The year is 2018. It is a time where people get angry. It is a time when angry people plant their flags firmly. It is a time when flags are planted as an immediate response to thoughts and opinions (with the occasional news nugget mixed in) that are widely accessible through the instant gratification of social media.

Perhaps one of the most prevalent realms in which flag-planting takes place is in the world of sports fandom. While soccer fans may not be the largest contingent in the sports landscape in America, they are certainly one of, if not the most, passionate. That passion has been on full display for the last few days in the world of lower division soccer.

I am by no means an expert in every facet of the U.S. soccer-sphere, and I am certainly not intimately familiar with all of the issues taking place in clubs and supporters’ groups across the country. My intention in this article, if you will stick with me, is to try and consider how my city of Greenville, S.C., can serve as a beacon for lower division soccer in this country.

But before we can do that, we have to look at how we got here.

What is going on in Chattanooga?

Over the weekend, two major soccer stories broke in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The first piece of news, reported by Nipun Chopra of Soc Takes, was that an investor, later identified to be Bob Martino of Utah, has secured the “USL rights to Chattanooga” with the expectation to launch a D3 team in the city.

Later the same day, Chattanooga FC announced the departure of their general manager, and a founding member of the club, Sean McDaniel. It is thought that McDaniel is leaving to be a part of this new USL club.

To complicate matters further, CFC’s lease of Finley Stadium is expiring, and that opens the possibility that another team, this USL D3 team, could obtain the rights to use Finley for themselves and leave CFC looking for an alternate venue for 2019.

All of these developments have left fans of Chattanooga FC (and many, many more fans across the country) upset and confused. Soccer fans across the nation have come out to #StandWithChatta and voice their displeasure over the developments.

On Wednesday afternoon, the hammer dropped. The low rumble of displeasure turned to full-on couch burning as Chattanooga Pro Soccer announced they would be the newest member of USL D3. Read the replies at your own peril.

You remember that passion I talked about at the beginning of this piece? Here it is on full display. But what if that passion has blinded many? What would happen if we took a step back to try and see what happened here?

Again — and I cannot state this strongly enough — I do not pretend to know all of the intimate details of this situation in Chattanooga. My intention here is to lean on my own experience within my city. I am an outsider to the Chattanooga situation. I think that allows me to be objective and with no strong emotions tied to the situation.

With that being said here are a few of my observations.

Chattanooga FC President Tim Kelly has confirmed that the team had previously discussed being a part of the USL with their representatives, but that was halted because of differing visions. Chattanooga FC was also committed to being a part of NISA, but later backed away from that effort as the league faltered. Instead the organization hosted a summit this past spring to tout a similar vision to that of NISA’s. Several lower division teams signed a pledge committing themselves to pursuing these ideas.

There have also been rumors connecting Chattanooga FC with a reformed NASL or a rumored “NPSL Pro” league. It is clear that at least some contingent within Chattanooga FC’s leadership has been interested in making the jump from the amateur/semi-pro ranks to the professional ranks for quite some time. But every effort seems to hit a roadblock of some kind.

As an outside observer, it seems — and this is purely speculation — that Kelly himself may be the holdup. Ultimately the buck stops with him and despite the clear interest from within, nothing has ever materialized. But whether it is Kelly, multiple people, or someone else, the organization has kept themselves in their current league and designation, widely seen as “Division Four” around the United States.

Let’s talk about that.

The soccer pyramid in the U.S.

My intention here is not to debate the merits of the current system of soccer in the US. There are plenty of voices on both sides of the debate who are far more knowledgable and passionate on the subject that I am. I encourage you to seek them out if you are interested in developing your own thoughts further.

However, it is important to have a basic understanding of the situation before we press any further into this discussion. Currently, the soccer pyramid in our country falls under the governance of the U.S. Soccer Federation. The USSF oversees the league system and sanctions all professional leagues in America.

The U.S. Adult Soccer Association, or USASA, is sanctioned by USSF to regulate amateur soccer in the U.S. This is the only amateur organization sanctioned by the USSF.

Collegiate soccer falls outside of this pyramid and is regulated by the NCAA and others instead of USSF.

The USSF has set aside three divisions for professional soccer. Each division has a set of standards that teams and leagues must meet to earn official sanctioning. Leagues have, and continue to, gain and lose sanctioning based on whether or not they can meet those requirements. There have even been years when leagues were given “provisional” status even if they did not meet the requirements to give them time to correct the areas in which they were falling short.

Since their inception, the USSF has only had one league meet the requirements for Division I status: Major League Soccer. There have been several leagues come and go in Division II. Currently, the United Soccer League is the only Division II sanctioned league after the North American Soccer League lost its sanctioning for various reasons, most prominent of which was failing to meet the 12-team minimum.

There are no leagues currently holding Division III status. The United Soccer League created a Division III league to launch in 2019. The National Independent Soccer Association was also working toward that goal but seems to have stalled for the time being.

All other leagues in this country, including NPSL, USL PDL, UPSL, USASA, etc., are not officially sanctioned by the USSF and are considered either amateur or semi-professional, and often referred to as “Division Four” or below.

The soccer pyramid is not unique to the U.S. and is most widely recognizable to many fans in this country in England. In England, the Premier League is the top of the pyramid (Division I). Levels two through four (Championship, League One, League Two) are run by the English Football League. Everything below level four is considered “non-league,” but it is still tremendously organized thanks to the National League System.

One major thing that English football has going for it over American soccer is simple: organization. They have certainly had much more time to get to this point, but the differences between the two systems are obvious. Could the US soccer pyramid ever get to the place that the English pyramid is at? Perhaps.

Consider the current status that the United Soccer League is playing in the soccer landscape in this country. They have the sole Division II league. They will, most likely, have the sole Division III league by the spring. They also have the Premier Development League that exists at the semi-pro/amateur level.

It already sounds a lot like the EFL. If that was not compelling enough, last fall, soccer sleuths discovered that the USL had applied for four trademarks (USL Championship, USL League One, USL League Two, and USL Youth).

It is clear that the USL has a specific vision for what their role will be in the soccer pyramid going forward. Their organization may be enough to allow them to claim that spot.

Back to Chattanooga

As the announcements have come this week around soccer in Chattanooga, there has been a lot of anger directed towards a businessman in Utah. There is a perception that this “outsider” is coming in to destroy soccer in one of the model cities for lower division soccer in America. From the outside, it looks like the frustration would be better directed inward.

It seems the cracks started from within Chattanooga FC. I think it is fair to say that Sean McDaniel could have, and probably should have, acted differently. Once his role in this USL D3 team became a realistic possibility, he should have stepped away from CFC.

If Tim Kelly pushed back against the wishes of many and kept Chattanooga FC from moving up through a multitude of opportunities, he owes it to his loyal fans to let them know. These leagues have no obligation to ignore a market if they feel like they can be successful. This is especially true if they tried to bring CFC into the fold, as Kelly himself admits.

Ultimately, a team cannot succeed without fans buying tickets and sponsors contributing capital. As fans, the loudest voice you have is your wallet. Buy tickets and merchandise and support the team or teams you want to be successful. But do not feel that you have to choose if you do not want to.

Before Chattanooga, there was Greenville

Now, 1,600 words later, let me tell you why I sat down to write this article. I have been an admirer of everything that Chattanooga FC does for a long time. As a soccer fan and native Tennessean, I always found it incredible that a team in my home state had become such a mainstay and a model for what soccer can be in smaller markets.

When I found out that Greenville was getting our own NPSL team in the same conference as Chattanooga, I knew that one of my biggest aspirations was to help form and grow a supporters group on par with the legendary Chattahooligans. I have loved every minute of my time with the Mill Town Operatives this year. I particularly enjoyed getting to meet many of the Chattahooligans when they came up for our match in Greenville.

So when I heard what was going on down in Chattanooga, I felt like I could speak from a place of some experience. You see, Greenville was in a similar place earlier this year. Fans were expressing a slew of different emotions across social media. I even went as far as to write a piece here that featured a multitude of Inside Out gifs to express my own emotions.

The two situations are very different in many ways. Greenville FC did not have 10 years of history with the town. By all indications, the USL D3 team that is coming to Greenville was in development simultaneously with, or maybe even earlier than, Greenville FC. There was no “working from within” or split in a franchise. The ownership group for Greenville Pro Soccer are all natives to this city. There is so much that makes these situations different.

However, one thing they have in common is the emotion they have stirred up in the fanbase. And in both situations, I think the fanbase has reacted swiftly without hearing or considering all of the facts. Those facts may never be fully known by the respective fanbases in these situations, but cooler heads can prevail if we all step back and consider our role as fans going forward.

How can Greenville get it right?

I will not speak to Chattanooga fans here. Ultimately, I can only speak for those in this community and a plan I believe will work here. However, I think these are some helpful thoughts that may benefit others in similar situations, including those in Chattanooga.

One year ago Greenville did not have any soccer teams outside of youth leagues and some local colleges. We will soon have two. Since Greenville Pro Soccer was announced as the third founding member of USL D3, soccer fans across the country have had their eye on Greenville. How will this work? Can it work? Here are a few ideas that I think could help.

Fans have a choice

As an individual fan, you have the choice of how you want to respond to the situation. No one, including myself, should tell you how to respond. No one should tell you that your chosen response makes you a good or bad fan. You should respond how you want to, not how you think you should.

The collection of individual responses will ultimately determine the fate of both teams in our city. If you choose to support one team over the other, you are commiting to the success of one team. That does not necessarily mean that you are contributing to the downfall of the other team, one fan does not have that much power, but you are not contributing to their success. This is a fine choice to make.

The other option is to support both teams. There are many hurdles to this option. You will, inevitably, have to make decisions from time to time where you choose one over the other. Matches and other team gatherings will conflict at times. There is also the financial burden of buying two sets of tickets if you choose and merchandise from two different teams. This is also a fine choice to make.

I am personally choosing the latter path. Ultimately, I want soccer to succeed in this town and I want to watch as much of it as possible. My first soccer love was Chelsea, and I have only seen them in person once, in a pre-season friendly in Charlotte. I am an avid Atlanta United fan and try to make one or two matches a season. But with these two teams in my city? I want to be front row at every match. I want to know the players, coaches and management personally. I am willing to make sacrifices in other areas of my life to support both of these teams.

We should appreciate the similarities

I have enjoyed my time as a “media-type” covering soccer in Greenville this year. Through those efforts, I have had the privilege to meet and get to know the ownership and management of both soccer franchises in Greenville. I can say, without question, that you could not find two better groups to be managing the sport’s presence in the upstate.

The Carrizales family, led by the passion of Marco, have come to adopt Greenville as their home. They are focused on Greenville FC being the community’s team. They all have a long history with soccer and have done a great job of marrying that love with their love of Greenville.

The Erwins are Greenville natives who see Greenville Pro Soccer as a gift to the city. They are intent on this team being as great as it can, and they brought in Chris Lewis and his decades of professional sports management to make sure that happens. They all love soccer and love Greenville and are excited for this new venture.

These two groups are not that different in their desires for these respective teams. Both have a deep love of both the sport and the city. Both see Greenville as city with the potential to be a cornerstone of soccer in the South. Both believe that this city is ready for these teams.

And we should appreciate the differences

Despite the similarities, these two groups are approaching their respective franchises in different ways. Neither way is any better or worse than the other. Neither way is the right or wrong way to do it. They are simply different.

Greenville FC is grassroots. The team is full of youth. They have a young entrepreneur running the show. They have a young coach determined to be successful. They are incredibly accessible to the fans. They have opened up their operation to a lot of input from the fans and community. This approach has built a ton of goodwill and deep roots with their fans. The fans truly feel a sense of ownership with this team.

Greenville Pro Soccer, on the other hand, feels more like a professional sports team. Their organization and professional approach has felt cold to some, but I think that is more a result of the timing of their announcement, and the business leadership behind the team. They have been doing much of the hard work of putting together the franchise after fans were made aware of their existence. This is a different, but not better or worse, approach than the one Greenville FC took. I can assure you that these guys are incredibly personable, and I believe that as the season approaches, fans will feel more connected to them.

In my mind it is a benefit to witness these two approaches to bringing the beautiful game to my city. It feels like going to a wedding and getting the chicken and the steak. I appreciate them both for their uniqueness and the different things I get to see with each. We are really getting to experience a more well-rounded soccer fandom than most in this country do.

The two teams should work together

I know this one is idealistic. I know it probably will not happen. That does not keep me from seeing this as the best option for success for both teams.

I am not saying that the two teams in Greenville should fall under a singular ownership. I am not saying they should even be affiliated or linked in any official capacity (as an MLS2 team might be with their first division counterparts). I am simply saying that it would be to the benefit of both teams to play nice with one another and work together to grow the game in the Upstate.

What would it look like for these two teams to share a stadium one day? What would it look like to have co-hosted World Cup, EPL or MLS watch parties? What about co-branded soccer clinics for youth development? Anything like this would go a long way to ease the tension that some fans feel.

The real long shot would be some kind of official working relationship. That would be a next-level step, but one that would set Greenville apart in the soccer landscape in America. Hey, a guy can dream right?

A beacon for soccer in America

If you have been paying attention over the last 10 or so years, you know that #yeahTHATgreenville is exploding. The city is consistently placed on lists of “best places to live” or “retire” or “enjoy the outdoors.” It is an “emerging culinary capital.” We have a tremendous art and music scene. We have one of the best downtowns in the country. Oh, and we are one of the fastest growing cities in America.

If you did not know any of those things, that is perfectly fine. Greenville is closed. No more moving here.

In all seriousness, Greenville has become a destination and place that people want to be. We are getting noticed for all sorts of things that are great about our city.

But when it comes to the soccer landscape, we have a chance to go beyond that. We have a chance to become a beacon for soccer in this country. If we can get this right, people will look to Greenville as a shining example of what can happen as this sport continues to grow in America.

We are uniquely situated with our two teams, in two different divisions, coming in at nearly the same time. Can a city the size of Greenville support two teams in a niche sport? I believe that we can.

The art of the pivot

On April 14, 1998, a company called Netflix launched the first online DVD rental business. At that time, they were trying to compete with the monster that was Blockbuster, whose brick-and-mortar stores ruled the movie rental world, and it was not even close.

Just two years later, Netflix was losing so much money that they offered to sell their company to Blockbuster. They would change their name to Blockbuster and run the online rental side of the business. Blockbuster declined the offer.

Netflix was able to grow slowly over the next few years, but when they saw the success of YouTube they realized the industry was changing. So they decided to pivot. Instead of relying on the US postal service to deliver DVDs to their customers, they decided to pursue the idea of offering movies to stream online.

You know what happened next. If you are reading this article you probably have a Netflix account yourself. You also either remember Blockbuster as a distant memory or have no idea what it was.

Netflix has begun to pivot again in recent years, away from licensed shows and movies and towards creating their own original concept. This has been another successful shift for them.

What is the point of that story? Netflix on two separate occasions has been able to see the way the winds were beginning to blow, and made a strategic shift to stay ahead of the game. These pivots have been risky. But they have paid off in major ways.

The lower-division soccer landscape in America seems to be shifting. There are certainly indicators as to which directions clubs should move if they hope to survive in the long run. My hope is that both Greenville teams are around for years to come. I want to bring my future children to games and tell them about when these teams first started.

The big question for Greenville and for other soccer cities like it around the country is, can clubs see the winds and pivot appropriately? I’m hoping that they can and that they’ll have the strength to do so for the good of American soccer fans everywhere.