Rhode Island FC

Founding and inaugural season (2019-present)

On December 2, 2019, under the leadership of Brett M. Johnson, the co-founder and owner of Rhode Island FC, it was announced that a USL Championship team playing in a new soccer-specific stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island would be a centerpiece for a large development project to be named Tidewater Landing. The stadium was proposed to seat at least 10,000 fans and be connected to shops, apartments, offices, and a hotel in a $400-million plan. The project's initial goal was to have the team playing by 2022. In order to move forward with the project, team ownership requested partial funding from the State of Rhode Island and City of Pawtucket, with the remainder covered by team ownership. Plans moved slowly due to inflation and supply-chain delays caused by COVID-19, and costs increased from initial projections. Rhode Island's Governor, Dan McKee, cast the deciding vote in a Rhode Island Commerce Corporation meeting on July 25, 2022, to provide funding and allow construction of the stadium. Groundbreaking occurred on August 12, 2022. The day after the team name was announced, RIFC allowed fans to place advance deposits for purchase of season tickets, which could be applied for a later purchase. The team reported success with the deposits with more than 2,500 in the first week, exceeding volume from any previous USL franchise at their debut. By December, the team reported receiving season ticket deposits from customers in each…