My Thoughts on the Indy Eleven Stadium Situation
The once dream of a permanent soccer stadium in Indianapolis seemed to be actually happening, but in the last 6 months, that dream seems even more distant and could spell the end for the club
Background: I currently live in Indianapolis, Indiana and have lived in the Hoosier state since I was eight years old. The Indy Eleven have been my team since 2017 when I started following soccer in general. I am currently a member of the Brickyard Battalion (BYB), and have been for close to 5 years, and a season ticket holder for the Eleven - 4th year.
If you have been paying attention, the city of Indianapolis has been in the spotlight in the sports world over the past 6 months. The city hosted the 2024 NBA All-Star Game, the Indiana Fever drafted superstar Caitlin Clark, the Indy 500 just ran it’s 108th running, and the city had announced a soccer specific stadium would be built for the Indy Eleven - named Eleven Park.
Since then, the city has pulled out of the Eleven Park deal (poor finances, site had bodies from the past Greenlawn Cemetery, i.e a no longer viable plan). Seemingly killing that idea on June 3rd, when the Indianapolis City Council voted and approved a new Sports Development Area at the Downtown Heliport location - which the Eleven Park stadium was granted back in December. This along with the meeting between Indy mayor Joe Hogsett and MLS Commissioner Don Garber, and this new mystery MLS ownership group, the city looks poised to make a MLS bid by year’s end. Unfortunately, for Indy Eleven fans and supporters, our club may die as a result of this push by the city.
The reason behind this piece was to share my thoughts on all the mess and chaos above. So I will be very clear, I don’t care what league or what stadium the Indy Eleven - or whatever team ends up occupying the new stadium - plays in. I want the existing 10k+ fans to be heard and respected. Currently, it feels as if the city is catering to non-soccer fans more than it is to the current Indy Eleven supporters. This to me is just a bad, bad idea. I know the city wants to hitch it’s wagon to the world’s game - and fastest growing sport in the US - but attacking, ignoring, and downplaying the already existing fan base and culture in the process is certainly a choice.
Many casuals, have dismissed the above due to the team being a “minor league team”, and the city’s need to push for a “Major League” team. Proving how many don’t fully understand soccer, and more specifically, US soccer. For those who don’t know, the Indy Eleven compete in the USL-Championship (USL-C). A United States Soccer Federation (USSF) sanctioned Division 2 men’s soccer league.
To many, this would appear to be the minor leagues, a common practice amongst American sports. We can look at the Indianapolis Indians - a AAA affiliate of the MLB’s Pittsburgh Pirates - or to the Indy Fuel - a EHL affiliate of the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks - and see how minor league sports work here. But soccer is different. The Indy Eleven are an independently ran and operated team, and not affiliated with any MLS team in a way the Indians are to the Pirates.
A good contrast I have always used is college sports. The University of Indianapolis is Division 2, while Indiana University is a Division 1 school. Both are top levels for collegiate sports and are independently ran, so why should we only work to improve the Division 1 school? Both serve a major role in their respective communities, and to the sporting culture around the country. In the city’s pursuit of a MLS team not named the Indy Eleven, they are working against the team and potentially killing it.
Why would the Eleven die if a MLS team comes to town and Eleven Park doesn’t get built? If you’ve followed US soccer, you know it’s an exception that a city can handle both a USL and MLS team. We can point to San Diego Loyal who folded - almost immediately - when MLS announced San Diego as their next expansion team. Two examples come to mind where a city has both - Charlotte and Miami - and I would say neither are excelling with their respective MLS team.
There is also the fact that the USL-C is pushing and requiring all teams to have a permanent home by 2026. Failing to build Eleven Park, or to be included in the new heliport location, would see Indy fail this goal. The Eleven currently rent out Michael A Carrol Stadium on IU Indianapolis’ campus, and has done so since the team started in 2013 - minus 2 years when the team played in Lucas Oil.
Without a home, the Eleven would continue to face scheduling issues as well as failing to bring in less financially. Not that the Eleven would die immediately, but without securing a permanent home for the club could spell problems for the team’s long term success and stability.
Let me remind you, that the plan from the city is to get a site ready for a MLS team that still hasn’t been formally proposed, and even more importantly, not accepted by MLS. So in this whole ordeal, the city may well be killing off a team who consistently brings in 10k fans, showcasing Indy’s appetite for the sport, all in the hopes of a MLS team that isn’t confirmed.
I will leave you with this, I personally like the new Heliport site. There would be great access to public transit, closer to downtown, and would help spurn more development in the Southeast quad of the city - which needs it, and is probably the least developed quad of downtown. So, as the magnifying glass focuses in on the Indy Eleven, the city, and soccer fans, it is best we all work together, regardless who owns Eleven or what league the team plays in.
We need to honor the history the Eleven has formed over the past 11 seasons, and to continue to respect and acknowledge the fans, the BYB, and the team who have all played a part in building up this community. Killing that hurts everyone involved, including professional soccer in Indianapolis.
We didn’t ask to be in this situation and I feel for all of my fellow Indy Eleven supporters. Whomever gets the stadium or owns the team, the community and fan base MUST be heard and central to their plans going forward.
I urge the Eleven to sell the Diamond Chain site back to the city so we can properly honor those buried there and one day turn it into a memorial/park once all the bodies are removed. I urge the city to work with the Brickyard Battalion and Indy Eleven as they are the voice of Indy’s soccer community - where the BYB have existed before the Eleven even came to town. Finally, I urge Indy owner Ersal Odezmir to do the right thing and sell the team. Either to the mysterious MLS ownership group or to the recently added Chuck Surack. Professional soccer deserves to be in Indianapolis, and as the chant goes:
“You are my Indy, my only Indy
You make my happy when skies are grey
You never know just, how much I love you
Please don’t take my Indy away”
Given the high profile and on-field success Indy Eleven has enjoyed, it is highly unlikely the USL would kick it out of the Championship in 2026 or beyond. Instead, it's in EVERYBODY'S interest for the mystery billionaire MLS group to reach a mutually satisfying deal with Orsal Ezdemir and his group, e.g. including him in the ownership of the new MLS team, or the city paying him $$$ to buy back the Diamond Point site. The USL would not want to jeopardize the latter; instead it would show that USL Championship ownership can be highly profitable even when MLS threatens.
However, a few questions for you, Brett:
1. How could Orsal have handled this better? Do you think he was truly blindsided by the bodies/problems at Diamond Point and the sudden shift by the city?
2. Why so much mystery around the potential billionaire candidate owner of the MLS side? Do you think he/she is having second thoughts, given the backlash?
3. Are you able to secure an interview with Chuck Surack to get his thoughts on the situation? And why he decided to go invest during this time of turmoil?
Thanks!!
Hard to feel sorry for anything usl related... They are trying the same thing more or less in Milwaukee but to suggest current owner who's busted his balls to sell...come awn.
Would be nice if us governing body had some balls to build it right but mls too powerful