Following the first-ever win in team history, Madison’s new professional soccer team is preparing to play their first home game Saturday.
Madison was first announced as the location for a team in May 2018 as part of the rollout of a new soccer league with teams in mid-size American and Canadian cities. The league currently has 10 teams but is aiming to expand to 24 by 2021.
In November, the team announced it would be called Forward Madison FC after the name won an extensive campaign of public voting. The team’s logo prominently features a flamingo in reference to the flamingos planted every year on UW-Madison’s Bascom Hill.
The team will play their home games at Madison’s Breese Stevens Field, which was renovated in preparation for the season. The Madison City Council approved the renovations last March in an attempt to lure the team to the city.
Forward Madison, which agreed to partner with MLS team Minnesota United for their inaugural season, played their first game against Indianapolis-based team Indy Eleven in an exhibition match in Rockford, Illinois, in February. They also played a number of preseason matches against teams like the Marquette and UW-Madison men’s soccer teams.
They lost their first two competitive matches without scoring a goal but picked up their first win and two goals in team history Friday against Orlando City B.
Forward Madison will play their first-ever home game Saturday against South Carolina-based Greenville Triumph.
