Get A Sneak Peek Inside The Future Home Of Huntsville City FC Soccer.

In just a few months, Huntsville City FC(HCFC) will bring professional soccer closer to fans and supporters in the completely overhauled Joe Davis Stadium. The team plans to bring an all new game-day experience in May of this year as crews are busy installing new turf, seats, and other finishing touches. There are also plans for mixed uses surrounding the updated facility. The stadium, which has sat dormant for years, is located near the intersection of S Memorial Parkway & Don Mincher Drive – just minutes from Downtown Huntsville.

With a capacity of 6,000, the facility will have additional spaces to accommodate groups for its various events. In addition to soccer, its multi-use fields will be available for football, ultimate frisbee, rugby and lacrosse, and other non-sporting events.

The Nashville Soccer Club officially unveiled the Huntsville City Football Club, or Huntsville City FC, logo in November of last year. Huntsville City FC’s logo takes inspiration from the official seal of the City of Huntsville as well as its longstanding space industry, which is home to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), Missile Defense Agency, and Army Space and Rocket Command, among others. The circular shape of the seal and rocket boosters influenced the circular shape of the logo, the shooting star in the middle represents the idea of orbiting space and Huntsville’s history with the space industry, and the checkerboard design on either side of the logo pays homage to the checkered pattern on the Saturn I rocket that was developed at the MSFC.

HCFC will compete as Nashville Soccer Club’s affiliate in MLS NEXT Pro. The league began in March 2022 with participation from 21 clubs. MLS NEXT Pro is a new professional men’s soccer league committed to driving a new era of North American soccer by offering new opportunities to players, coaches, referees and sports business professionals.

The new league completes the integrated player pathway from MLS NEXT through to MLS first teams and allows young players and experienced professionals the opportunity to develop and showcase their talents while competing for an MLS NEXT Pro championship. The team announced in January this year the appointment of Jack Collison as the club’s first Head Coach in team history. A former player of West Ham United in the English Premier League with a vast history of developing young talent in the U.S. and abroad, Collison will lead Huntsville in its inaugural MLS Next Pro season this spring.

Back in 2019, as majority owner of Nashville SC and Huntsville City FC, John Ingram was intentional about creating a brand “In Nashville, for Nashville, with Nashville,” with significant input from longtime fans of the club. During the months-long process of branding Huntsville City FC, the organization embarked on a similar process of engaging with the Huntsville community, including the newly announced Huntsville City FC Managing Director of Business Operations Chad Emerson, on how to embody the spirit of the city. Ingram also hired Ian Ayre, CEO of Nashville SC as President of the HCFC MLS NEXT Pro team in Huntsville. Here’s the quick rundown:

The City of Huntsville approved a $27.7 million dollar contract with Lee Builders to renovate Joe Davis Stadium.  The 14-month remodel will deliver a modern sports facility to accommodate high school football, lacrosse, soccer, and city sports clinics and special events. Seating capacity will be reduced from 10,000 to 6,600 to allow for open terraces and better visibility for patrons.  Construction began in early 2022 and will be complete in time for spring play this year.

Here’s a look at the construction progress this month.

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