The Tampa Bay Rowdies is an American professional football team based in St. Petersburg. Petersburg, Florida, USA The club was founded in 2008 and first took the field in 2010. Since 2017, The Rowdies has been a member of the United Soccer League (USL) in the second tier of the American football pyramid. They previously played in the North American Football League (NASL) (from 2011 to 2016) and 2nd Division USSF (in 2010), which is also a second tier league. The Rowdies play their home game at Al Lang Stadium on the shore of St. Petersburg in the city center.
The club currently shares the name, logo, and some of its club culture with the original Tampa Bay Rowdies, which was active from 1975 to 1993, especially in the original South American Football League. Club owners are currently announcing their intention to use the old Rowdies trademark at an introductory press conference in 2008. However, licensing issues forced the club to use the name of FC Tampa Bay until December 2011, when it gained full title name of Rowdies and other intellectual property. Rowdies now always use the same green and yellow color schemes and "circles" as the original team, even when they can not yet use the Rowdies name.
The Rowdies captured the NASL championship at the 2012 Soccer Bowl, and their team shield includes two stars: one for their 2012 victory and one for the 1975 Soccer Bowl championship won by the original Rowdies. The club has an old rivalry with Fort Lauderdale Strikers, with whom they have contested Florida Derby since the Rowdies and Strikers first met in 1977.
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The original Tampa Bay Rowdies were an expansion franchise in the original South American Football League and played for 10 seasons at the Tampa Stadium starting in 1975. The Rowdies was a direct and consistent success, winning the 1975 Soccer Bowl in its inaugural season, reaching the league final on two additional occasions , and regularly get a playoff spot. They showcased international stars such as midfield captain Rodney Marsh (England), top scorer in league Derek Smethurst (South Africa) and Oscar Fabbiani (Argentina), aid leader Steve Wegerle (South Africa) and defender Arsene Auguste (Haiti )) and "Iron" Mike Connell (South Africa). Head coaches include renowned managers Eddie Firmani, John Boyle, and Gordon Jago. The Rowdies enjoyed popular popular support from their "Fannies" until the NASL folded in 1984, after which the team played in AISA, ASL and APSL before it folded in 1993.
Maps Tampa Bay Rowdies
Club history
On June 18, 2008, local businessman David Laxer, Andrew Nestor and Hinds Howard announced plans to start a new football club that will revive the Rowdies name (as "FC Tampa Bay Rowdies") and start playing in 2010 as an expansion team at USL First Division, the second layer of American Soccer Pyramid. However, in November 2009 FC Tampa Bay announced their intention to become co-founders of the North American Football League, which will begin playing in 2010. The plan was subsequently replaced by a 2nd Division USSF deal, which created a compromise - only the league season consisting of teams from the USL and the new NASL.
Rename
In January 2010, the club was known as "FC Tampa Bay" due to legal dispute with Classic Ink sports apparel company over merchandising rights to the Tampa Bay Rowdies name and related trademark. The name was still used informally by the club until October 2010, when the team announced that they would not use the nickname "Rowdies" at all until the ongoing rights issue was resolved.
On December 15, 2011, after two seasons of play, the club announced that they finally reached a license agreement to use the name "Rowdies" and the classic logo, allowing it to change its name back to "Tampa Bay Rowdies" before the 2012 season.
season 2010
The team played its first official match on April 16, 2010, a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace Baltimore. The first goal in franchise history is printed by striker Aaron King. The first home game was held at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa on May 8, 2010, and ended with a 2-2 draw with Austin Aztex FC. The club started its inaugural season with a 5-1-3 record, but then won just 2 of its last 21 games and failed to make the playoff with a late 7-12-11 record, which led to the dismissal of manager Paul Dalglish. They did, however, capture the Ponce De Leon Cup 2010.
2011 season
For the 2011 season, FC Tampa Bay transitioned to the new North American Football League, second division league, and also changed their home pitch, as they moved across Tampa Bay to Al Lang Stadium in St. Louis. Petersburg. The original ex-Rowdie Ricky Hill was named the club manager in January 2011.
After winning just 2 of their first 10 games, the club rebounded to finish 3rd in the league table and qualify for the NASL playoffs. The climax was a 1-0 Premier League friendly win over Bolton Wanderers from the English Premier League at Al Lang Stadium.
season 2012
The 2012 season marks the return of the Rowdies name, because the club can finally get the full right to use the moniker. It was also the most successful season in modern Rowdies history, when the club finished second in the league standings and became the NASL champion with a win at the 2012 Soccer Bowl.
Tampa Bay collected 45 points in 28 games during the regular season under the return of manager Ricky Hill, counting 12 wins, nine a draw. and seven losses. The Rowdies earned a bye into the NASL 2012 playoffs semifinals, where they beat Carolina RailHawks by a 5-4 aggregate in the two-leg series. In the championship round against Minnesota Stars FC, Rowdies trailed 0-2 after the first leg but were able to tie the aggregate with a 3-1 win in the second leg at Al Lang Stadium. The extra time ended goalless, so the match was decided on penalties, which Tampa Bay won 3-2 to secure the league championship. Hill was named NASL Coach of the Year.
2013 season
The defending champions descended to a slow start in two pre-league tournaments, as they never won in their first six games against MLS and USL Pro clubs. The Rowdies improved considerably in the league game to finish 4th place in the NASL spring table with a record of 5 wins, 3 draws, and 4 defeats. The peak of the early season is a run to the 4th round of the US Open Lamar Cup 2013, which includes a 1-0 win over Seattle Sounders from MLS.
The Rowdies went 5-4-4 during the fall of the schedule, good for the 3rd place. The club scored 38 points throughout the campaign, the second most in the league. However, due to the new NASL split-season format, Rowdies is not eligible for the playoffs. Midfielder/striker Georgi Hristov leads the team with 15 goals in all competitions and was named the winner of the NASL Golden Ball Award (MVP).
season 2014
The Rowdies are struggling in 2014, coming in 7th place in the NASL spring and 8 in the autumn while letting most of the (50) goals in the league as a whole. The club climbed to position 3 in the table in the middle of an autumn but but tailless campaign, without a win in their last 10 games. Manager Ricky Hill was dismissed after the season.
season 2015
The new Tampa Bay Rowdies manager for 2015 is Thomas Rongen, who once coached MLS's Tampa Bay Mutiny during his inaugural season in 1996. The team brought back a well-known local figure when Farrukh Quraishi, who had been a player and director of youth development for the original Rowdies, was given name of general manager.
In March 2015, The Rowdies traveled to Portugal to play some preseason games against clubs in Portuguese second and third divisions. This is the first time the club is currently on an international tour.
The Rowdies lost just one game during the NASL spring, great for second place on the table. After starting autumn 2-1-6, however, club owner Bill Edwards sacked manager Thomas Rongen and general manager Farrukh Quraishi, which left many disappointed team fans. "They have a five-year plan, and I have a one-year plan," Edwards said of the dismissal. Stuart Campbell's assistant was promoted to manager and led the team to a 3-4-4 record. The Rowdies finished the fall in 8 of the 11 teams in the league table and missed the playoffs.
season 2016
For the second year in a row, The Rowdies visited Europe during the pre-season, traveling to England in March to play some friendly matches. The Rowdies defend themselves against three lower division teams, going 1-2-0 in official matches. NASL 2016 season results are not that good. The club went 4-4-2 in the NASL spring, great for 5 of the 11 teams in the league table. However, the results slipped in the fall of the schedule, and Rowdies completed the 9-11-12 season, missing the playoffs for the fourth year in a row. A few days before their last game of the season, the franchise announced that they would leave the NASL to compete in United Soccer League starting with the 2017 season.
Club venue
Al Lang Stadium
The Rowdies home stage since 2011 is Al Lang Stadium, a former 7,500 baseball stadium located in downtown St Petersburg, Florida. When the club first moved into the venue, the field ran from the third tribune to the right court wall, and the seating arrangement made use of the baseball stands along with temporary benches along the sideline. This arrangement has been adjusted every season because to provide a more traditional football experience for fans.
In 2015, the playing field ran from the former first base side of the stands to the left field wall. Part of the right field wall is removed, and larger semi-permanent benches are installed along the southern sideline, adding more seats closer to the action.
Stadium management
Although Rowdies has been the only regular tenant of Al Lang Stadium since 2011, it is still used for amateur baseball exhibitions and events during spring and summer, requiring regular restoration and removal of pitcher and clay mounds and causing a lot of wear and tear to the grass.
After becoming the majority owner of the club in 2013, St. Petersburg businessman Bill Edwards expressed displeasure with the playing field conditions and aging facilities at Al Lang Stadium. Months resignation about poor land, leaky pipes, broken seats, and other problems culminated in the July 2014 lawsuit filed by Rowdies against the St. Louis Baseball Commission. Petersburg claimed that the commission did not maintain "dilapidated" facilities properly. The dispute was settled in October 2014 when Edwards and St. Petersburg brokered a deal that gave Singles management single company Entertainment Management Edwards' Al Lang Stadium. As part of the arrangement, the facility was no longer used for baseball spring, and Edwards agreed to complete $ 1.5 million in renovations as he tried to make Al Lang more soccer-friendly.
Former stadium
When the club was founded in 2008, the owner announced plans to build a 5,000-seater football stadium in northwest Tampa along the Veteran Toll Road. The plan was suspended in early 2009 when residents living near the selected location voiced concern to the Hillsborough County Commission about potential noise and parking problems.
After exploring other possible stadium sites around the Tampa Bay area, FC Tampa Bay decided to play its inaugural season at George M. Steinbrenner Field, an 11,000-seat baseball stadium near West Tampa. The club shares the facility with Tampa Yankees, a Class A-Advanced affiliate of the New York Yankees, which presents some difficulties. Scheduling a home game is a challenge as club season overlaps for most of the summer. The pitcher mound and infield feces are indestructible, forcing the soccer field to be set across the field out of the right rotten path of the field to the left of the center. This creates a much smaller pitch than most professional soccer fields, and most of the playing surface of one that strikes is clay. And because of the difficulty of walking on wetlands and potential damage to the wetlands, Rowdies are not allowed to pick up land when the soil is wet, which often occurs during the summer rainy season in Tampa.
Due to all these problems, the football club moved to Al Lang Field for their second campaign.
Future plans
In 2013, the city of St. Petersburg began the process of creating a master plan for a coastal area that includes Al Lang Stadium. Suggestions suggest replacing the entire stadium and the surrounding parking area with a soccer park complex centered by a new football-only stadium. Club owner Bill Edwards has stated that "in a perfect world", Al Lang Stadium will be replaced by a special 18,000-seat football stadium, allowing Rowdies to become Major League Soccer club.
Club culture
Badge
When the first club took the field in 2010, the badge was a green and yellow striped shield inscribed with the club's name (FC Tampa Bay) and topped with a star representing the original victory of Rowdies at the 1975 Soccer Bowl. The badge was changed before the 2012 season into the text logo "Rowdies "the original, and the second star added after the club won the 2012 Soccer Bowl.
Supporters
Ralph's Mob is an independent support group for Rowdies named "Ralph Rowdie", a fictional footballer featured in the original Tampa Bay Rowdies logo. The group is known for wearing green and gold striped scarves, socks, and face paint, and to cheer loudly on their teams while teasing opponents, such as "Fanny" from the original Rowdies. Ralph's Mob has a designated seating area at home games. Many members also go to away games, especially when the Rowdies play in rivals in the state of Fort Lauderdale.
Rivalry
The Rowdies main competition is with Fort Lauderdale Strikers. The competition began in 1977 between the original Tampa Bay Rowdies and the original Fort Lauderdale Strikers from the old NASL when the term Florida Derby was first used. It was re-used again in the late 1990s, when both cities had an MLS franchise (Tampa Bay Mutiny & Miami Fusion) . Finally in 2010, after a nine-year hiatus Florida Derby re-entered the American football lexicon, as the current squad started to face each other.
Trophy Cup
The Coastal Cup was originally contested between Rowdies and Strikers, but with the entry of the FC Fleet to the league in 2015 and Miami FC in 2016, the competition has grown to a rectangle.
Rowdies 2
In December 2015, Rowdies announced that they would start forming a development team in the Premier League Soccer for the 2016 season and that the club would call Rowdies 2. The original Tampa Bay Rowdies had lowered the same reserve/development team from 1982 to 1983, but use roman numies to dub them Rowdies II . Rowdies 2 competed in the Southern NPSL Southern Conference, ending in fourth place with a record of four wins, four losses and two draws. The team was dissolved in 2016.
Rowdies U23
In February 2017, The Rowdies announced that they will bring down the team in the USL Premier Development League, with Rowdies U23 set to join this league for the 2017 PDL season. Rowdies U23 will be competing in the Southeast Division of Southern Conference PDL.
Cup Rowdies
Every August, the University of South Florida men's soccer team faces their rival, University of Tampa Spartans, in an NCAA preseason football game for men celebrating rich Tampa Bay Area football history. In addition to holding the Rowdies Cup trophy for the next 12 months, the winning side will also hoist the 1975 Soccer Bowl trophy won by the original Tampa Bay Rowdies and take place at the USF Corbett Football Stadium. In the 2017 edition, USF held a 20-9-3 advantage in the all-time series, which began in 1972.
Players and staff
List of current names
- Starting June 20, 2018
Leave with loan status
Retired number *
* Clothes No. 7 belonging to Steve Wegerle was retired by the original Tampa Bay Rowdies in 1989. Until now this club does not recognize this honor.
Team captain
- Julian Valentin (2010)
- Frank Sanfilippo (2011-2014)
- Marcelo Saragosa (2015)
- Tamika Mkandawire (2016)
- Joe Cole (2017-present)
Technical staff
- Neill Collins - head coach
- Joe Cole - assistant coach
- Stuart Dobson - goalkeeping coach
- Cheyne Roberts - assistant coach
- Blain Bott - strength and conditioning trainer
- Bentley Smith - kit man
Medical staff
- Andrew Keane - athletic head coach
- Michelle Leget - assistant athletic trainer
- Robert Dixon - message therapist
- Koco Eaton - team of doctors and orthopedic surgeons
- Mohit Bansal - team doctor and orthopedic surgeon
- Christopher Salud - team of doctors
- Samuel Meyers - chiropractor team
Front office
- Bill Edwards - chairman, chief executive officer and governor
- Andrew Nestor - director
- David Laxer - director
- Lee Cohen - vice president and chief operating officer
Head coach
- Paul Dalglish (2009-2010)
- Perry Van der Beck (last two games of 2010)
- Ricky Hill (2011-2014)
- Thomas Rongen (2014-2015)
- Stuart Campbell (2015-2018)
- Neill Collins (2018-present)
Achievements
- NASL Championship
- Winner: 2012
- Ponce de Leon Cup
- Winner (2): 2010, 2012
- Coastal Cup
- Winner (5): 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016
- Fair Play Award
- Winner (3): 2011, 2012, 2014
Individual achievement
- Golden Ball Award (MVP)
- 2013: Georgi Hristov
- Coach of the Year Award
- 2012: Ricky Hill
- NASL Best XI
- 2011: Pascal Millien, Mike Ambersley
- 2012: Jeff Attinella, Takuya Yamada, Luke Mulholland
- 2013: Luke Mulholland, Georgi Hristov
- 2016: Joe Cole
- USL Best XI
- 2017: Marcel SchÃÆ'¤fer
Results
Famous friendship
See also
- Tampa Bay Mutiny
References
External links
- Official website
- USL News Release
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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