US Soccer announced Friday that it will build a national training facility in the Atlanta area, funded in part by a $50 million donation from Atlanta United owner Arthur Blank.
The association has not yet determined an exact location for the facility, but hopes construction will begin next year. US Soccer CEO JT Batson is currently leading the search for the site, which will be selected in January 2024.
The organization also has not set a planned opening date for the facility, which will serve as the headquarters for US Soccer, which is currently based in Chicago. It will include training fields, facilities for coaching and referee training, recovery and performance analysis and other infrastructure. There will also be youth tournaments and football conferences.
“America’s elite athletes deserve the best when it comes to preparing them to compete on the world stage, and I am thrilled that U.S. Soccer has chosen the Atlanta metropolitan area as its new home,” Blank said in a statement. “Atlanta’s incredible passion for soccer, corporate community and unmatched infrastructure make this a natural home for the national training center and I am very confident that our community will help America’s best soccer players compete on a global level like never before.” I am excited “I am also committed to supporting US Soccer as we contribute to outreach and soccer development in underserved communities and know that it will benefit countless young people as they engage with the beautiful game for generations to come.”
The Athletic reported in February that US Soccer was considering Atlanta and Cary, North Carolina, as training sites. The Cary offer would have utilized existing infrastructure at WakeMed Park. The association had already said in an email to donors at the end of 2022 that it needed to raise $300 million for the training center, which would include 14 or more training fields. US Soccer continues its fundraising efforts to raise money to build the new training center.
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How will the USMNT and USWNT use the facility?
It remains to be seen. While many European countries use their national training facilities as hubs for senior national teams during international windows, this could be a challenge given the size of the United States. U.S. Soccer would have to allow additional travel distance for players flying in from Europe or their home clubs to train for a few days before flying to a game in another state. The U.S. men’s national team typically hosts its January training camp in Los Angeles, and moving that training camp to Atlanta in the middle of winter would be difficult.
U.S. men’s national team coach Gregg Berhalter previously expressed support for a national training center. Last year during January camp, Berhalter said “it would be beneficial” for the association to have a facility, “not only for the consistency of the senior national team, but also for the possibility of all the other teams being there too “.
“I have been all over the world and have been fortunate enough to see some of other countries’ national training facilities, such as St. George’s in England,” Berhalter said. “And it’s a lab, man. You see all the coaches interacting, you see the teams there and the players really feel at home.”
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Will all US Soccer move entirely to Atlanta?
It’s not clear whether US Soccer will require Chicago to move all of its employees to Atlanta. The association previously required employees to live in Chicago, although it did not always enforce that rule across the board. The association has about 250 employees based in Chicago, including most of the U.S. soccer coaches. The association moved to Chicago in 1991 and was previously based in two renovated mansions in the South Loop dubbed the “Soccer House.” The organization moved from the Soccer House to an office building in downtown Chicago last summer. In August, Soccer House sold for $3.9 million.
The timing of the move to a new facility will also be interesting given that US Soccer is co-hosting the 2026 World Cup. It remains to be seen whether the association will accept the move to a new city and plan the tournament at the same time. Parlow Cone previously said it would be “perfect to have a national training center ready before the 2026 World Cup”.
US Soccer has additional facilities in Los Angeles and Kansas City, Kansas, which it shares with LA Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City, respectively. The facility in Kansas City particularly supports trainer and referee training. The USA used the LA facility for January camps and previously had offices there for its athletic staff. The Atlanta facility will be a dedicated home for the association.
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How else is the facility used?
All 27 national teams are expected to use the facility, but it would likely have the greatest impact on the expanded national and youth national teams as it would provide a single hub for camps.
Blank, 80, used part of his donation to build facilities for the expanded national teams, particularly the cerebral palsy, deaf and power football national teams, including locker rooms and training facilities. The press release also said Blake’s contribution will “strengthen support for women’s youth national team camps and women’s coaching and mentoring initiatives.”
The press release states that support from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation will provide community programs that benefit soccer-focused nonprofits in the Atlanta area, including Soccer in the Streets and GA 100, to provide access, training and education to underserved communities Offer coaching opportunities.
The 2022 fundraising email states that the new facility would also include a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Innovation Lab, which will “act as an incubator and funder for the best and most effective diversity, equity, “Inclusion and belonging projects that impact lives and drive change across the football landscape.”
“This national training center will accelerate the growth of soccer in this country and represents a commitment to developing elite soccer players for decades to come,” U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone said in a statement. “The investment in youth and adult programs as well as in our expanded national teams reflects our commitment to ensuring that players of all ages and backgrounds can find a home and thrive in this sport.” These investments are a signal to our players, coaches, Referees, members and fans that the future of U.S. Soccer is bright.”
(Photo: John Dorton/USSF/Getty Images for USSF).