SoccerToday NPSL Spotlight Series
Soccer News: The soccer scene has been exploding and the sport’s popularity increasing substantially. The National Premier Soccer League – NPSL for short – is the country’s largest amateur soccer league with 80 teams competing in 2016. SoccerToday’s special coverage on the this 4th Division of the U.S. Soccer pyramid, gives soccer fans a glimpse into the life of the teams. Just so you know, NPSL teams are eligible to participate in the U.S. Soccer Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and some NPSL teams have performed very well. NPSL is affiliated with both the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) and the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA).
No one knows more about the San Francisco Stompers then Owner/General Manager Billy Forte. Learn about his history with the team, which dates back to 1984 and the team’s goals for the future.
Diane Scavuzzo: When did you become involved with the SF Stompers men’s soccer team and the NPSL?
Billy Forte: The Stompers were formed in 1984 as a youth club by my father Pat Forte and the club played through the mid 90’s. The name was selected in honor of the 1978 NASL Oakland Stompers. In 2009, I brought back the Stompers as a men’s competitive club as a co-founder with the goal of becoming an NPSL organization. In 2012, I became the co-founder of the SF Stompers FC in the NPSL and am now the Owner/GM. I have been with the club in all forms as a player, coach, front office and all the way to the ball boy since 1984.
Diane Scavuzzo: Do you feel that NPSL is doing a good job with the challenges of amateur/pro men’s soccer?
Billy Forte: The NPSL does a great job. From the leadership of the NPSL we have grown to over 80 clubs nationwide. We were somewhere around 39 in 2012 when the Stompers joined. I do feel the NPSL plays one of the most valuable roles in US Soccer. It is a level that didn’t exist 15 years ago. It is great for younger players to grow into. NPSL is also a level for guys who want to continue to pursue a career at the sport, to have a high level of competition to keep them prepared for opportunities at the next level.
The national platform ensures players a broader spectrum of exposure. Beyond the players it provides a great opportunity for coaches that are trying to become pro or college level coaches. It is a good starting point for interns to get experience with working with professionally ran organizations. Sports photographers can fill out their portfolios with NPSL action. The same goes for film, sports commentators, or game day operations people. Great experience working within the front office or admin for any of these NPSL clubs because there are challenges that you may not face at a higher level and more freedom to have hands on input that can make for valuable experience moving forward in a professional career with in sports management.
The NPSL provides unique experiences for everyone who wants to be involved in the sport. Most importantly I think the NPSL has a growing audience in fans and some very charismatic supporters groups that make this game what it is. All the other stuff is great but what makes the NPSL special is the growing support in each community to support your local soccer team.
Diane Scavuzzo: Is your conference in need of more NPSL competition? How would you like to see the NPSL expand?
Billy Forte: As the NPSL grows there has been talks about uniformity. There is a need for more expansion in certain areas, in our region and in our conference. I think a good first target for the NPSL is to expand to 4 regions with 4 conferences per region and 8 teams per conference.
The Southwest has done a great job reaching 8 clubs. The Golden Gate needs 3 more teams to fill out the conference at 8 clubs. With our Golden Gate Conference typically covering Northern California down towards Bakersfield and expanding to the top of California/Oregon boarder area we would like to give all areas a chance at having a NPSL club. We are heavily saturated with 5 clubs within about of 90 miles of each other. Ideally we would like Golden Gate representation in the Central Valley from Stockton to Fresno, North Coast or the Chico area, Monterey or Santa Cruz areas, even as far east as Reno. When the Golden Gate and Northwest fill out to 8 clubs we would just need to add an additional Southwest Conference or expand to a Rocky Mountain Conference to complete the West.
If the NPSL targets that, then we have many directions we can go from there.
Diane Scavuzzo: How would you describe your team’s style of play?
Billy Forte: Our teams style of play in the past was always established around strong defense and goalkeeping similar to the way the Italian National Team plays. In recent years we have had more offense with creative midfielders and a bunch of speed up top and on the wings. We have a wealth of individual talent but need to get back to fundamentals of sound defense and goalkeeping. Once we put it all together it will be exciting to see.
Diane Scavuzzo: Who is your head coach and why did you select him?
Billy Forte: SF Stompers FC Head Coach is Martin Sierra. I brought Martin on board because we have a long history together as we played U19 soccer together. I have seen Martin coach both youth soccer and adult soccer over the years. When I interviewed a number of coaches Martin’s passion to develop our club to have multi-tiered levels from the top down and develop the youth to grow into our program was what stood out most to me. In less than a year of bringing him on, we now have a Stompers adult reserve team, a U21 team, and U18 teams with U19 Argonauts. Martin has a strong talent pool of younger players that he has coached that have played for all of the US Development Academies in our area. These players will be coming up through the Stompers system in the next few years.
Diane Scavuzzo: Would you like to see European style promotion and relegation exist in the USA?
Billy Forte: Yes, and anybody who doesn’t isn’t looking in the best interest of the sport in the US. I know that trying to make it work is a very complex situation. Soccer is the world’s game we can’t just Americanize it. The American fans want to see it and I believe when it happens it will grow more and more interest from the general American public. When your local club can rise through the ranks as they do around the world. The theory is great but now we have to get all the best soccer people in the US to put our brains together and figure out how to logically make it happen. With leagues like the NPSL open to the subject and solidifying a more stable platform at the national level in the US 4th division is a big first step.
Diane Scavuzzo: What team do you believe does the best at promoting the game?
Billy Forte: In the NPSL, hands down it would have to be Chattanooga FC. What they accomplished by having 18,000+ people in attendance for the NPSL National Final is what we all strive to be. They have set the bar very high. I also hear great things out of Detroit, Tulsa, Nashville and many other clubs that break 1,000-5,000 fans per game with awesome support groups. I really like what they do in New Orleans with the club name the Jesters and the supporters are named the Royal Court.
Diane Scavuzzo: Who do you believe is your biggest rival?
Billy Forte: Our closest rival in proximity is CD Aguiluchos USA, but to be honest all of our Golden Gate opponents are equally our rivals. That is a part of what makes the Golden Gate Conference such a good conference, there is a lot of parody with us being on the bottom end but capable of knocking off anybody. CD, Sacramento Gold, Sonoma County Sol and Real San Jose, we all have heated rivalries with each other and every game is a rivalry game.
Diane Scavuzzo: What is your favorite memory since becoming involved with SF Stompers?
Billy Forte: There are a lot, it is hard to just pick one, but among the top is playing in Kezar Stadium in San Francisco. Although, last season our 18 year old Isaiah Dairo, who we signed at 14 years old, got to start in the last game of the 2015 NPSL season at striker and he scored his first and second goals of his NPSL career. It is things like this that make for the best memories.
Diane Scavuzzo: As the 4th Division of the U.S. Soccer pyramid, the NPSL teams are eligible to participate in the U.S. Open Cup. How do you prepare for this competition?
Billy Forte: Typically in years past, the West Region would have a qualifying tournament to warm up for the season and send the winner to represent the NPSL West in the US Open Cup. This year US Soccer is now overseeing the whole tournament process and we are no longer allowed to have our qualifying tournament. So this season we are preparing to put together our strongest NPSL effort to date so that we can qualify for the US Open Cup for 2017.
Diane Scavuzzo: What are your goals for 2016?
Billy Forte: As always win an NPSL National Title and qualify for the US Open Cup. First we need to qualify for a West Regional Playoff spot for the first time in 5 seasons.
Main Image Photo Credit: Maciek Gudrymowicz
