A deeper dive into the proposal for pro soccer team at “The Joe”

Joe Davis Stadium will soon have a new look and also a new tenant to add to the city’s burgeoning profile.

Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle announced Tuesday what has been expected since the city decided to repurpose the venue, which at the time of its opening in 1985 was home to the Double-A minor league baseball Stars as well as local high school football/baseball games and concerts.

“The Joe,’’ being reconstructed to seat 6,000 as a multi-use arena, will once again be the site of high school football in 2023. Prior to that, however, it will serve as home to an MLS NEXT Pro team. The league bills itself as a pathway to Major League Soccer (MLS).

With a backdrop of bulldozers and piles of dirt at John Hunt Park’s Festival grounds with the 33-year old stadium on the horizon, Battle laid out the plan for professional soccer in the Rocket City. The team will be operated by Nashville Soccer Club (SC), which joined MLS as an expansion franchise in 2020.

Huntsville’s entry will be with MLS NEXT Pro, a feeder program for MLS.

“It’s gonna be a state of the art facility,’’ said Battle, flanked at the podium by Mark Russell of the Huntsville Sports Commission, City Director of Economic and Urban Development Shane Davis and City Council members Bill Kling and Frances Akridge. “If you see all the trucks moving around behind us that shows that there’s a lot of construction going on right now.

“We decided to upgrade the stadium partly because of the pressing demand for high school football games, but we also had had our eye on another sport. One of the city’s most popular, and fastest growing sports in the country, is soccer. The demand for soccer is so pressing that the the City of Huntsville expanded the Merrimack soccer complex with turf fields in Brahan Springs across the street and we’re adding new championship soccer fields (at John Hunt Park) to better serve the annual state soccer championships and other tournaments.’’

A proposal for the professional soccer team’s contract with the city will be made for approval at the Huntsville City Council meeting Thursday, July 14. The contract will allow the city to lease Joe Davis Stadium to NSH NEXTCO LLC, an affiliate of Nashville SC, which will operate the stadium year-round.

The new facility can also accommodate ultimate frisbee, rugby, lacrosse and events such as concerts and religious services.

Huntsville was seemingly an obvious choice for Nashville to expand.

“When we started building our MLS team in Nashville we talked a lot about the key ingredients that made Nashville a perfect soccer city: great energy, strong business community and a real civic pride,’’ Nashville SC CEO Ian Ayre said. “It’s quite obvious spending time in Huntsville that the same raw ingredients exist here.

“We could not be more excited about bringing our MLS Next Pro team to Huntsville and the amazing stadium project. There will be a lot of heavy lifting to make it all happen, but with lots of experience and a strong local partnership we are in the best possible position to make this a huge success.’’

MLS NEXT Pro President Charles Altchek welcomed Huntsville to the young league.

“When we launched MLS NEXT Pro, our goal was to bring soccer to new communities and fanbases, and we are thrilled to do that in Huntsville,’’ he said. “Having spent time in the city with Mayor Battle and his team I have seen firsthand the energy and innovation that is driving the city forward.

“Looking ahead to 2023, we are excited to partner with the city of Huntsville and Nashville Soccer Club to deliver soccer to North Alabama and its fans.’’

Information regarding the team’s identity, brand and schedule will be released later.