Lionsbridge Football Club, or Lionsbridge FC, is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club based in

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...

. The club was founded in 2017, and play in

USL League Two USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

. The club's colors are blue, black and white, and the club is named for the Lions Bridge, the iconic Peninsula landmark that has stood along the

James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...

and in the Mariners' Museum Park since 1923. The team plays its home games at TowneBank Stadium on the campus of

Christopher Newport University Christopher Newport University (CNU) is a public university in Newport News, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1960 as Christopher Newport College, an extension school of the College of William and Mary for mid-career working professiona ...

History

The original founders include Mike Vest, Kevin Joyce, and Dan Chenoweth, all of whom are Virginia Peninsula residents. Lionsbridge FC announced its launch on June 9, 2017, via a social media release. At the time of the team's announcement, the club invited fans to help determine its crest via a fan vote on social media. More than 600 people voted and the team unveiled the winning design in July 2017. The crest integrates four identifying features of the Virginia Peninsula - the Lions Bridge, the team's location and launch year, the James and York Rivers, and the region's importance as a hub of the United States military. Lionsbridge FC announced its league affiliation (Premier Development League) and TowneBank Stadium (then known as Pomoco Stadium) agreement (with Christopher Newport University) during a press conference on November 14, 2017. The club named Chris Whalley as its first head coach on February 14, 2018.

2018

On May 5, 2018, Lionsbridge FC played their inaugural game against Evergreen FC at the Evergreen Sportsplex, which ended in 1-1 draw, with Jalon Brown scoring the first goal in the club's history. On May 16, 2018, the club played their first home game, securing a 5-1 victory over Evergreen FC, with Max Poelker being the first Lionsbridge player to score at home. Lionsbridge finished their first season in the PDL South Atlantic Division in 3rd place, recording 4 wins, 5 draws, and 5 losses.

2019

In 2019, the PDL was rebranded into

as Lionsbridge continued to grow in popularity. The club broke a record for single-game attendance on July 3, 2019 against Tri-Cities Otters, drawing a crowd of 3,235, which was the largest attendance in USL League Two in 2019. On July 9, Lionsbridge FC played against a professional team for the first time in their history, losing 0-5 to the

Richmond Kickers Richmond Kickers is an American professional soccer club based in Richmond, Virginia. The Kickers compete as a member of USL League One (USL1). The club was established in 1993, and began play that same year as a United States Interregional S ...

in a friendly. LBFC finished the 2019 season in 5th place, with 5 wins, 3 draws, and 6 losses.

2020

The 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

2021

Lionsbridge FC experienced a marked improvement in the 2021 season. They finished 2nd in the South Atlantic Division, qualifying for the playoffs for the first time in the club's history. Attendance also continued to rise, with a new record set on July 3, 2021, when 3,417 people watched a 6-0 victory against Tobacco Road FC. Lionsbridge FC was eliminated in the Southern Conference Playoffs Quarterfinal with a 0-2 loss against

Tormenta FC 2 South Georgia Tormenta FC 2, officially known as Tormenta FC 2, is an American soccer team based in Statesboro, Georgia, United States. Founded in 2019, the club fields a pre-professional team in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American So ...

2022

For the 2022 season,

underwent a restructuring, and Lionsbridge FC was placed in the Chesapeake Division. This season proved to be their most successful yet, as they went undefeated in the league and won the Chesapeake Division title, the first league title in the club's history. Their season record of 12 wins and 2 draws also meant they were crowned the USL League Two Regular Season title. The attendance record was once again broken on July 3, 2022, when 3,547 people came out to watch Lionsbridge FC defeat Virginia Beach United in the Coastal Virginia Challenge Cup.

2023

In 2023, Lionsbridge FC successfully defended their Chesapeake Division title and also won the Eastern Conference title for the first time in the clubs history. They reached the USL League Two National Final but lost 1-2 to Ballard FC, with the decisive goal coming from a last-minute free kick by Peter Kingston.

Players and staff

Current staff

* Chris Whalley – ''Head Coach'' * Jamie Gunderson – ''Assistant Coach'' * Josh Spencer – ''Assistant Coach'' * Fernando Zuniga – ''Assistant Coach''

Notable former players

This list contains former players who went on to play professionally after they left the club. * 2018 Tom Devitt –

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, Blythe United, Stranraer FC, Hebburn Town * 2018 Josh Spencer – Hinckley A.F.C. * 2018 Joe Rice –

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. * 2018 Fortia Munts – Valentine Eleebana Phoenix (Australia), Unio Esportiva Vic * 2018, 2020-21 Simon Fitch –

* 2018, 2020-21 Adrian Rebollar -

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* 2019 JP Scearce –

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* 2019 Oscar Ramsay –

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, North Shore United * 2019 Luke Brown – Hitchin Town FC, Stowmarket Town FC * 2019 Rene White –

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* 2019 Thibaut Jacquel –

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* 2019 Emeka Eneli -

* 2020 Alex Touche –

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* 2021 Matthew Bentley – Minnesota United, Dover Athletic,

* 2021 Peter Dearle -

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* 2023 Matty Cornish – Darlington FC

Head coaches

* Chris Whalley – (2018–Present)

Year by year

Supporters

The club’s official supporters group, known as ''The Defenders of the Bridge'', occupies the supporters section dubbed, 'The Lions Den.' In addition to their vocal support through singing and chanting, the Defenders are known for waving flags and setting off smoke during matches. They also frequently travel to away games and are actively involved in community service. Lionsbridge FC has consistently led its conference in attendance for each of its six seasons. Among over 100 USL League Two clubs, Lionsbridge ranked 4th nationally in attendance in 2018, 3rd in 2019, 3rd in 2021, and 2nd in 2022.

Records

Most appearances

''Competitive matches only. Appearances as substitute included in total.''

Most goals

''Competitive matches only.''

Honors

League *

**Runners Up (1):

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

Eastern Conference **Champions (1):

**Runners Up (1):

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

Chesapeake Division **Champions (3):

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Cup *Coastal Virginia Challenge Cup **Champions (6): 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Awards *

Franchise of the Year: 2019 *

Eastern Conference Attendance Leaders: 2018, 2022, 2024 *

Southern Conference Attendance Leaders: 2019, 2020, 2021

Jersey sponsors

Lionsbridge FC's inaugural season sponsors included

Chick-fil-A Chick-fil-A, Inc. ( , a Word play, play on the American English pronunciation of "wikt:filet#Pronunciation, filet") is an American fast food restaurant chain and the largest chain specializing in Chicken burger, chicken sandwiches. Headquarter ...

(Official Jersey Sponsor), Riverside Health System (Official Sports Medicine Provider), Planet Fitness (Official Health Club), Nike (Official Apparel Supplier) and Financial Security Group.

References

{{Virginia Sports Soccer clubs in Virginia 2017 establishments in Virginia Association football clubs established in 2017 Sports in Newport News, Virginia