Youth soccer is no stranger in Wake County. The region has long been a hotbed for the world’s beautiful game and feeds into the nearby powerhouse collegiate programs competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
However, despite the craze for soccer in the area, the process of building a youth club is notoriously difficult, and decades of competition between organizations left competitive soccer fragmented. In late 2011, a few local business and soccer leaders came together to offer a different option for families in and around Holly Springs. “I had four children in four different clubs and I didn’t understand why their varying needs could not be met in one place,” said Chris McDonald, former site head at Novartis. “There were some good clubs in the area, but it seemed like each had a different niche.”
If you are looking to play soccer in Holly Springs, there are two options. For the casual player, there is the rec league, which is run by the Town of Holly Springs (https://www.hollyspringsnc.us/303/Soccer-League-Play) but for the more competitive team play, Wake FC will likely be on your radar.
Wake FC was formed to meet the demand for a club dedicated toward a cost-conscious, family-oriented, competitive soccer experience. Navigating the political waters of NC club soccer, however, proved challenging. “We laugh a little now when people talk about our club,” said Kim Slovensky, Wake FC’s club administrator and registrar. “There were a lot of humble days in the beginning.” In its first season, the fall of 2012, Wake FC had 20 teams, a drop in the bucket compared to Goliath-sized organizations in the state. The group was looking at building an indoor facility when it was approached by the Town of Holly Springs to partner on an outdoor complex. Wake FC agreed to work alongside and not compete with the town’s recreation soccer league, conduct free clinics for the town’s coaches and players and commit to a financial field agreement each year. “We were sitting on 20 teams and feeling pretty good, but that facility agreement was a big commitment,” Executive Director David Allred said. “It probably wasn’t a sound business decision by us on a number of levels considering where we were at with the club, but it has worked out well for everyone.”
The goal was to give kids an opportunity to enjoy the sport but also for kids from Holly Springs and southern Wake County to compete on an elite level. “We were committed then and are still committed to building an organization where kids are able to reach their soccer ambitions,” Wake FC Board President Robert Eimers said.
Seven years and a hundred plus teams later, the club is one of the best in the state and competes successfully on a regional and national level. Wake FC teams have had success in the North Carolina State Cup and advanced to regional and national events. In a recent national ranking, the Wake FC 2006 Boys Blue team was ranked No. 1 in the country. Last week, the 2005 Girls Blue team won the prestigious WAGs Tournament in Washington D.C.
Much of Wake FC’s success is owed to its leadership, many of whom are Wake County natives who brought their passion and experience to the youth soccer scene. David Allred, the club’s executive director, knows the area well. A standout goalkeeper at nearby Broughton high school, Allred went on to become an NC State great, winning an ACC Championship in 1990 and playing in an NCAA Final Four. His subsequent professional career in MLS and USL, as well as his coaching career at NC State and Duke University, helped form a foundation for the future Wake FC coaching staff. “We are fortunate to have a lot of successful players with college, professional and national team experience who are now coaches here,” Allred said. ”What the game teaches you is there is always another plateau to climb, there is always someone who may be better.”
The next climb for Wake FC starts this coming summer. In April and May, Wake FC purchased franchises in the Premier Development League (now USL League Two) and Women’s Premier Soccer League. Their inaugural seasons will start summer 2019. PDL is currently the third division in US Soccer, underneath USL League One and Major League Soccer. In the 2018 MLS draft, 66 of the 92 players chosen played in the PDL. Both PDL and WPSL will consist of many high-level college players, but Wake FC plans to use it as a developmental tool for its high-level players. “We want to have our top players participate and be in the fold,” Allred said. “We want our Carlos Rodon (professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox from Holly Springs) to come out of these leagues. We feel WPSL and PDL will be very functional in that our best players will have an opportunity to compete with players who are playing collegiately at some of the best schools in the country.” PDL and WPSL are the pinnacle of Wake FC’s player development pathway. That pathway includes participation in the North Carolina Youth Soccer Association, various national and regional leagues like National Premier League, support for high school and middle school soccer and local participation in the Triangle Premier League.
