Shortly after the Mayor’s Budget Review Committee unanimously approved a proposal to sell land to RP Sports Investments, sending it to the City Council for a vote next week, the NPSL announced the creation of a new conference, the Gulf Coast Conference, that will include the Jacksonville Armada U-23s for the 2020 season.

Additionally, Armada President and General Manager Nathan Walter confirmed to the Jacksonville Soccer Journal that the club would be fielding only the U-23 side in 2020 and at least 2021 while development of the new stadium continues, as the return of the professional first team would coincide with the opening of the downtown venue within the next several years.

“So the first team will come with the stadium,” Walter said. “I would never advise Robert [Palmer] for us to start plowing $4-5 million a year into the professional side without us being able to monetize it and stabilize it. So yeah, it just doesn’t make sense and I’ve been saying this for a very long time, so it’s very exciting to see it here, potentially, with a stadium project at the door.”

While there’s no solid timeline yet for completing the stadium project, the Armada are still planning to play the long game, staying reserved for now before ramping back up when things can be done right in a couple of years.

“Look, we’ve been in this now since 2014 when we first started — 2015 was the first season — but we’re experienced now; we’re not first-time, Robert’s not a first-time owner jumping into this, I’m not a first-time executive jumping into this.” Walter said. “We’re fully aware of what we need to achieve for sustainability. By all means, lower league soccer is not making millions of dollars, it does not happen. But what we’re going to do is get it to a point where it’s sustainable that for the next 30-40 years we’re comfortable with where things are and the stadium allows us to do that.”

The Armada will be joined in the Golf Coast Conference by four new members of the NPSL: AFC Mobile, Pensacola FC, Port City FC, and Tallahassee SC — all previously members of the Gulf Coast League — while the New Orleans Jesters will return in 2020 after taking a year off.

“This is a key area for growth in the South Region,” NPSL Chairman Kenneth Farrell said in a league release. “We have been looking to develop the I-10 Corridor to bridge the gap between Louisiana and the panhandle of Florida. This is a great accomplishment for the league. All four of our new teams are tremendous additions that will help us grow the beautiful game across the country. This will certainly be seen as a great day for soccer fans and supporters along the Gulf Coast.”

The Armada U-23s played in the Sunshine Conference this past summer, falling to Miami FC in the conference playoff semi-finals.

The team will continue to play its home games at Patton Park in 2020, and Walter said that decisions still have to be made regarding the coaching staff for the team next season. The NPSL summer season typically runs from May to July.

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