New Mexico United

New Mexico United is an American professional soccer team based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 2018, the team currently plays in the USL Championship, the second division of American soccer.

New Mexico United
FoundedJune 6, 2018 (2018-06-06)
StadiumRio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park
Capacity13,500
OwnerPeter Trevisani
ManagerTroy Lesesne
LeagueUSL Championship
20206th, Western Conference
Playoffs: Semifinals
WebsiteClub website

History

Former teams

The state of New Mexico gained its first professional soccer team in the 1990s, the New Mexico Chiles of the American Professional Soccer League and later the USISL.[1][2] The team was runner-up for the league title in 1995 and attracted an average home attendance of 3,854, but was folded by its owners in 1996.[3] The Chiles was replaced the following season by the Albuquerque Geckos, who entered USISL's Division 3 with new owners and played at a new soccer stadium shared with the collegiate New Mexico Lobos.[4][5] The Geckos won the Division 3 championship and were promoted to the second division A-League in 1998,[6] but struggled to win matches and were unable to pay players and creditors.[7] The team had an average attendance of 1,200 and announced their move to Sacramento, California in October 1998.[8][9]

A semi-professional team, the Albuquerque Sol, was established in 2014 to capitalize on the area's interest in soccer. The team's owners stated that their goal was to earn a USL expansion team within a few years and eventually move to Major League Soccer (MLS).[10] The Sol commissioned a study in 2016 to analyze a potential downtown soccer-specific stadium with 10,000 seats to support a USL expansion in 2018 and a MLS expansion by 2024.[11] The stadium study identified three potential locations in downtown Albuquerque for a stadium, which would cost $24–45 million.[12]

Sophomore Season

In March 2020, the USL Championship postponed the 2020 season with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The season restarted in July 2020 with a modified gameplay model. Due to ongoing state health orders, the team played every game on the road earning the nickname the "Road Warriors."[13] The team ended the regular season with a record of 8 wins, 3 draws, and 4 losses. The team qualified for the USL Championship Playoffs and made it to the semi-final round where they lost against rival El Paso Locomotive via a 5-3 penalty kick shootout.

Additionally, in March 2020, the Somos Unidos Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the New Mexico United organization, was launched. Throughout 2020, the foundation led multiple community support initiatives including, partnering with Heart of America to bring distance learning supplies to Navajo Nation students, launching the inaugural Diversity Fellowship Program, and working with the Community Desk Project to build desks for children in need of at home learning spaces.

USL franchise
New Mexico United's Chris Wehan takes a corner kick during a USLC match in 2019

On June 6, 2018, the USL announced an expansion club from Albuquerque that would begin play in March 2019.[14] The club announced its name, New Mexico United, and colors on October 9, 2018, following fan suggestions that generated 226 total names.[15][16]

The team played its opening match on March 9, 2019, with 12,896 fans in attendance at Isotopes Park. Devon Sandoval scored the team's first-ever goal in a 1–1 draw against Fresno FC.[17] New Mexico United enjoyed popular success in its inaugural season, leading the USL Championship in average attendance and selling out Isotopes Park with 15,023 spectators on May 5, 2019.[18][19] In the 2019 U.S. Open Cup, the team defeated two MLS clubs (the Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas) before losing in the quarterfinals to Minnesota United FC; for the match in Minnesota, the club organized a charter flight from Albuquerque that carried 180 away fans.[18][20]

Club crest and colors
The club's branding draws inspiration from the Zia symbol, seen here on the state flag of New Mexico.

The New Mexico United crest is a simple yellow shield with four black lines that represent the Zia symbol, found on the state flag and used with permission from the Zia tribe.[16] The crest also has a black diamond with the number "18", representing the year the club was founded.[15] The yellow-and-black color scheme was colored to reference the state flag while differentiating itself from other local clubs.[15][16]

Sponsorship
Season Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
2019 Adidas Meow Wolf (home)[21]
KraneShares (away)[21]
2020–present Puma[22]

Stadium
The entrance to Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in 2005

The club plays at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park, known as only Isotopes Park in 2019 and nicknamed The Lab, a baseball stadium that is primarily home to the Albuquerque Isotopes of the Pacific Coast League. New Mexico United will play at the facility until a soccer-specific stadium is built.[23] The Isotopes will remain the primary tenant and the USL team will schedule its home games during away games for the Isotopes.[24] The stadium seats 13,500 spectators for baseball games.[23]

In February 2020, New Mexico United announced the beginning stages of developing a home stadium/community culture center after being awarded $4.1 million in capital outlay funds by the state legislature. [25] In January 2021, Research and Polling Inc. conducted a poll to gauge the public's support for a stadium. The poll results showed overwhelmingly support the construction of a multi-purpose stadium and cultural center to host New Mexico United matches and other events throughout the year. The poll indicated that Albuquerque residents would like to see this stadium built by a margin of nearly 3-to-1.[26]

Players and staff

Current roster
As of February 8, 2021[27][28]
No. Position Player Nation
1 Goalkeeper Cody Mizell  United States
3 Defender Austin Yearwood  United States
4 Defender Sam Hamilton  United States
5 Defender Josh Suggs  United States
6 Defender David Najem  Afghanistan
7 Midfielder Isidro Martinez  United States
8 Midfielder Juan Pablo Guzmán  Colombia
9 Forward Devon Sandoval  United States
10 Forward Amando Moreno  United States
11 Midfielder Sergio Rivas  Mexico
14 Forward Ilija Ilić  Serbia
15 Defender Rashid Tetteh  Ghana
16 Defender Alex Touche  United States
17 Defender Justin Schmidt  United States
18 Goalkeeper Philipp Beigl  Germany
22 Defender Kalen Ryden  United States
23 Midfielder Micheal Azira  Uganda
25 Midfielder Daniel Bruce  England
33 Midfielder Harry Swartz  United States
— Forward Brian Brown  Jamaica

Technical staff
Title Name
Head Coach and Technical Director Troy Lesesne
Director of Soccer Operations and Assistant Technical Director Brandon Morris
First Assistant Coach and Director of High Performance Youth Program Zach Prince
Second Assistant Coach and Assistant Director of High Performance Youth Program Gavin Glinton[29]
Director of Goalkeepers Peter Davis[29]
Head Athletic Trainer Tyler Harris

Last updated: February 4, 2020
Source: New Mexico United

Front office
Title Name
CEO and President Peter Trevisani
Chief Administrative Officer Desiree Kim
Chief Revenue Officer Dustin McCorkle[30]
Director of Innovation Lukas Cash
Creative Director Josh Lane
Director of Communications and Fan Experience David Carl
Director of Corporate Partnership Sales Clint Gray

Last updated: January 23, 2020
Source: New Mexico United

Ownership

The club's majority owner and team president is New Mexico resident, Peter Trevisani. The club's other owners have ties to New Mexico and include investor Ian McKinnon, TEAM8, Ed Garcia, Ben Spencer, and Jason Harrington.[23]

Team records
As of 8 August 2020

Year-by-year total
Season Results League Pos Top Scorer 1
P W D L GF GA Pts 2 Player G
2019 40 13 15 12 69 71 54 10th, Western Kevaughn Frater 17
2020 17 9 4 4 25 18 31 2nd, Group C Chris Wehan 7
All-time results 3 All-time records
— 57 22 19 16 94 89 85 10th, Western Devon Sandoval 20

^ 1. Top Scorer includes all competitive matches.

^ 2. Points assigns the same point values to knockout matches as the same result would receive in the league.

^ 3. All-time results includes all competitive matches.

USL Championship
Season USL Championship Play-offs Top Scorer 1
P W D L GF GA Pts Pos Player G
2019 34 11 13 10 59 57 46 10th, Western Conference Play-In Round Kevaughn Frater 14
2020 15 8 3 4 23 17 27 2nd, Group C [31][32] Conference Semifinal Chris Wehan 7

^ 1. Top Scorer includes statistics from league matches only.

USL Cup Playoffs
Season USL Cup Playoffs Top Scorer
P W D L GF GA Entered Exited Player G
2019 1 0 0 1 1 2 Conference Play-In Round Devon Sandoval 1
2020 2 1 1 0 2 1 Conference Quarterfinal Conference Semifinal Chris Wehan / Romeo Parkes 1

U.S. Open Cup
  • Wins on penalties are counted as draws; penalty kicks do not count as goals for or against.
Season U.S. Open Cup Top Scorer
P W D L GF GA Entered Exited Player G
2019 5 2 2 1 9 12 Second Round Quarterfinals Devon Sandoval 3
2020 Cancelled 1

^ 1. The U.S. Open Cup was suspended on March 13, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[33] On August 14, the 2020 edition was cancelled.[34]

Head coaches
  • Includes USL Regular Season, USL Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup. Excludes friendlies.
CoachNationalityStartEndMWDLWin %
Troy Lesesne  United States August 13, 2018 Present 57 22 19 16 038.60

Average attendance
YearReg. SeasonPlayoffs
2019 12,693 (1st in USL Championship) Did not play at home
2020 Did not play at home Did not play at home

Player records

Most goals
  • Players in bold are still active with New Mexico United; includes goals in all competitive matches
    • Includes regular season, playoffs, and domestic cup
  • As of 17 October 2020.[35]
Rank Player Nation Years active Goals
1 Devon Sandoval 2019–present 20
2 Chris Wehan 2019-2020 18
3 Kevaughn Frater 2019 17
4 Santi Moar 2019 12
5 Amando Moreno 2020–present 6
6 David Estrada / 2019-2020 3
7 Daniel Bruce 2019–present 2
Romeo Parkes 2020
Justin Schmidt 2019–present
Ryan Williams 2019-2020
Sam Hamilton 2019–present
Joris Ahlinvi / 2020

Most appearances
  • Players in bold are still active with New Mexico United; includes all competitive appearances, including substitutions
    • Includes regular season, playoffs, and domestic cup
  • As of 17 October 2020.[36][37]
Rank Player Nation Years active Apps.
1 Cody Mizell 2019–present 57
2 Devon Sandoval 2019–present 52
3 Chris Wehan 2019-2020 51
4 Juan Pablo Guzmán 2019–present 49
David Estrada / 2019–present
6 Josh Suggs 2019–present 44
7 Rashid Tetteh 2019–present 43
8 Saalih Muhammad 2019–present 42
9 Santi Moar 2019 39
Sam Hamilton 2019–present
10 Justin Schmidt 2019–present 38

New Mexico United U23
Main article: New Mexico United U23

On Jan 23, 2020 New Mexico United announced that it will field a U23 team in the USL League Two for the 2020 season. The club will compete in the Mountain Division. The U23 team will bridge the gap between the High Performance Youth Program and the first team.[38]

References
  1. McAfee, Sean (April 30, 1992). "New League Hopes To Market Soccer Nationally". Albuquerque Journal. p. D5. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. McAfee, Sean (August 29, 1995). "Chiles Have Rare Chance". Albuquerque Journal. p. D1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Corporation Folds Has Chiles in Limbo". Albuquerque Journal. September 4, 1996. p. D2. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. Wright, Rick (February 26, 1997). "Geckos Are Rushing to the Rescue". Albuquerque Journal. p. D1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. Latta, Dennis (January 17, 1997). "Albuquerque Will Be Getting Another USISL Entry, After All". Albuquerque Journal. p. C1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. Rosales, Glen (April 25, 1998). "The 'A' Game". Albuquerque Journal. p. C1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Wright, Rick (September 22, 1998). "Financial Mess Aside, Geckos Plan To Return". Albuquerque Journal. p. D1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Harrison, Randy (May 22, 1999). "New Mexico Slam Giving It a Go". Albuquerque Journal. p. D9. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Rosales, Glen (October 15, 1998). "Financially Strapped Geckos Give Up, Head to Sacramento". Albuquerque Journal. p. C1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Smith, Mark (May 23, 2014). "Set to put on a show: Duke City team eager for home opener". Albuquerque Journal. p. D1. Retrieved June 9, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Albuquerque soccer team hopes to go pro, build new downtown stadium". KRQE. March 21, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  12. Schmitt, Madeline (July 26, 2017). "Study pinpoints possible locations, price tag on soccer stadium for Albuquerque Sol FC". KRQE. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  13. "Remaining New Mexico United games will be played on the road". KRQE News 13 Albuquerque - Santa Fe. September 17, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  14. "United Soccer League Announces New Mexico Club". USL. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  15. Seligman, Noah (October 9, 2018). "USL club will be known as New Mexico United". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  16. "New Mexico United Unveils Official Name, Branding" (Press release). USL. October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  17. Seligman, Noah (March 9, 2019). "NM United plays to a draw; 12,896 witness debut". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  18. Yodice, James (July 6, 2019). "NM United becomes major local attraction". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
  19. Seligman, Noah (May 5, 2019). "New Mexico United fills up Isotopes Park, shuts out San Antonio, moves into first place". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
  20. Greder, Andy (July 10, 2019). "Loons run in U.S. Open Cup continues with 6-1 win over New Mexico". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
  21. Davis, Ron (March 1, 2019). "Why NM's soccer team partnered with a national investment firm". Albuquerque Business First. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
  22. Campbell, Jessica (January 20, 2020). "New Mexico United Becomes Only Current American Professional Soccer Team to Partner with PUMA". New Mexico United. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  23. Seligman, Noah (June 6, 2018). "New United Soccer League team coming to Albuquerque". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  24. Davis, Ron (June 6, 2018). "New Mexico's kickin' it with addition of a new sports team". Albuquerque Business First. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  25. www.bizjournals.com https://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/news/2020/02/26/nm-united-owner-envisions-a-stadium-that-has-more.html. Retrieved January 25, 2021. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  26. "New Poll Shows New Mexico United Stadium & Cultural Center Proposal Draws Widespread Support". www.uslchampionship.com. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  27. "2020 Roster". NewMexicoUtd.com. New Mexico United. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  28. c"2021 roster". NewMexicoUnited. twitter. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  29. Campbell, Jessica (February 4, 2020). "New Mexico United Announces Coaching Staff Changes Ahead of 2020 Season". New Mexico United. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  30. Campbell, Jessica (January 23, 2020). "New Mexico United's Chief Revenue Officer Takes Position as President of Rio Grande Valley FC". New Mexico United. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  31. USLChampionship com Staff (June 24, 2020). "USL Championship Unveils 2020 Season Format". USL Championship. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  32. USLChampionship com Staff (June 25, 2020). "USL Championship Announces Western Conference Groups". USL Championship. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  33. "U.S. Soccer Temporarily Suspends 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Due to Covid-19 Outbreak". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  34. Liljenwall, Ari (August 14, 2020). "Report: Lamar Hunt US Open Cup canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic". MLS Soccer. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  35. "USA - New Mexico United - Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  36. Staff. "New Mexico United 2019 Player Stats". www.uslchampionship.com. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  37. Staff. "New Mexico United Player Stats". www.uslchampionship.com. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  38. Staff, USL League 2 (January 23, 2020). "New Mexico United U23 Set to Compete in USL League Two". New Mexico United. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
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