November 14 – Peter Moore, former CEO of Premier League and EA Sports president and Electronic Arts’ chief competition officer, is back in the football business.
Having moved from Liverpool back to the USA, Moore has founded a new professional team in Santa Barbara, California, that will begin play in the USL Championship, the second tier of US Soccer, in 2026.
Santa Barbara Sky FC was originally slated to debut in the lower-tier USL League One this March. Instead Moore has acquired the rights of the suspended Memphis 901 franchise and will enter the Championship.
Speaking at the Soccerex Convention in Miami, Florida, Moore said the new team will be built locally and founded on the principle that the local community will benefit.
“The community is engaged,” said Moore, “we have 1,200 season ticket deposits… it is a labour of love in terms of convincing a city that has never had a pro sports team before now.”
Moore was speaking to delegates about the importance for clubs of building and engaging with fans, and how that was key to the success of creating a sustainable football business, but at the same time reflecting the club’s heritage and values.
With Santa Barbara Sky FC “we are starting with no sponsor, advertiser or player”.
The new team (Moore prefers to talk about ‘team’ rather than ‘franchise’) will play at local university UCSB’s Harder Stadium which has a 16,000 capacity.
“This is an incredible moment for Santa Barbara and our soccer community,” Moore said. “Joining the USL Championship allows us to compete at the league’s highest level and bring professional soccer to an area with deep roots in the sport.”
Delaying the team’s launch by a year is a result of the upgrade in league level requiring preparation for “a much bigger operation”. Memphis 901 was pulled out of the Championship following its failure to secure a soccer-specific stadium.
“I think this market can carry [a Championship club],” he said. “We’ll find out.”
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