Newtown Pride FC
Full nameNewtown Pride Football Club
Nickname(s)The Pride
Founded1998 (1998)
GroundNewtown High School
Sandy Hook, Connecticut
FoundersMichael and Matt Svanda
General ManagerMatt Svanda
Head CoachMichael Svanda
LeagueConnecticut Soccer League
WebsiteClub website

Newtown Pride FC is an amateur American soccer team based in the Sandy Hook, part of Newtown, Connecticut. The team plays in the Connecticut Soccer League.

History

The team was founded in 1998 by father and son Mike and Matt Svanda.[1]

In 2019, the team won the National Amateur Cup for the first time in its history, becoming the second team from Connecticut, & first since 1967, to win the Cup.[2][3] The team beat New Jersey sides Jackson Lions and Cedar Stars Academy to reach the USASA Region I Final against Steel FC (Pennsylvania), which the team won 2–0.[4][5][6][7] In the National Final, the Pride beat RWB Adria (Illinois) in the semifinal before beating Horizon FC (Texas), 4–0, and won both the trophy and $15,000.[8][9]

The team became the second National Amateur Champion to directly qualify for the U.S. Open Cup after U.S. Soccer had started the practice with the 2018 Champions Milwaukee Bavarian SC. Newtown were due to enter the 2020 U.S. Open Cup in the first round alongside local qualifiers and teams from both the National Premier Soccer League and USL League Two.[10][11][12]

As National Amateur Cup Champions Newtown also secured a spot in the 2020 Hank Steinbrecher Cup. The team would compete against defending champion Flint City Bucks and the National Champions of both the NPSL and USL 2 (or the furthest advancing amateur team if the champion is a professional side) to determine the "USA National Amateur Champions".[13]

In August 2019, then-U.S. Soccer Federation President Carlos Cordeiro announced that Newtown would also host the winners of the 2019 UEFA Regions' Cup, Dolny Śląsk, in the inaugural International Amateur Cup.[14] The game was originally set to take place on May 19, 2020, but was later postponed to May 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[15]

On June 4, 2023, Newtown won the inaugural The Soccer Tournament, a 7-a-side tournament held in Cary, North Carolina. They were the only fully amateur club in the tournament and competed against teams representing professional clubs or those that comprised current and former professional players.[16] Newtown clinched the tournament championship and its $1 million prize by defeating Canada's SLC FC 2–0 in the final.[17] A portion of the prize money was donated by the team to the Newtown Community Center.[18]

Charity

Following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012, the Pride began to dedicate their matches in honor of the victims and families of the tragedy. The team continues to work with Newtown Youth and Family Services and has played charity matches against larger teams such as the New York Cosmos (2013), New York Red Bulls II (2015), Reading United AC (2016), Kingston Stockade FC (2017), and Bethlehem Steel FC (2017).[19][20][21][22][23]

Honors

References

  1. ↑ "TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE". Newtown Pride FC. Retrieved January 13, 2020. The club was officially founded in 1998 By head Coach Michael Svanda & Son Matt Svanda.
  2. ↑ USASA Communications (August 5, 2019). "Newtown Pride FC Crowned Amateur Champions". U.S. Adult Soccer. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  3. ↑ Hutchison, Andy. "Newtown Soccer Club Brings Connecticut First National Title Since '67". The Newtown Bee. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  4. ↑ Fricker, Michael (March 26, 2019). "Region I Rounds of the 2019 US Amateur Cup [UPDATE – 06/04/2019]". Amateur Cup Media. Michael Fricker. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  5. ↑ New Jersey Publicity (April 18, 2019). "Jackson Lions face Newtown Pride FC in the USASA Region I Open Amateur Cup". New Jersey Soccer Association. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  6. ↑ "US Amateur Cup for the Fritz Marth Trophy Region I Final @Steel_FC15 0:2 @NewtownPrideFC Newtown brings the trophy to Connecticut. Good final between both sides". Twitter. USASA Region I. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  7. ↑ Fricker, Michael (June 16, 2019). "Newtown Pride FC: 2019 Region I US Amateur Champions". Amateur Cup Media. Michael Fricker. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  8. ↑ Fricker, Michael (August 4, 2019). "Newtown Pride FC are 2019 Amateur Cup Champions and take a Star back Home to their Community". Amateur Cup Media. Michael Fricker. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Mesoamerica Advance to USASA National Amateur Cup Final". CalSouth. Retrieved January 13, 2020. Aside from a national title and bragging rights at stake, National Amateur Cup Champions earn a spot in the U.S Open Cup, as well as cash prizes listed below. Champion – $15,000 Runner Up – $10,000 Third Place – $7,500 Fourth Place – $5,000
  10. ↑ "Eighty-Nine Amateur Teams Approved for 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Qualifying" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. August 21, 2019. Retrieved January 13, 2020. Beyond the amateur teams in local qualifying, Newtown Pride FC (Newtown, Connecticut), by virtue of winning the 2019 U.S. Adult Soccer Association National Amateur Cup on Aug. 3, has been awarded a direct slot into the first round of next year's Open Cup and will not compete in local qualifying, the second year running where a first round berth has been reserved for the Amateur Cup champion.
  11. ↑ Arnison, Tom (August 5, 2019). "Newtown Pride FC win first Amateur Cup title, qualify for 2020 US Open Cup". TheCup.us. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  12. ↑ Sigal, Jonathan (August 5, 2019). "Notebook: Newtown Pride FC win Amateur Cup; Bedoya's moment; more". New England Soccer Journal. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Hank Steinbrecher Cup". U.S. Adult Soccer. Retrieved January 13, 2020. The Steinbrecher is a competition between the reigning National Amateur Cup champion, the NPSL champion, the USL Two champion and the previous year's Steinbrecher champion... The three-peat of the USASA national championship ensures that the Bucks will represent again in the 2020 Hank Steinbrecher Cup, but also brought with it some more good news. Tournament Director Duncan Riddle and tournament namesake Hank Steinbrecher confirmed that the Bucks will host the 2020 tournament in Flint next May as the team goes for a record fourth title in a row.
  14. ↑ "Congratulations to @NewtownPrideFC, the 2019 @USAdultSoccer Amateur Cup Champions! In addition to the Fritz Marth Trophy, they've earned a ticket to the 2020 Lamar Hunt @opencup and a matchup against the @UEFA Regions' Cup winners next summer!". Twitter. Carlos Cordeiro. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  15. ↑ Communications, USASA (March 19, 2020). "International Amateur Cup Postponed". United States Adult Soccer Association. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  16. ↑ Maurer, Pablo; Cardenas, Felipe (June 4, 2023). "Newtown Pride FC wins The Soccer Tournament, $1 million prize". The Athletic. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Canadian entry finishes runner-up at US$1-million 7vs7 soccer tournament". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. June 4, 2023. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
  18. ↑ "TST adds 8-team women's event with $1M prize". ESPN.com. December 4, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  19. ↑ Martinez, Dave. "New York Cosmos ready for Newtown "Soccer Revolution"". Empire of Soccer. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  20. ↑ USL Admin (July 29, 2015). "Red Bulls II To Face Newtown Pride FC". USL Soccer. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Soccer Double Header To Benefit Newtown Youth & Family Services". The Newtown Bee. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  22. ↑ "Kingston Stockade Announces April 22 Friendly at Dietz Stadium Against Newtown Pride FC". Stockade FC. April 5, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  23. ↑ USLSoccer.com Staff (June 16, 2017). "Steel FC to Participate in Sandy Hook Fundraiser". USL Championship. Retrieved January 13, 2020.


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