It is known around the world as “the beautiful game.” And when professional soccer arrives in San Antonio this month, the name could well apply.

The San Antonio Scorpions begin play in the North American Soccer League (NASL), joining the Spurs (basketball), Missions (baseball), Rampage (hockey), Silver Stars (women’s basketball) and Talons (arena football) as San Antonio’s newest professional sports franchise, with a decidedly different business model. One hundred percent of the Scorpions net profits will go to charity, specifically Morgan’s Wonderland, the world’s first amusement park designed for special needs children, adults and their caregivers.

Philanthropist Gordon Hartman is the owner of the Scorpions and the visionary behind Morgan’s Wonderland. Inspired by his own special needs daughter, Morgan, Gordon Hartman spearheaded the effort to construct the “ultra-accessible” fun park, but quickly realized that additional revenue streams would be needed to meet the park’s operating budget, which exceeds $1 million. Hartman secured his NASL franchise in 2010 and built community support through the Soccer for a Cause campaign, which included a name-the-team contest, a logo-design competition, online voting for Scorpions jersey designs and the selection of “Scorpions girls” team ambassadors. In addition to generating revenue for Morgan’s Wonderland, Hartman’s additional goals for the team include elevating local interest in soccer, promoting physical fitness and increasing tourism.

What should fans expect of the Scorpions in their inaugural season?

“We’re going to have good players on the field, but we’re also going to have good players off the field. That’s part of what this culture is all about,” Hartman says. “And we’re going to extend that forward, not just on opening day but for the continuation of the Scorpions for many years to come.”

While the Scorpions will play this season in the North East Independent School District’s Heroes Stadium, the team has broken ground on a privately financed 6,100-seat stadium of its own, adjacent to Morgan’s Wonderland and set to open in 2013. Scorpions Community Stadium will be multi-purpose, hosting professional, college and high school soccer, as well as concerts and special events.

“Every bit of net profit that occurs from not only the Scorpions, but everything within the stadium that we’re building will go to help special needs individuals,” Hartman says.

If early fan interest is any indication, the Scorpions will be off to a running start. By March, the team had sold more than 3,000 season tickets, an impressive total for a club that had yet to play an official game. Scorpions President Michael Hitchcock is proud not only of the fan support but sizable corporate sponsorships, including athletic shoe giant Nike. “It’s been amazing,” Hitchcock says of the team’s growing fan and corporate base. “It’s exceeded our very bullish expectations.”

Playing in the NASL, the Scorpions are one tier below the highest level of professional soccer in America, Major League Soccer (MLS). But just as the Spurs began in the smaller American Basketball Association (ABA) before advancing to the NBA, there have been NASL teams that have moved up to MLS. The plans for Scorpions Community Stadium include the ability to expand to an MLS-required capacity of 18,000 seats should the demand for tickets grow to that level. “This is the beginning of something very, very big,” Hartman says.