USL Hartford Athletic

Message from Chairman Bruce Mandell

Published on January 31, 2023 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Hartford Athletic News Release


Dear Fans,

I'm fired up for this season. Pre-season kicks off tomorrow and we have one goal in mind...winning. Below are a few highlights from last year, made possible by our amazing fans and incredible partners.

We invested in the best staff in US professional soccer including the hiring of:

- Tab Ramos, US Men's National Team Legend as our Head Coach

- Ray Reid, four time national champion head coach as our Technical Director

- Omid Namazi, former US National team U18 and U20 coach as First Assistant and Head Scout

- Dan Gaspar, former National team coach for Portugal, Iran and Benfica as our Goalkeeper Coach

We ended our season with incredible momentum from our fans, selling out our last five games of the year. We also set club records for viewership on MyTV9 and ESPN Plus and had 142k viewers tune in for our first ever nationally broadcast game on ESPN (more than many MLS broadcasts).

Our Green and Blue Foundation made a significant impact in our community. With the help of our Founding Partners Trinity Health of New England, Stanley Black and Decker, Travelers and The Hartford as well as our 55 corporate partners and 50 business Alliance partners we achieved the following impact:

- Raised $17k for the Grace Academy of Hartford as part of our fourth annual Match for a Cause

- Provided 15,000 tickets to children in underserved communities through our Community Ticket Program

- Hosted our first annual Stem & Soccer Education Day in front of 1,500 students

- Donated over 2,000 pounds of food to CT Foodshare through our Goals for Meals program

- Packed 1,000 Period Poverty Totes in conjunction with Dignity Grows

- Created Story Walk, a $100,000 interactive storybook experience in Colt Park

- Welcomed more than 800 job seekers and 115 employers to Trinity Health Stadium for our annual Hartford Athletic Hiring Expo

- Donated 200 winter jackets to Button Up CT

Our partnership with Trinity Health of New England continued to grow as we announced a historic stadium naming rights partnership in March. Trinity Health Stadium, as it is now known, saw several upgrades last season including a new video board and augmented hospitality locations.

On the player front, Tab and Ray have re-signed Danny Barrera, Andre Lewis, Jeciel Cedeno, Robin Lapert, Conor McGlynn, Prince Saydee, Ash Apollon and Tulu. They have also added key pieces to make our championship run including two league stars in Elvis Amoh, who scored 26 goals in his last two seasons in the USL Championship, and Antoine Hoppenot, who led the league with 12 assists last year.

There are many other exciting additions to this year's team, including two defensive-minded left-footers with postseason experience in Triston Hodge and Niall Logue who played last season for Colorado Springs and Memphis respectively, as well as Kaveh Rad, a talented young player from MLS side Sporting Kansas City, and Matt Sheldon who has spent the last three years in the USL Championship. Forward Kyle Edwards comes to Hartford after spending some time in the MLS for the Houston Dynamo and midfielder Kembo Kibato adds speed and quality to our midfield. Our new goalkeepers, Richard Sánchez and Joe Rice, are incredible shot stoppers and bring experience from many MLS clubs. Luke Merrill earned his spot on the roster at our invitational combine and Jonathan Filipe and Joel Quist became the fourth and fifth players in club history to make the roster out of Open Tryouts.

NEWS FLASH: We will be making one other significant addition to our club - a new mascot! There will be a "name the mascot" contest happening soon. Stay tuned to our social media channels and emails for details on how to submit your favorite name.

The 2023 schedule is now available at hartfordathletic.com/schedule. We will host seventeen USL Championship matches and hope to add games in the US Open Cup and international friendlies as well. As we continue to build momentum, we would love for you to show your support to the new coaching staff and players by buying your tickets early and continuing to spread the word about Hartford Athletic.

Season Ticket Memberships come with some amazing new perks (e.g. cut the line for concessions, preferred parking, discounts and more) in addition to savings on single game ticket prices and the pride of saying you're a Season Ticket Member. Please visit hartfordathletic.com/seasontickets or call 860-298-9233 for more information.

This is going to be a season to remember. We can't wait to see you at our home opener on March 25th and throughout the season. As always, if you have feedback, questions, or just want to drop a note of encouragement for the squad feel free to email me at brucem@hartfordathletic.com or text or call me at 860-883-1028.

Warmest Regards,

Bruce Mandell

Chairman, Hartford Athletic

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