The Ocala Stampede Soccer Club is putting Marion County on the international soccer map by offering a combination of exciting games, community outreach and ministry. Tryouts have drawn top high school and college level athletes from across the United States and beyond. Several inquiries also have come in from as far away as Brazil, Haiti and the United Kingdom. Even some professional players who didn’t make the cut have looked at PDL level play as a way to enhance their skills on the soccer field.
This elite team operates under the Premier Development League, a division of United Soccer Leagues. Now in its third decade of operation, the USL takes male and female players through different levels of play, from youth soccer to professional competition.
The PDL is an elite men’s division that has 64 teams in four conferences in the United States and Canada. In keeping with PDL rules, the Ocala Stampede will have 26 players between the ages of 17 and 23, although the program does allow for eight players to be older. Game days will have 18 players on the roster, 11 on the field and seven as standby players. Eight players can come from other countries.
The Ocala Stampede’s season will run from May 29 through the second week of July. It includes 16 games, eight away from home and four played locally at Trinity High School’s athletic field and at The Villages Polo Club. At the first game of the season, a portion of the proceeds will benefit Interfaith Emergency Services.
In addition to game days and practice sessions, players will be committed to assisting with summer soccer camps for children, and they will be active in local churches, working with youth groups, as well as community outreach programs. In that way, Ocala’s premier soccer team will be more than a sport. It will be a mission.
