Real Maryland F.C., commonly known as the Real Maryland Monarchs, was 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 ...

team based in

Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, and is part of the Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fourth ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Founded in 2007, the team played in the

USL Premier Development League 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 ...

(PDL), the fourth tier of the

American Soccer Pyramid The United States soccer league system is a series of professional and amateur association football, soccer leagues based, in whole or in part, in the United States. Although sometimes called the American soccer pyramid, teams and leagues are no ...

, in the South Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference, having voluntarily self-relegated from the

USL Second Division The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...

at the end of 2010. The team suspended operations after the 2012 season. From 2009 to 2012, the team played its home games at Roy Lester Stadium on the campus of

Richard Montgomery High School Richard Montgomery High School (RMHS) is a State school, public Secondary school, high school located in Rockville, Maryland. It is part of the Montgomery County Public Schools (Maryland), Montgomery County Public Schools system. RMHS hosts the ...

. The team's colors are white, gold and black. The team's nickname, the Monarchs or "Los Monarcas", is intended to reflect the state of Maryland's colonial roots under Lords Calvert and

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. In addition to the professional team, the club fielded a team in the USL's

Super-20 League USL Youth, formerly known as the Super Y League, is a youth association football, soccer league with teams from the United States and Canada. Founded in 1999, the league is affiliated with United States Soccer Federation, U.S. Soccer and used ...

, a league for players 17 to 20 years of age run under the

United Soccer Leagues United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

umbrella. The club also fielded four teams in the USL's

Super Y-League USL Youth, formerly known as the Super Y League, is a youth soccer league with teams from the United States and Canada. Founded in 1999, the league is affiliated with U.S. Soccer and used to identify potential professional talent. USL Youth c ...

, with teams in the U14, U15, U16, and U17 divisions.

History

Real Maryland was launched in July 2007 as an expansion franchise joining the

in 2008. The club's majority owner, Victor Moran, named the club Real Maryland because he intended "to create a REAL event, not just a soccer game", and hired former

Northern Virginia Royals Northern Virginia FC (formerly Northern Virginia Royals and Evergreen FC, and commonly known as NoVa FC) is an American soccer club from Leesburg, Virginia competing in USL League Two, USL W League, Eastern Premier Soccer League and Major Arena ...

head coach

Silvino Gonzalo Silvino is a masculine given name and a surname. Bearers of the name include: Given name * Silvino Barsana Agudo (1917–2010), Filipino lawyer and politician, governor of Batanes province * Silvino Bercellino (born 1946), Italian retired footbal ...

to lead his team in its inaugural campaign. The Monarchs played their first official game on April 20, 2008, a 1–0 loss to the

Western Mass Pioneers Western Mass Pioneers is an American soccer team based in Ludlow, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1998, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid. The team plays its home games at Lusitano Stadium ...

, but secured their first ever victory the following week with a 2–0 win over the

Pittsburgh Riverhounds Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC is an American professional soccer team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1998 and beginning play in 1999, the club plays in the Eastern Conference of the USL Championship, the second tier of the American ...

; the first goal in franchise history was scored by Bill Brindley. Unfortunately, the Monarchs' first season in USL2 was a difficult one, despite the on-field presence of former Salvadoran internationals

Dennis Alas Dennis Jonathan Alas Morales (born 10 January 1985 in San Salvador) is a Salvadoran former footballer. He was banned for life in 2013, for match fixing while playing for the El Salvador national football team. He is the older brother of El Sa ...

and

Ronald Cerritos Ronald Osvaldo Cerritos Flores (born January 3, 1975) is a Salvadoran former professional footballer who played as a striker. Cerritos was once the all-time leader in assists of the Major League Soccer team, the San Jose Earthquakes, with 47. ...

. They secured two more victories in May, 3–2 over the

Cleveland City Stars The Cleveland City Stars were an American professional soccer team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Founded in 2006, the team played in the USL First Division (USL-1), the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2009. The club folde ...

and 2–1 over the

Wilmington Hammerheads Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017. Histor ...

, but after conceding a last minute goal to lose 2–1 at home to Cleveland on June 8, fell apart thereafter, and by mid-season were already adrift at the bottom of the standings. Head coach Gonzalo was replaced by

Antonio Carlos Vieira Antonio Carlos Vieira (born 7 February 1956) is a former Brazilian football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualifie ...

in July, but he could do nothing to halt the slide. They suffered several embarrassing defeats towards the end of the regular season, losing 4–0 to the

Harrisburg City Islanders Harrisburg City Islanders, known as Penn FC in their final season, were an American professional soccer team based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 2003, the team most recently played in the USL Pro, the second tier of the ...

, 5–2 to the

, 6–0 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 ...

, and 8–0 to the

Charlotte Eagles The Charlotte Eagles is an American amateur soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1991, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games at the ...

, their worst result of the season. A 1–1 tie with the

on the last day of the regular season did little to brighten the mood at the Maryland Soccer Plex, as the Monarchs finished dead last in the division; to make matters worse, the team was then docked a point by the league for rules infringement, leaving them seven points adrift of their closest rivals, the

Bermuda Hogges Bermuda Hogges were a Bermudian football team based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Founded in 2006, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Mid Atlantic Division of the Eastern ...

Nilson Perez Nilson is both a surname and a given name variant of Nelson. It thus can also be an anglicized version of the Scandinavian surnames Nilsen, Nielsen, and Nilsson. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Anton Nilson (1887–1989), Swedis ...

was the team's top scorer in its debut season, with six goals. In 2010, it was announced that the Monarchs would move from the USL Second Division to the USL Premier Development League (PDL). In November 2012, the team announced that it was suspending operations for both the PDL team and the youth programs.

Players

2012 roster

Staff

* David Noyes - ''General Manager'' *

- ''Head Coach'' * David Edlow - ''Assistant Coach'' * Val Teixeira - ''Assistant Coach'' * Edward Brown - ''Assistant/Goalkeeper Coach'' * Jordan Friedlander-Tapia - ''Assistant U-20s and U-17s''

Notable former players

''This list of notable former players comprises players who went on to play professional soccer after playing for the team in the Premier Development League, or those who previously played professionally before joining the team.'' *

* David Bulow *

Rod Dyachenko Rodion Sergeyevich Dyachenko (; born 22 September 1983 in Georgiyevsk) is a Russian former footballer who played as a forward. Career Youth and college Dyachenko was born in the Russian SFSR in the Soviet Union prior to the breakup of the coun ...

* Gareth Evans * Brian Levey *

Rey Ángel Martínez Rey Ángel "Boom-Boom" Martínez (born May 13, 1980) is a Cuban footballer who most recently played for the Syracuse Silver Knights. Career Professional Martínez began his career with Ciudad la Habana in his native Cuba, before defecting to ...

* Nicki Paterson * Sean Rush * Israel Sesay *

Mason Trafford Mason Trafford (born August 21, 1986) is a Canadian former association football, soccer player who most recently played for Canadian Premier League club Cavalry FC. Besides Canada, Trafford has played in the United States, Finland, and China. C ...

Year-by-year

Head coaches

(2008, 2011–2012) *

(2008) * Anthony Hudson (2009–2010)

Stadium

Maryland SoccerPlex The Maryland SoccerPlex is a sports complex in Germantown, Maryland, although its mailing address is directed to Boyds, Maryland. The facility, completed in 2000 and operated by the Maryland Soccer Foundation (MSF), has 21 natural grass fields, ...

;

Germantown, Maryland Germantown is an urbanized census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. With a population of 91,249 as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous community in Maryland, after Baltimore and Columbia, Maryland, Col ...

(2008) * Roy Lester Stadium at

;

(2009–2012)

Average attendance

Attendance stats are calculated by averaging each team's self-reported home attendances from the historical match archive a
here
*2009: 608 *2010: 798 *2011: 923 *2012: 1,051

References

External links

Official site
{{WashingtonDCSports Defunct soccer clubs in Maryland Association football clubs established in 2007 Soccer clubs in Maryland USL Second Division teams 2007 establishments in Maryland