Florida Tropics SC

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This article is about the current soccer club. For the traveling Senior Professional Baseball Association team from 1992, see West Palm Beach Tropics.
Florida Tropics SC
Florida Tropics SC.png
Founded2016; 6 years ago (2016)
StadiumRP Funding Center
Lake Myrtle Sports Complex
Capacity5,137 (MASL)
OwnerCentral Florida Sports Ventures, LLC
Head CoachClay Roberts
J.P. Reyes
LeagueMajor Arena Soccer League
United Premier Soccer League
20211st, MASL
Playoffs: Eliminated from Semis
WebsiteClub website

Florida Tropics SC is a professional soccer club based in Lakeland, Florida. They are owned by Central Florida Sports Ventures, LLC, led by Dr. Panos Iakovidis, and former USL commissioner and Rochester Rhinos owner Chris Economides. The organization was originally founded in 2015 as a team in the Major Arena Soccer League[1] before expanding into other leagues.

The Tropics organization operates three senior teams across two different leagues. The first team is Florida Tropics SC, which plays in the professional Major Arena Soccer League. The club also fields two men's outdoor teams. The top outdoor is Tropics SC, which plays in the United Premier Soccer League First Division. There is also a Tropics Reserves team playing the UPSL's Second Division.

The club previously fielded a USL League Two team known as the Lakeland Tropics, and a Women's Premier Soccer League team.[2]

In addition to the senior squads, the Tropics organization also oversees two youth clubs in Central Florida. Lakeland Tropics FC in Lakeland, and Celebration FC Tropics in Celebration.

History[]

On May 3, 2016, the Tropics, in conjunction with the newly formed IPL, held a press conference at the RP Funding Center and stated they would be joining the IPL alongside the Baltimore Blast, Harrisburg Heat, and St. Louis Ambush.[3][4] However, on August 29, 2016, it was announced that all IPL teams including Florida would be joining the MASL.[5] The team finished 3rd in their division in their inaugural season, and averaged over 2,500 fans a game including one sell out. In their second season in the MASL, the Tropics again fell just short of the playoffs, finishing 3rd in the Eastern Division. It was in 2017 that the club fielded their first USL League Two franchise, and in 2019 a new squad was created to play in the UPSL Pro Premier Florida Division, who went on to win the leagues national championship. The official supporter group of the Tropics organization is the Swan City Syndicate.

The Tropics succeed the Tampa Bay area as the local indoor soccer club. The team is unrelated to the original Tampa Bay Rowdies, who were notorious for their indoor soccer success, as well as their outdoor. A current Rowdies team began to play in 2010 and is also unrelated to that club; the team exclusively plays outdoor soccer. Indoor soccer by the original Rowdies had officially ended when the team played in the American Indoor Soccer Association for one season (1986–87). For two seasons, another Tampa Bay area team played in the same league, from 1995 to 1997, called the Tampa Bay Terror; however, the team did not last more than two seasons, despite having some members of the Rowdies on the roster. It would not be until the Tropics first season that indoor soccer would return to the area.

Personnel[]

2021–22 roster[]

Active players[]

  • As of January 11, 2022[6]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK United States USA
0 GK United States USA
1 GK Brazil BRA
3 DF United States USA Chad Vandegriffe
4 FW United States USA Andrew Hoxie
6 GK United States USA
7 FW Brazil BRA
8 FW United States USA
9 FW Cameroon CMR William Eyang
10 FW Brazil BRA
11 FW Brazil BRA
12 FW United States USA
14 FW Trinidad and Tobago TRI
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF United States USA Drew Ruggles
18 DF Brazil BRA
20 FW United States USA
22 MF United States USA
23 DF Ecuador ECU J.P. Reyes
25 FW Brazil BRA
32 FW Brazil BRA
33 DF Brazil BRA Rafael Alves
85 MF Brazil BRA Lucio Gonzaga
89 DF United States USA
90 DF Brazil BRA
99 DF Ghana GHA Evans Frimpong

Inactive players[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— FP Brazil BRA
5 DF Brazil BRA
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 DF Brazil BRA

Staff[]

  • United States Clay Roberts – Head coach, (2016–present)
  • United States Nick Olgee - Trainer, (2021–present)
  • United States Dr. Panos Iakovidis - Team owner, (2017–present)

Notable players[]

Venues[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Florida Tropics owner leaves past behind to start over in Lakeland". The Ledger. June 24, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
  2. ^ "Tropics Soccer Club and Pinellas County United SC Partner on WPSL Franchise, Lady Tropics SC". FLTropics.com. Florida Tropics SC. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  3. ^ https://www.facebook.com/FLTropics/videos/1783778395175144/
  4. ^ http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/soccer/bs-sp-blast-brief-0504-20160503-story.html
  5. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 2, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ [1]

External links[]

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