Birmingham USL Photo
“Birmingham
is an ideal market for USL,” said USL CEO Alec Papadakis, "clicking off all of the criteria we require in a new expansion market."
Ownership group: Jeff Logan, co-owner of the Birmingham Barons minor-baseball team; James Outland, founding and managing partner of New Capital Partners; and
Lee Styslinger, III, chairman and chief executive officer of Altec.
What they bring to table: The Barons are a big success
story in Birmingham, the top drawing team in the Double-A Southern League. All three owners have backgrounds in the sports industry.
First
hire: Morgan Copes -- co-founder of the NPSL Birmingham Hammers -- will serve as vice president and be the main point of contact of the USL team (name TBD).
How it all came together: “The momentum for a professional soccer team in Birmingham all started with a couple of good buddies and a few
beers," says Copes. "To now have a USL team here is amazing — I still have to tell people to ‘pinch me’ because it doesn’t feel real. In addition to the Hammers, Birmingham
soccer fans’ enthusiastic support was just as, if not more, important, and they are now being rewarded for those efforts.”
Big unknown: The USL team will grow out of the Hammers, who play in nearby Vestavia Hills, but it wants to find a downtown home. The criteria is "in or near the center of the
city" and with "walkable amenities nearby," says Copes.