PEORIA, Ill. — When Peoria City, USL League Two’s newest expansion soccer team, was announced in January of 2020; the team planned on starting play in May of 2020.
The COVID-19 global pandemic changed the team and league’s situation as they were forced to cancel the 2020 season. As a result, Peoria City’s start had to be pushed back to May of 2021.
Instead of viewing it as a lost year for the soccer club, chief administrator Jim DeRose says the team can now focus on details with the extra time.
“If you don’t look at this from the half-full side, it’s difficult. The challenge initially is that we were super excited to get the team going, but everything happened so fast,” said DeRose. “We’re looking at it as now, instead of hurried potentially, to much more of a comprehensive rollout.”
The biggest challenge, according to DeRose, will be regaining lost momentum.
“We felt like we had a lot of good energy going,” said DeRose. “We had a lot of positive feedback and a lot of people who wanted to be on board when the pandemic changed everybody’s business model, personal lives, and their opportunities with disposable income.”
When the team begins play in the summer of 2021, DeRose says he doesn’t see people having to decide what sport they want to go see in Peoria. The season will be starting as Rivermen season is ending, and there won’t be many times when game times conflict in the summer with Chiefs home stands, according to DeRose.
“We think it’s in this really unique space when school is ending, and people are looking for something to do,” said DeRose. “Our vision is to have an event around the soccer game.”
DeRose added that the team can now focus on having a proper supporter’s group surrounding the team with the extra time to prepare for the inaugural season.
