Sports stats

Professional Indoor Soccer Returns to Louisville

September 10, 2009 - Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL)
Louisville Lightning News Release


After a 22 year absence, professional indoor soccer is returning to Louisville.

Professional soccer has returned to Louisville with the launch of the Louisville Lightning into the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro). With games scheduled to start in November 2009, Louisville soccer fans will have an opportunity to be part of a very exciting sports entertainment event.

The PASL offers high quality, fast-paced indoor soccer with constant action and scoring. Visit www.arenaleague.com for specifics of the league and teams across the country.

The expansion franchise is owned and chaired by local businessmen Wayne Estopinal and Ted Nichols. Estopinal and Nichols are also the owners of Mockingbird Valley Soccer Club, which will serve as the team's venue for the 2009-10 season. "We are very pleased to bring the Louisville Lightning to reality this year. Continuing to build upon our area's soccer history and enthusiasm is our goal," said Estopinal.

The PASL has 10 teams in the United States and has partnerships with the professional indoor leagues in Canada and Mexico. The Louisville Lightning will play a 16 game schedule as members of the Eastern Division along with St. Louis, Cincinnat, Detroit, and another expansion team.

The Lightning will host 8 home games beginning in November and culminating in the PASL North American Championship Tournament in March.

"The opportunity for our locally produced talent to continue their careers at the professional level is a major step toward putting Louisville soccer on the national scene," said Nichols.

Saint Xavier product and former Centre College assistant coach David Horne will be the Lightning's general manager and head coach. An Academic All-American and Centre College Male Athlete of the Year, Horne went on to play professionally for the Cincinnati Kings of the United Soccer Leagues Second Division (USL 2). Horne played in the 2008-09 PASL season for 1790 Cincinnati scoring 8 goals and tallying 6 assists en route to an Eastern Division Championship and second place finish in the North American Championship. "David combines a solid professional background with his love for Louisville in this exciting venue," said Estopinal.

The Lightning will have a first team roster of up to 20 players and will field a reserve team in the amateur Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL-Premier). The team is seeking local talent to support their roster. There will a series of open tryouts at Mockingbird Valley Soccer Club with the first round held on Sunday, September 20th from 3:30-7pm. Visit www.louisvillelightning.com for more information.

The Louisville Thunder played from 1984 to 1987 and won the 1986-87 AISA championship. Many of those players and officials became the core of coaches, managers, etc. which have led the Louisville area's soccer interest for the last 20 years. The name of the Louisville Lightning was selected to acknowledge the history and dedication of the original professional franchise.

The Lightning will hold a press conference at Mockingbird Valley Soccer Club on Tuesday, September 15th at 7:00 PM. The press conference is open to the media and the public is welcome to attend.



Professional Arena Soccer League Stories from September 10, 2009


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.

OurSports Central