By RYAN TOLMICH
The Atlanta Silverbacks may not have an owner, but they will have a team for the NASL’s 2015 season.
The league announced Tuesday that the Silverbacks will continue play under league ownership while seeking a local ownership group. The Silverbacks will continue to play at Silverback Park, team’s home since 2006, and have begun a coaching search ahead of the 2015 season.
“We have tremendous belief in the Atlanta market, and we know that we can have long-term success there,” said NASL Commissioner Bill Peterson. “Silverbacks fans are among the most passionate in the league, and they deserve a committed ownership group that will run the team at a high level for years to come.”
The ownership search could also potentially see the team move out of the city limits to Cobb or Gwinnett County. Regardless of location and the upcoming introduction of the city’s MLS side in 2017, Peterson insists Atlanta has room to become a major soccer market.
“The Greater Atlanta area is one of the biggest sports markets in the country, and the number of people involved in soccer is staggering.” Peterson said. “Our commitment to the global game and our emphasis on a competitive structure has resulted in unprecedented growth and momentum. We are confident today that the NASL will thrive in Atlanta for decades to come.”
—-
What do you expect from the Silverbacks this season? How will the team continue going forward?
Share your thoughts below
This team has a long and rich history in Atlanta that dates back to before MLS played its first season. (There is a great book on Amazon detailing it all called “Guerilla Soccer”.)
The main problem is that the club has never been advertised in any major way. As for having temporary soccer until MLS, that isn’t good enough for most Silverbacks fans.
There is plenty of room for both teams in Atlanta, if the Silverbacks are aggressively promoted.
Maybe Arthur Blank should buy them and turn it into a USL Pro team. They already have a minor league stadium.
Every MLS team should have one. Im so grumpy that Dallas doesnt. We have so many homegrowns and they need a place to play. It might just be a budget issue eith Dallas though. Our billionaire doesnt like to spend.
El Paso tx is a great soccer market and practically a hidden gem that nasl or uslpro would not regret.
Bring them to El Paso and El Paso will not fail. We have tripleA baseball downtown and sell out practically every game, why make a soccer team play there.
El Paso cobras or El Paso City Stars (we have a giant star on a mountain lighting up every night)
I think I am rooting for your El Paso dreams.
Will you give up your Cosmos fandom and become an El Paso Cobras fan ?
You reference them in every post. Are you obsessed? Do you have some deep desire to be Marco Senna? What’s the matter with you?
My team is the cosmos but for sure I would support an NASL or uslpro team in El Paso tx.
Our city wants MLS and has money to built a SSS anywhere in the city but we gotta take baby steps and get a D2 or D3 team first.
I would like the name of El Paso cobras, El Paso locomotive, El Paso city stars or El Paso sun gods.
wynalda salary put them into bankruptcy?
It’s unclear — did the owners sell the franchise to NASL or did NASL have to take it from them?
Possibly, but it’s better than the alternative (no soccer in ATL in 2015)
Seems like this will do nothing other than provide some temporary soccer until MLS shows up in 2017. The NASL just getting cuckholded by MLS per usual.
You could argue they are really riding MLS’ coattails on this one. If there wasn’t an expansion promise and MLS groundswell it’s a mediocre minor league city. But with a team announced they can try and ride the enthusiasm.
However, to the extent it’s being preserved as an asset, why would you buy a team destined to be folded in a few years?