Long Island's new minor-league soccer team, the Island F.C., adds youth program based in Suffolk County
The Island F.C. Credit: Barry Sloan
The new minor-league soccer team coming to Long Island — called The Island F.C. — officially was awarded membership into MLS Next, the league's youth development league, on Tuesday. The program will have two youth teams that will establish training sites in Suffolk County and begin tryouts in January.
The youth teams (U13-U19) will begin play in 2026-27. One club will play in the top-tier Homegrown Division, which features 152 other clubs and a 10-month season. The other club will play in the second-tier Academy Division, which has approximately 230 clubs and is built around the high school soccer schedule so players can play for both.
“This is a transformative moment for soccer on Long Island,” club principal owner Mitchell Rechler said in a Tuesday news release. “Our vision is to create a complete pathway from grassroots to professional soccer within the MLS ecosystem, and MLS Next is a critical piece of that journey.”
The launch of The Island F.C. and the plan to build a privately funded 2,500-seat stadium at the Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale was announced in October. The team, which is not affiliated with any MLS club, is set to debut in March 2027 and will compete in the MLS Next Pro league.
Peter Zaratin, the club’s managing partner, said: “This commitment reflects our goal to make elite soccer development accessible to all communities across Long Island.”
Plans for The Island F.C. are estimated to cost $25 million — about $20 million for the new complex and around $5 million to launch the team.
The initial plan included the development of a youth pipeline, and Tuesday’s news confirmed that would be the case.
“What makes us unique is that most professional teams that come in start with the professionals, and then from the top they build down,” Rechler told Newsday last month. “We've already had the youth development foundation, and we’re using that to build up to the pro level.”
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
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