A New Soccer Foundation Brand

This week details have begun to emerge that the Aztex Soccer Foundation is undergoing a makeover and branding themselves as the Austin Soccer Foundation. In a post to Eberly’s Army members, foundation president Ed Easton details some of the motives behind the change, and announces an upcoming event, scheduled for July.

EA Friends —

I know that many of the folks on this page participated in events or bought jerseys last year that benefited the newly-created Aztex Soccer Foundation. Thank … Read the rest “A New Soccer Foundation Brand”

Manneh’s Stock Continues to Climb

Austin soccer fans who followed the 2012 Aztex saw first-hand what a talented player Kekuta Manneh was, and how he grew under coach and father-figure Paul Dalglish. The following year saw him drafted by MLS’ Vancouver Whitecaps, where his growth has continued without slowing. The past few weeks have seen the young goal-scorer in headlines across the Internet; here are a few highlights of what the former Aztex striker is up to.

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FC Austin Elite Brings Women’s Soccer to Austin

We’ve written before that even without an Aztex season, 2016 has a lot to offer soccer fans in Central Texas. Now, in addition to those games around Texas and around the world, there is another team starting up right here in Austin: FC Austin Elite, of the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). We spoke with General Manager Danny Woodfill to get all the details.

Last year this team was known as the Austin Aces (not to be confused with … Read the rest “FC Austin Elite Brings Women’s Soccer to Austin”

Still Nothing Concrete in Stadium Search

The Austin American-Statesman published a story yesterday with news of progress – or lack thereof – in the Austin soccer stadium search: Aztex still seeking a place to call home.

Seven months after the franchise announced it was shutting down for a year, the Austin Aztex still need to find a stadium solution before they possibly return to the United Soccer League in 2017.

Owner Rene van de Zande said Aztex management is exploring three or four undisclosed options

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USL, A Growing Problem?

The United Soccer League continues to experience phenomenal growth as they prepare to begin the 2016 season. The league boasts the addition of six new clubs to the North American landscape, bringing their total to 29, with an additional club (Reno) already slated to join in 2017.

Four of the six additions are directly associated with MLS clubs; some with unique names (Sporting Kansas City’s Swope Park Rangers, Houston Dynamo’s Rio Grande Valley FC, and Philadelphia Union’s Bethlehem Steel FC), … Read the rest “USL, A Growing Problem?”

The USL Show: “Austin was managed terribly”

The USL Show podcast

The first episode of the new USL Show podcast (not officially related to the league) was released this week. The discussion centers around the current state and possible future of USL, especially relative to MLS. There’s also a lot of discussion of what has happened in Rochester, where the league has taken over management of the 2015 champion Rhinos. In the course of that talk (at about the 1-hour, 12-minute point), panelist Brendan Doherty discloses information from unnamed sources … Read the rest “The USL Show: “Austin was managed terribly””

Aztex 2015: the Year in Review

For local supporters of the beautiful game, 2015 will be remembered for dramatic highs and devastating lows. It was a year in which professional soccer made a return to the City of the Violet Crown, but which ends with no active team and head coach Paul Dalglish packing his bags for a new gig in Canada.

Preseason

The year began with bang; in February the Aztex hosted three MLS teams – FC Dallas, Columbus Crew, and D.C. United – in … Read the rest “Aztex 2015: the Year in Review”

On the Record: an Interview with the Aztex

In the wake of last month’s news that the Austin Aztex would be on hiatus in 2016, with a planned reentry to USL competition in 2017, many questions came up about the club’s surprise announcement. Violet Crown Soccer had the opportunity to sit down at The Tavern last week with Aztex owner and CEO Rene van de Zande, founder David Markley and General Manager Roberto Pinto da Silva, Jr., and ask some of those questions.

It’s clear that the group … Read the rest “On the Record: an Interview with the Aztex”

What Swope Park and Titan Village Tell Us

This USL offseason we’ve seen several new teams join the league for 2016. Though it will be at least a year before we see them play against an Austin side, there are aspects of a couple of these announcements that stand out.

One new entrant is Sporting Kansas City’s new team: the Swope Park Rangers. The reception of this new club’s name, logo, and branding has been very positive, and with the solid SKC organization behind them, success is … Read the rest “What Swope Park and Titan Village Tell Us”

Stadium Standards & Smoke Signals

On October 2nd the Austin Aztex announced that they will not be participating on the field in 2016, with the intention to return in 2017. The press release made clear that the Aztex are under pressure from USL to find a suitable long-term home for the club. If they are truly returning in 2017, the owners and the remaining staff must be working furiously to accomplish their goal. Their only public step so far is the nice-looking Stadium for Austin … Read the rest “Stadium Standards & Smoke Signals”