SAN DIEGO, CA (KGTV) — San Diego was awarded an MLS expansion franchise back in May of 2023. Since then they have revealed a team name and colors, built a training facility, and built a coaching staff and roster. Today they tool the practice field for the very first time.
"It gets real, and then real, and then really real as each step has been special. When you get players here that's what it's all about," says San Diego FC CEO Tom Penn.
It's been 20 months in the making, as San Diego FC took the practice field today at their Sycuan training facility.
"It's been a lot on whiteboards until now but we think we have an idea of what our strengths and weaknesses are going to be," says SDFC head coach Mikey Varas. "Now is the time we get to start to see it so we are really excited to get them on the field this first week and get that base ready."
"I'm going to get really close to Tyler because he is the one who did all the work on this," says Penn. "I just want to see his pride, as he is the one who signed all these players which is hard."
On day one of training for San Diego FC, the team says there goal is to compete for an MLS title. It really helps when you have a state of the art training facility like they do at Sycuan in El Cajon.
"This is such a special place Sycaun's tribal land. It's the home of their ancestral village, and now to have this kind of youth development and high performance academy here is amazing," says Penn.
"This facility is unbelievable for what it is. I will tell you that it is unbelievable. I hope that nobody takes it for granted," says SDFC head coach Mikey Varas.
The roster of 26 players is still a work in progress. Varas says the goal from day one is to get these players to mesh, and build team chemistry before the season opening game in late February.
"That's priority number one to get a group of strangers, who just got to know each other and introduce themselves to each other just a couple of days ago, to start understanding each other on and off the field and that's and that's an amazingly exciting objective."
The season opener is Februarty 23rd against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
