchises. Head-to ...

over the course of the 2016 season. After the 2016 season Tampa Bay left the NASL for the

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

and Fort Lauderdale ceased operations because of financial issues. That left Jacksonville as Miami FC's only in-state rival in the NASL. Miami did however face Tampa Bay in the third round of the

2017 U.S. Open Cup The 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 104th edition of the oldest ongoing competition in American soccer. FC Dallas entered the competition as the defending champions, but were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Sporting Kansas City. First ...

, defeating the Rowdies by a score of 2–0. When the NASL cancelled the 2018 season, Miami and Jacksonville continued their rivalry in the NPSL in both 2018 and 2019 as both clubs continued operation. The team also began a rivalry against

dubbed "Magic City Clasico." The teams met in the Second Round of the

2018 U.S. Open Cup The 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 105th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, a knockout cup competition in American soccer. It is the oldest ongoing competition in the United States and was contested by 97 teams from leagues in the U.S. syste ...

where United shocked FC, 3–1, to advance.

Supporters group

Dade Brigade are the official supporters group of Miami FC and they occupy the east stand of FIU Stadium which is known as the Brigade End for home games. They are named for

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

Honors

North American Soccer League

* Spring championship (1):

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

* Fall championship (1):

National Premier Soccer League

*Sunshine Conference Championship (2):

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

*South Region Championship (2):

*National Championship (2):

National Independent Soccer Association

*East Coast Championship (1):

Notes

References

External links

*
2018 Miami FC 2 (NPSL) Match Reports2019 Miami FC (NPSL) Match Reports
{{Florida Sports 2015 establishments in Florida Association football clubs established in 2015 North American Soccer League teams National Premier Soccer League teams National Independent Soccer Association teams USL Championship teams Soccer clubs in Florida Soccer clubs in Miami Soccer clubs in South Florida