Professional soccer has returned to the city of Hartford, Connecticut. Just now in the form that many spectators were expecting. Hartford City FC announced they will be joining the Major Arena Soccer League. They will be, from there, working towards joining the North American Soccer League. (The league fans of the team and the NASL had been expecting them to join.)
The team will begin play in the MASL in November this year. They will play 10 home games at the XL Center. The league has 23 teams and plays a 20 game season.
Team president Mitch Anderson said, “”Our goal is to put a good team on the field and have that team reach out to the community and establish a certain amount of professionalism. The indoor game is a very exciting game — it is a very energetic game. If the excitement and more goal-scoring can get the whole Connecticut and Hartford region into soccer, let’s do it.”
According to team ownership the arena team is just the beginning. Anderson said that they are hoping to be playing in a new, outdoor, soccer specific facility at the old Dillon Stadium by 2017. The ownership group is hoping that the demolition of the Dillon Stadium will begin the next few weeks and that by October or November of next year the new soccer specific facility will be nearly complete.
Anderson says that he believes that they are putting themselves in a good position to get accepted into the league. “Bill Peterson has made it known publicly that he feels Hartford is a great venue because of what goes on at Rentschler with the U.S. team coming in.” Anderson said.
One thing’s for sure, joining the Major Arena Soccer League is a great first step on the path towards joining the NASL. Building an outdoor soccer specific stadium is much more than just a good second step. If everything goes according to plan I think we can expect Hartford City FC to be joining the ranks of the NASL very soon.
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