Cleveland City Stars Promoted To USL-1
Published on December 4, 2008 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Cleveland City Stars News Release
United Soccer Leagues (USL), the largest organization of elite level outdoor soccer in North America, today announced the promotion of the Cleveland City Stars from the USL Second Division to the USL First Division.
The press conference was held at the Wostein Center on the campus of Cleveland State University.
The Cleveland City Stars finished the 2008 season with a record of 10-3-7 and captured the USL-2 national championship with a 2-1 victory over the regular season champion Charlotte Eagles. The move up the USL ladder to the highest tier of the 24-year old league is a monumental move for the third-year franchise and for the City of Cleveland. The City Stars' schedule will increase from 20 games to 30 and the size of the league will expand from the east coast to a league featuring teams from across the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Cleveland finishes it's two-year run in USL-2 with a combined regular season record of 20-4-16, including an undefeated 14-0-6 record at home.
"We are delighted to be the latest addition to the USL First Division for the 2009 season," said Cleveland City Stars General Manager Mark Geissbauer. "After winning the USL-2 Championship last year and the success of our franchise on and off the field, this was the most logical decision to make. We know that this is going to be a big step for our still fairly young franchise, but we are looking forward to the challenge of competing at the highest level in the USL system and bringing the USL-1 into a flourishing market like Cleveland."
2008 saw the City Stars become the only USL-2 franchise with a local television contract and the fans responded with an average of over 25,000 viewers per match. The local contract with SportsTime Ohio has been renewed and the move to USL-1 guarantees that all matches will be broadcast live over the internet on usllive.com and at least five national broadcasts will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel.
During November's League Meetings, Cleveland was named the USL-2 Organization of the Year for their work both on and off the field in 2008. The honor followed recognition for Rookie Franchise of the Year, Marketing Excellence, Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year awards during Cleveland's inaugural season of 2007.
"Our promotion of the USL-2 Champion Cleveland City Stars is a function of their high-level competitive and organizational performance over the past two seasons," said Executive Vice President and COO Tim Holt. "The City Stars have clearly demonstrated they are prepared for the challenge of competing and operating at the USL First Division level and instantly strengthen the league. This is just one more example of the benefits of a USL's multi-level system of leagues which involve the movement of teams up and down the pyramid in a manner that best aligns with the growth of their club over time."
The City Stars were founded with the idea of bringing championship caliber and family-friendly soccer to Northeast Ohio while "Serving the City and Changing the World" through community outreach programs such as free soccer clinics and IT computer training to underprivileged children.
"What these guys have done in two years is nothing short of amazing," said Lighthouse Inc. Executive Director Andy Batten. "They go out of their way to come down to areas of the city that often get overlooked and they have formed a great bond with these boys and girls. The children are already excited about seeing the team that they love again next season."
With today's announcement, the City Stars will be able to take their championship team to the next level while expanding their ability to reach the disadvantaged that they aim to help.
The next big step for the franchise comes in the form of player tryouts with two sessions scheduled in the coming months. The first tryout is January 24th at the NEO Soccer Facility in Parma, OH with session A starting at 10 a.m. and session B starting at 7 p.m. The second tryout is February 13th at Krenzler Field in Cleveland with session A starting at 10 a.m. and session B starting at 7 p.m.
Registration is available on the Cleveland City Stars website.
USL First Division Stories from December 4, 2008
- Cleveland City Stars to Play with RailHawks in USL-1 - North Carolina FC
- USL-2 Champion City Stars take on USL First Division challenge - Cleveland City Stars
- Cleveland City Stars Promoted To USL-1 - Cleveland City Stars
- Cleveland moving up to USL-1 - USL-1
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
