 | ||||
| Full name | Maryland Bobcats Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2016; 9 years ago (2016) | |||
| Stadium | Maryland SoccerPlex Boyds, Maryland, U.S. | |||
| Capacity | 5,000 | |||
| President | Jay Saba | |||
| Coach | Alex Kao[1] | |||
| League | National Independent Soccer Association | |||
| Fall 2021 | 9th Place | |||
| Website | https://www.marylandbobcatsfc.com/ | |||
 Current season | ||||
Maryland Bobcats FC, formerlyWorld Class Premier Elite (WCPE), are an Americansoccer team and academy based inMontgomery County, Maryland, which was founded in 2016. The organization's professional team competes within theNational Independent Soccer Association in the third division of U.S. Soccer. The Bobcats also field teams in both theMaryland Super Soccer League andEastern Premier Soccer League.
The club began as a men's amateur team as a way for friends to continue to stay in touch and for players to stay match fit when looking for potential professional playing opportunities. It went through multiple name changes, settling on World Class Premier Elite as the club was gaining prominence. The club ended up having two men's teams playing in separate areas of the metro Washington D.C. area. WCP were the 2018 Spring Season champions in both the Washington Premier League (WPL) and Maryland Major Soccer League (MMSL).[2][3] Both leagues are affiliated with theUnited States Adult Soccer Association (USASA).
In fall of 2018, World Class Premier took part in the2019 U.S. Open Cup qualification tournament and reached the final round before falling toVirginia United FC in a shootout.[4]
WCP were announced as theUnited Premier Soccer League's newest expansion into Maryland on November 30, 2018.[5] The team competes in the Northeast Conference and plays its UPSL home games atMontgomery Blair High School's football stadium, inSilver Spring, Maryland in compliance with UPSL's Minimum Standards.
During the2019 Spring season, the team went nearly undefeated in the Mid-Atlantic Division North (9–0–1) and finished the regular season in first place. It went on to win the Division playoffs, beatingSan Lee FC and eventuallyBaltimore United FC in the final. WCP fell to eventual championsFlorida Tropics SC in the National Quarterfinals on July 13.[6]
The following season, WCP (which later changed its name to Maryland Bobcats FC mid-season) finished the regular season undefeated. In the playoffs, the team won five straight games to win the UPSL's Mid-Atlantic Division, Northeast Conference, and eventually the Fall 2019 National Championship. The final, which was played atBarry University's Buccaneer Field inMiami Shores, Florida, saw the Bobcats defeatSanta Ana Winds FC, 3–1, in extra time.
On September 26, 2019, it was announced that the club would join theNational Premier Soccer League as an expansion team. The Bobcats, originally accepted as WCP, were set to begin play in the Northeast Region's Mid-Atlantic Conference in 2020 with home matches being played atMontgomery Blair High School inSilver Spring, Maryland.[7] However, in March 2020, the league announced the2020 season was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[8]
In late 2019, the club announced it would be rebranding to Maryland Bobcats FC.
The club announced a restructuring in the spring of 2020, which sees the Professional team on top, the Reserve Team (Maryland Bobcats FC II) underneath, and youth teams beneath the men's teams. The youth teams will have access to the men's teams and vice versa, and identified players will be brought up to potentially train and travel with the men's teams.
On August 6, 2020, Maryland Bobcats were announced as a new member of theEastern Premier Soccer League.[9]
In mid July 2020, the Bobcats were announced as a participant in the inauguralNISA Independent Cup, a regional tournament held by theNational Independent Soccer Association, aUSSF sanctioned Division 3 league, between its professional members and independent pro / amateur teams.[10][11] The Bobcats were set the host the event's Mid-Atlantic Region which includedFC Baltimore Christos,New Amsterdam FC, and theNew York Cosmos atMaryland SoccerPlex before a surge inCOVID-19 cases forced its postponement and relocation.[12] Following multiple weather delays, the Bobcats won the Mid-Atlantic region on Saturday, October 10.[13]
On July 27, 2020, the Bobcats announced it had applied to join NISA.[14][15] If accepted, it would be the state's first professional outdoor soccer team sinceCrystal Palace Baltimore. Maryland was officially announced as a new league member on October 13, 2020, with plans to begin play in fall 2021.[16][17]
On October 2, 2024, NISA announced that the Bobcats were disqualified from participating in the 2024 playoffs for not being "in compliance with the league nor theU.S. Soccer Federation", despite finishing the regular season with the league's best record.[18]
The primary supporters' group of Maryland Bobcats FC is known as the Old Bae Brigade. Born out of supporters that attendedDC United matches, the Old Bae Brigade sits behind the opposing team's bench at home matches.[19] Over the years, the supporter group has established several traditions, such as the bobcat fact of the match and accentuating the "O" in theAmerican National Anthem likeBaltimore Orioles fans during the pregame.[20]
        2020 home |    2020 away |     2020 third |
| Years | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor | Sleeve sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Icarus | Holiday Inn College Park | Helping Hands Therapeutic Services, Committed to Change |
| 2021 | Hummel | Dog Haus | Kaizo Health |
| 2022 | Hummel | Jimmy's Famous Seafood | Kaizo Health |
| 2023 | Hummel | Bobcats Youth Academy | Kaizo Health |
| No. | Position | Nation | Player |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK |  USA | Alexander Sutton |
| 2 | DF | USA | Elmer Villatoro |
| 3 | MF | USA | Samuel Solomon |
| 4 | MF |  CIV | Dominique Kosséhassé |
| 5 | DF |  SLE | Mohamed Conteh |
| 6 | DF | USA | Abdul Kooistra |
| 7 | FW | USA | Malik Thom |
| 8 | MF | CIV | Josselin Possian |
| 9 | FW |  FRA | Karl Mbouombouo |
| 10 | FW | FRA | Nicolas Likulia |
| 11 | MF |  HON | Darwin Espinal |
| 12 | GK | SLE | Sylvanus Eku Thompson |
| 13 | DF | USA | Jimmy Filerman |
| 14 | MF |  ESP | Marcos Sotarello |
| 15 | DF | USA | Richard Forka |
| 16 | MF | USA | Pierre Richard |
| 17 | FW | USA | Teshawn Johnson |
| 18 | FW |  SEN | Abdou Mbacke Thiam |
| 20 | MF | USA | Iker Bustamante |
| 22 | MF | USA | Andrew Wivell |
| 23 | MF | USA | Manuel Gonzalez |
| 24 | MF |  IRL | Gavin Shiels |
| 27 | GK | USA | John Hollinger |
| 28 | DF | USA | Phillip Brown |
| 29 | DF | USA | Ryan Machado-Jones |
| 33 | MF | USA | Akingbolahan Akinkoye |
| 34 | DF | USA | Filip Burnett |
| 35 | MF | USA | Abdulrahmane Madad |
| 72 | DF |  EGY | Abdellah Mansour |
| 77 | FW | USA | Caleb Pritchett |
| 81 | DF | EGY | Zeiad Elsayed |
| 93 | FW |  COD | William Joe Wangu |
| Name | Nat | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| Samuel Okpodu |  Nigeria | March 24, 2021 – November 22, 2021[22] |
| Sylvain Rastello |  Canada | January 5, 2022 – February 21, 2023 |
| Alex Kao | France | March 1, 2023 –[23] |
| Name | Nat | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| Sylvain Rastello[24] | Canada | January 5, 2022 – February 21, 2023 |
| Year | League | Regular season | Playoffs | U.S. Open Cup | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Spring | UPSL | 1st, Mid-Atlantic Division | National Quarterfinals | Forth Qualifying Round | Lost toFlorida Tropics SC in the National Quarterfinal |
| 2019 Fall | 1st, Beltway Division[25] | National Champions | Third Qualifying Round | DefeatedSanta Ana Winds FC in the National Final[26][27] | |
| 2020 | NPSL | No league season due to COVID | |||
| 2020 Fall | UPSL | Sat out season due toCOVID-19 pandemic[28] | |||
| 2020 Fall | NISA | Did not participate | |||
| 2021 Spring | 5th | Did not qualify | Cancelled | – | |
| 2021 Fall | 9th | – | – | ||
| 2022 Season | 5th | National Quarterfinals | Second Round | Lost toASC San Diego in National Quarterfinals | |
| 2023 Season | 5th | National Quarterfinals | Third Round | Lost toASC San Diego in National Quarterfinals | |
National Independent Soccer Association
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