From amateur to professional soccer in Orlando, FL

REVOLVER FC "Central Florida's Adult Soccer Club and League"

There is a new wind coming through Central Florida and it is bringing us a Professional Soccer Team, but is not just another sports franchise.  Orlando City Soccer Club has made a good impression by their eagerness to not only provide sport entertainment but also becoming an active member of the Central Florida Community.

REVOLVER F.C. “Central Florida’s Adult Soccer Club” & Orlando City Soccer Club have formed an affiliation of mutual support for the upcoming season.  I want to invite present and past club members to also take part of this partnership by supporting the growth of soccer in Central Florida, from the amateur to the professional level.

So far Orlando City has played some impressive pre-season matches which show that they are ready to represent our city of Orlando and make an impact in the league. Their first home game will be played at the Citrus Bowl on April 9^th 7:30pm Vs. FCNY.

REVOLVER F.C. and Orlando City Soccer have planned a special event for club members, friends, family and you.  I want to invite everyone to join us for the Orlando City home opening game to walk on to the field at half time to be recognized, and see and feel what the pros do. But this is not all, you will also have the privilege to attend our Special Training Sessions on Wednesday April 20^th 8:30pm at Red Bug Park, where you can mingle and get advice from the Pros. And before I forget, you also get a FrEsH REVOLVER FC one of a kind T-shirt as a souvenir.  This event has limited space, click here to register today.

It was done in Argentina more than 100 years ago. Can we do it again?

I often think about how the soccer clubs we follow, love and adore became to be what they are. Many clubs around the world have millions of followers. They develop and buy the best players in the world. And we are willing to play for the entertainment and products they provide, and in the best cases they are the richest organizations in the world.
My curiosity drove me to look into some history to find inspiration and clues on how it was done in the past there for I can use in the present to achieve our goals in the future. Soccer - Football, is such a young sport in the united states. We do have the MLS and the USL which do have a presence in the world of soccer. But can not be compared to other world known leagues such as in countries in European and South America for many reasons. The growth of Soccer in the united states is very challenging due to the competition for market share among other sports like American Football, baseball, etc.
Even though soccer has grown tremendously since that world cup in 1994, we don’t see packed stadiums with routing fans or coverage of the sport on major television net works.
I looked in the history of one soccer club. BOCA JUNIORS, why? because they brand them selves as the peoples club and they are one of the most followed clubs in the world. Their history states that they were formed by 4 young amateur players, which were sons of Italian immigrants more than 100 years ago. One day they decided that they wanted something more than what they had at the time. Their first meeting was on a park somewhere in the city of Buenos Aires. They took their colors from a Sweetish ship that was passing by the ports in Buenos Aires. They became the passion of a working class nationhood, and the icon of a city and a country.
The dream of 4 young man that were willing to take their game and dreams to the next level became one of the most important clubs in the History of world soccer. I believe that their success was due to their humble beginnings and their ability to represent and area that had plenty of potential. They won the hearts of fans one by one, they welcomed new club members and partners in order to help them achieve greatness and give back to the community. As they say: history tends to repeat it self. REVOLVER F.C. is presented with the same challenges that 4 dreamers had more than 100 years ago. We want to take it to the next level, We are open to new members and partners, and we are confident that Central Florida will have it’s Bombonera in the future.

Can we take soccer in Central Florida to the next level?

Growing up in Central Florida was very easy when it concerned soccer - plenty of youth soccer clubs to choose from, adult soccer organized by the Central Florida Soccer League and pick up games that happen all over town.  In recent years the growth of soccer has experienced exponential growth; you can choose from many leagues to play all over town any day of the week (especially during recession times, I will discus this phenomenon on my next article).  With all this activity regarding soccer I have wondered why the professional level has not been explored by those who know the business of soccer.

After being part of many teams within the Central Florida Soccer League, I have always wondered if there are more opportunities after the premier division?

I started to gather information about the United States Adult Soccer Association which is the governing body of most all adult soccer leagues in the country. As I began to build my adult soccer club REVOLVER F.C. it became clear that we must take advantage of the opportunities that the USASA offers the amateur soccer player. The USASA offers two specific programs of which we want to take full advantage: the National Men’s Open Cup and the Elite Player Development.

According to the USASA website the National Cups Competition is the oldest and most prestigious soccer tournament in the United States for any person who is a member of a team playing in a league of four or more teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation and the United States Adult Soccer Association. The competition began in 1914 for the Men’s Open Cup. In 1923, the Men’s Amateur Cup was added; in 1980 the Women’s Amateur and Over 30 Cups were initiated. Each year, some 250 teams across the United States participate in the National Cups Competition.

The Elite Player Program, originally known as the Select Teams Program, identifies players that exhibit skillful qualities with the intent of becoming a part of the USASA National Select Team player pool. Once selected, the player will be showcased in competitions against professional and international teams. The exposure that our elite players may gain by competing against those professional and international teams can result in professional opportunities for those players. In addition to identifying our elite players, the program provides our coaches the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and knowledge in highly competitive game situations.

As you can see there are opportunities for those players that want to take their passion for soccer to the professional stage. With hard work and the right attitude, I firmly believe that we can take soccer in Orlando and Central Florida to the next level. If you have comments or ideas that can help us please post it or contact us at revolverfc@hotmail.com