Supporters ready for first Louisville City game
A local soccer supporters group billing itself as The Coopers has met early on Saturdays at the Bardstown Road Molly Malone’s to watch international soccer since 2013.
This weekend, The Coopers can sleep in. They have a team of their own now in Louisville City FC, the USL club that opens its inaugural season at 3 p.m. against Saint Louis FC.
“It’s crazy,” said Augustus Waiters, The Coopers’ 28-year-old secretary. “Here we are now with a team in front of us. It's not just a set of bullet points on a sheet of paper.”
Yes, this has been a long time coming for a city that’s never had an outdoor professional soccer franchise at such a level. USL is a third-tier league designated by U.S. Soccer, though recent expansion to 24 teams and a number of Major League Soccer affiliations have bolstered its status.
Both The Coopers and Louisville City FC owner Wayne Estopinal dream of Louisville City FC one day making it to MLS and playing in a soccer-specific stadium.
“I have a tendency to think bigger, but this has been wonderful,” Estopinal said. “If the league expands, we'll be ready. Right now, we want to be a very good USL team. We need to be very good on the field. We need to be very good in the community. We need to be something people get behind."
Estopinal invested as a founding owner in the Orlando City Soccer Club, which won two of the last four USL postseason titles. That franchise pulled in big attendance numbers, funded a $70 million franchise fee and moved up to MLS this year.
Part of Estopinal’s selling point on Louisville as an affiliate to his Orlando City SC owners was The Coopers. Named for bourbon barrel makers, the group’s goal is to carry the new minor-league franchise.
About 5,000 seats for the opener were accounted for as of Thursday might – general manager Amanda Duffy said phones have lit up – and 8,000 is considered a soccer sellout at Louisville Slugger Field. Single-game admission starts at $15.
"This week, we've seen so much come together,” Duffy said, citing everything from signage at Louisville Slugger Field to the white lines drawn on the pitch. “It's so exciting as we get ready for Saturday. We just feel like it's going to be a special, special day.”
The Coopers will rarely sit down in their section, located along the third base line and behind a goal. Official membership is always growing, too. For now, the group has more than 2,000 followers apiece on Facebook and Twitter, where shared are chants and songs for Louisville City FC home games.
And, if Louisville Slugger Field sells out on Saturday, Waiters, an original Coopers member and longtime soccer fan, won’t be hard to spot. He’s promised to paint his mohawk in Louisville City FC colors.