 | |||
| Full name | South Georgia Tormenta Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Ibises | ||
| Founded | 2015; 10 years ago (2015) | ||
| Stadium | Tormenta Stadium Statesboro, Georgia | ||
| Capacity | 3,500 | ||
| Coordinates | 32°24′35″N81°47′46″W / 32.409722°N 81.796111°W /32.409722; -81.796111 | ||
| Co-owners |
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| Head coach | Mark McKeever | ||
| League | USL League One | ||
| 2025 |
| ||
| Website | tormentafc | ||
 Current season | |||
South Georgia Tormenta FC, or simplyTormenta FC, is an Americansoccer organization based inStatesboro, Georgia, United States. Founded in 2015, the club fields a professional team inUSL League One, the third tier of theAmerican Soccer Pyramid, as well as a pre-professional team inUSL League Two calledTormenta FC 2 (which is on hiatus since the 2023 season)[1] and a pre-professional team inUSL W League. The team colors are midnight navy, sky blue, silver, and magenta. The team's crest shows an ibis.[2][3] Tormenta FC's USL League One team and the W-League team both emerged victorious in 2022, becoming national champions in their respective leagues.
South Georgia Tormenta FC was founded in 2015 making it Statesboro's first pro team in any sport in 60 years, since theStatesboro Pilots of baseball'sGeorgia State League folded in 1955. Owned by Tormenta FC LLC, the operations of the franchise are steered by Darin Van Tassell and Netra Van Tassell. The word "tormenta" means "storm" in Spanish.[4] The name also serves as a tribute to the former Storm Soccer Academy based out of Savannah, which was incorporated into the Tormenta FC academy system upon the team's founding.[5]
On May 21, 2016, Tormenta FC hosted its inaugural home match against theCarolina Dynamo in front of 3,105 fans.[6]
Tormenta FC won their first match in club history on June 16, 2016 against theCharlotte Eagles in a 2–0 decision.[7] The club then followed up that victory with a second consecutive win on June 18, 2016 by defeating theCarolina Dynamo 1–0.[8] On June 23, 2016, Tormenta FC not only scored their first ever home goal, but the team managed to win their first home match as well; a 1–0 victory overSouthern West Virginia King's Warriors.[9]
Tormenta had a five-game win streak snapped in a 2–1 defeat against the King's Warriors on July 2, 2016.
The club finished 6th out of 8 in the South Atlantic Division.[10]
Following their inaugural season, Tormenta announced the signing of "friendship agreements" with FC Academy in Monte Compatri, Italy, ASD Grottaferrata Calcio in Grottaferrata, Italy and KF Tirana in Tirana, Albania.[11]
On December 6th, Tormenta FC was named "New Franchise of the Year" at the PDL's Winter Summit due to the club's successes on and off the field.[12]
Tormenta FC finished the2017 season in 4th place in the PDL's South Atlantic Division, posting a 7-3-4 record with a +17 goal differential.
Despite falling short of a postseason appearance, the team hosted the PDL's Eastern Conference playoff semifinal and final matches atEagle Field.[13]
On January 25, 2018, South Georgia Tormenta FC was announced as the first founding member ofUSL League One for 2019 in a press conference held atPaulson Stadium's Bishop Fieldhouse. The team had an undefeated regular season in 2018, clinching the Deep South Division championship. Tormenta FC hosted the conference playoffs in Statesboro, Georgia, falling toThe Villages SC in the Conference Semifinals.[14]
On March 29, 2019, Tormenta FC hosted the inaugural match ofUSL League One, winning 1–0 against theGreenville Triumph and setting a new attendance record of 3,519.[15] After a successful start to the season that saw the team in second place, a second-half downturn with 2 wins in their last 16 matches brought them down to 6th place and out of a playoff spot.
After the conclusion of the season, Tormenta completed the first outgoing transfer in USL League One history, sending Defender of the YearConner Antley to USL Championship sideIndy Eleven for an undisclosed fee.[16]
On September 16, 2020, Tormenta announced that it had promotedJohn Miglarese to Technical Director, and promote previous assistant coach and head coach of Tormenta 2,Ian Cameron, to head coach of the first team.[17] The team finished 8th out of 11 in the USL League One table in a modified 16 match season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
On June 8, 2021, Tormenta announced they will be fielding a women's side to compete in the newUSL W League beginning in 2022.[18] Despite holding a 5th place spot halfway through the year, the USL League One team ultimately finished in 11th place, five points from the bottom of the table.
In the off season, the club signed formerTottenham Hotspur F.C. andEnglish youth international playerKazaiah Sterling.[19]Tormenta achieved a team-best Round of 32 appearance in theU.S. Open Cup, defeating USL Championship sides Charleston Battery and Birmingham Legion before falling to MLS side Inter Miami, 3-1. On October 2nd, 2022, the club opened their own soccer specific stadium,Tormenta Stadium, in a 1-1 draw against the Richmond Kickers. The club finished theseason in third place, qualifying for the first round of the USL League One playoffs. In the club's first ever playoff appearance, they defeated sixth seededCharlotte Independence and then second seededGreenville Triumph before winning the USL League One Final againstChattanooga Red Wolves SC by a score of 2–1 in front of a home crowd of 3,045.[20][21][22]
Tormenta again saw success in theU.S. Open Cup the following season, notching a win over USL Championship sideRio Grande Valley FC Toros to face MLS sideCharlotte FC in the Third Round, where they were defeated 4-1. The club remained in playoff contention until the final day of theregular season, finishing one point away from the 6th place spot after a 1-1 draw with theCharlotte Independence.
In 2024, Tormenta equalized their record Round of 32U.S. Open Cup appearance, besting the CFL Spurs,Savannah Clovers,andMiami FC, and fell to theCharleston Battery in extra time. The club suffered a downturn in form in the second half of the season, and finished in 10th of 12 teams. The club also made its debut in theUSL Cup, finishing with a 0-4-4 record in the East Group, including two penalty shootout wins.
On July 24th, 2024, Tormenta FC agreed to transfer defenderNick Akoto toEFL League One sideBurton Albion FC, breaking the league's record transfer fee for an outgoing player and becoming the first paid international transfer in league history.[23]
Tormenta FC currently plays atTormenta Stadium, asoccer-specific stadium in Statesboro with a current capacity of 3,500. The stadium plans to have a capacity of 5,300 when completed.[24][25][26][27] They previously played atEagle Field at Erk Russell Park on the campus ofGeorgia Southern University from 2016 to most of the 2022 season.
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 2016–2018 |  Nike | Optim Orthopedics |
| 2019–2023 |  Adidas | |
| 2024 | Puma | |
| 2025–present | Puma[28] | SubAir Sport |
| Season | League | P | W | L | D | GF | GA | Pts | Pos | Playoffs | US Open Cup | Top Scorer1 | Head Coach | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Goals | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | PDL | 14 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 22 | 18 | 21 | 5th, South Atlantic | Did not qualify | Ineligible |  Sam Lofts | 4 | Ben Freakley |
| 2017 | PDL | 14 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 34 | 17 | 25 | 4th, South Atlantic | Did not qualify | DNQ | Jamie Merriam | 9 | John Miglarese |
| 2018 | PDL | 14 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 30 | 10 | 36 | 1st, Deep South | Conference Semifinals | 2R |  Marco Micaletto | 4 | John Miglarese |
| 2019 | USL1 | 28 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 32 | 34 | 37 | 6th | Did not qualify | 2R | Marco Micaletto | 8 | John Miglarese |
| 2020 | USL1 | 16 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 19 | 22 | 19 | 8th | Did not qualify | Not held |  Nil Vinyals | 4 | John Miglarese (2–4–4) Ian Cameron (3–3–0) |
| 2021 | USL1 | 28 | 8 | 14 | 6 | 36 | 47 | 30 | 11th | Did not qualify | Not Held | Marco Micaletto | 11 | Ian Cameron |
| 2022 | USL1 | 30 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 42 | 40 | 45 | 3rd | Champions | R32 | Kazaiah Sterling | 13 | Ian Cameron |
| 2023 | USL1 | 32 | 12 | 14 | 6 | 55 | 56 | 42 | 7th | Did not qualify | 3R | Kazaiah Sterling | 13 | Ian Cameron |
| 2024 | USL1 | 22 | 4 | 10 | 8 | 33 | 42 | 20 | 10th | Did not qualify | R32 |  Sebastián Vivas | 8 | Ian Cameron |
| 2025 | USL1 | 30 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 55 | 47 | 45 | 6th | Quarterfinals | 3R |  Niall Reid-Stephen | 13 | Ian Cameron (4-10-4)Mark McKeever (9-1-2) |
^ 1.Top Scorer includes statistics from league matches only.
| Coach | Nationality | Start | End | G | W | L | D | GF | GA | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ben Freakley |  United States | 2016 | January 11, 2017 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 22 | 18 | 042.86 |
| John Miglarese | United States | January 11, 2017 | September 18, 2020 | 70 | 30 | 19 | 21 | 109 | 80 | 042.86 |
| Ian Cameron | Scotland | September 18, 2020 | August 8, 2025 | 104 | 41 | 42 | 21 | 156 | 159 | 039.42 |
| Mark McKeever | Scotland | August 8, 2025 | present |
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Mark McKeever –Head Coach Jordan Bell –Assistant & Goalkeeping Coach Tom Valcke –SeniorDirector, Franchise Development Michael Blackmon –VP, The Tormenta Group John Schlieman –Senior VP, Corporate Partnerships Colt Carver –Senior Director, Soccer Operations Camryn Brooks –Coordinator, Soccer Operations Loren Kersey –Coordinator, Soccer Operations Colby Beard –Coordinator, Ticket Sales and Service Sally Scott –Senior Director, Ticketing and Fan Engagement Johnnie Sanchez –Coordinator, Academy Recruitment Joleen Tomlinson –Team Chef Reggie Hodges –Supervisor, Grounds Donald Roberts –Director, Facilities Khristina Harper –Director of Accounting Lindsay Paquette –Executive Staff Lisa Lee –Executive Staff Brad Nein –VP, Tormenta FC AcademyIn January 2019, the team announced that it would continue to field a team inUSL League Two while also playing professionally in USL League One.[33] The team,Tormenta FC 2, continues to play in the Deep South Division and has won the conference once in 2019. During its inaugural season, the team won the Southern Conference for the first time in organization history.[34]
The 2 team has also qualified for two U.S. Open Cup tournaments in2019 and2020, with the latter being cancelled and the tournament spot being transferred to2021.[35][36]
The club announced in January 2022 that Tormenta 2 would take a one-year hiatus from USL League Two in order for the club to focus on developing its academy.[1]
| Year | Pos | Player | Country | Honor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USL Premier Development League | ||||
| 2016 | D | Peyton Ericson | USA | All-Eastern Conference Team |
| 2018 | M | Marco Micaletto | ITA | All-League Team All-Southern Conference Team |
| M | Toni Soler | ESP | All-Southern Conference Team | |
| USL League One | ||||
| 2019 | D | Conner Antley | USA | Defender of the Year All-League First Team |
| D | Mikie Rowe |  IRE | Goal of the Year | |
| 2020 | M | Marco Micaletto | ITA | All-League Second Team |
| 2021 | M | Marco Micaletto | ITA | All-League First Team |
| 2022 | M | Adrian Billhardt | GER | Comeback Player of the Year |
| D | Jake Dengler | USA | All-League Second Team | |
| M | Gabriel Cabral |  BRA | All-League Second Team | |
| F | Kazaiah Sterling | ENG | All-League Second Team | |
| 2023 | M | Jackson Khoury |  LBN | Young Player of the Year |
| 2024 | F | Pedro Fonseca | BRA | All-League Second Team |
| 2025 | F | Niall Reid-Stephen | BAR | All-League First Team |
