Oklahoma City 1889 FC

Oklahoma City 1889 Football Club is an American men's soccer club based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The club is a member of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL),[1] a semi-professional soccer league in US Soccer that includes qualification for and participation in the US Open Cup. The club is formerly a member of the UPSL.[2]

Oklahoma City 1889 FC
Nickname(s)The Imps, Fighting Imps
FoundedFebruary 21, 2017 (February 21, 2017)
StadiumBrian Harvey Field (Oklahoma City University)
OwnerDustin Hooker and Mark Moore
ManagerNiall Burley
LeagueNPSL
WebsiteClub website

History

The club's founding season in 2017 consisted of a summer schedule of friendlies only where the team competed under the name "OKC Fighting Imps" due to complications with joining a league.[3]

In the 2018 regular season, they finished 3rd in the UPSL Central Conference North Division and missed playoffs by one spot behind Dallas Elite FC and champions Inocentes FC.[4]

In the 2019 regular season, they finished 2nd in the UPSL Central Conference Pro-Premier (1st tier) North Division behind Inocentes FC and qualified for Central Conference playoffs.[5] The Central Conference playoff run includes a 3–1 victory against Reign FK, a 3–1 victory against FC Waco, a 2–0 victory against Matias Almeyda FC, and was capped off when Imps won the Central Conference championship 2–1 in extra time against Inocentes FC.[6] The season ended with a 4–0 loss to Southwest FC in El Paso in the UPSL National Quarterfinal.[7] Niall Burley was selected to the UPSL Best XI Second Team for the Spring season.[8]

The 2020 season was postponed due to the outbreak of COVID-19.[9] The Imps did compete virtually instead in the 2020 Lower League eCup, a competition that took place online in FIFA 20 between 120+ third tier or lower teams in the United States.[10] OKC 1889 FC was represented in the Xbox One tournament by Twitter user @LFC_RJ who made it through the group stage and on to the Round of 32 where he lost to FC Tucson by an aggregate of 4–1 over two legs.[11]

The Imps announced on March 24, 2021, that they will compete in Heartland Conference of the NPSL South Region for the 2021 season.[12] They finished third in the 2021 regular season behind Tulsa Athletic and champions Demize NPSL, and qualified for the Heartland playoffs.[13] The 2021 playoff run includes a loss to Tulsa Athletic 5–4 in penalties after the match finished 2–2 after extra time.[14] Callum Shepherd earned NPSL Team of the month honors in May.[15] Fabian Forisch and Muhammad Bilal were selected on the NPSL Heartland Conference XI team.[16] Bilal was also selected to the South Region XI.[17]

On March 16, 2022, the Imps announced that Niall Burley would transition from being a player on the squad to being the manager of the club.[18] The 2022 Heartland Conference regular season ended with the Imps in 2nd place behind Tulsa Athletic which qualified them for the Heartland playoffs.[19] This was the first season that the second ever manager of the club, Niall Burley, was at the helm. Burley led the team to the most successful regular season campaign in club history by winning 8 out of 12 matches.[20] The 2022 playoff run included a 4–2 home win against Sunflower State FC.[21] The Imps ultimately lost in the Heartland Conference final to Tulsa Athletic 5–1.[22]

Before the 2023 season, the NPSL announced that the Heartland Conference was moved to the Midwest Region.[23] The Imps finished the 2023 Regular Season 2nd place by only one point in the Heartland conference behind Tulsa Athletic.[24] The 2023 playoff run included a 2–1 Heartland semi-final win against Kansas City Sol.[25] The season ended in a 2–1 loss to Tulsa Athletic in the Heartland Conference final.[26]

Rivalries

Purple Reign derby

Rivalry with Reign FK in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

Record
Won Drawn Lost GF GA
6 3 0 21 5
Results
Date Competition Winner Score Location
June 3, 2023 NPSL Draw 0-0 Bartlesville, OK
May 13, 2023 NPSL OKC 1889

2-0

 Oklahoma City, OK
June 28, 2022 NPSL OKC 1889

2-1

 Bartlesville, OK
May 18, 2022 NPSL OKC 1889

2-0

 Norman, OK
June 5, 2021 NPSL OKC 1889

6–0

 Edmond, OK
May 1, 2021 NPSL Draw 1–1 Bartlesville, OK
July 2, 2019 UPSL Playoffs OKC 1889

3–1

 Norman, OK
May 4, 2019 UPSL Draw 2–2 Norman, OK
April 20, 2019 UPSL OKC 1889

3–0

 Bartlesville, OK

War for I-44

Rivalry with Tulsa Athletic in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Record
Won Drawn Lost GF GA
2 0 7 10 22
Results
Date Competition Winner Score Location
July 15, 2023 NPSL Playoffs Tulsa Athletic

1-2

 Claremore, OK
June 17, 2023 NPSL Tulsa Athletic

1–2

 Claremore, OK
May 24, 2023 NPSL OKC 1889

1–0

 Oklahoma City, OK
July 16, 2022 NPSL Playoffs Tulsa Athletic

1-5

 Tulsa, OK
July 6, 2022 NPSL Tulsa Athletic

1-5

 Tulsa, OK
May 25, 2022 NPSL Tulsa Athletic

0-3

 Oklahoma City, OK
July 14, 2021 NPSL Playoffs Tulsa Athletic

2–2 (4–5 in PKs)

 Tulsa, OK
June 27, 2021 NPSL Tulsa Athletic

0–2

 Edmond, OK
May 16, 2021 NPSL OKC 1889

3–1

 Tulsa, OK

Media coverage

The goal of the club according to is to "provide a serious, professionally run team by the community, for the community."[27] The club has gained notoriety by being the covered by various media outlets such as The UPSL Podcast, the Scissortail Podcast, the Tornado Alley Soccer Podcast, and the Full 90+ Podcast.[28] The first year of the Imps being in the NPSL, they gained notoriety from coverage from an expert in American Lower League Soccer, Protagonist Soccer.[29]

Year-by-year

Yearly results
Year Division League Regular Season W-D-L GF–GA Playoffs W-D-L GF–GA
2018 5 UPSL 3rd, Central North 3-3-2 27-16 Did not qualify N/A N/A
2019 5 UPSL 2nd, Central North 7-3-2 33-14 Central Conference Champions 4-0-1 10-7
2020 5 UPSL Did not play N/A N/A Did not play N/A N/A
2021 4 NPSL 3rd, South Heartland 5-2-3 33-10 Heartland Semi-Final 0-0-1 2-2
2022 4 NPSL 2nd, South Heartland 8-2-2 20-14 Heartland Final 1-0-1 5-7
2023 4 NPSL 2nd, Midwest Heartland 7-1-2 17-8 Heartland Final 1-0-1 3-3

All-Time table
Match Type Played Won Drawn Lost Goals For Goals Against Goal Difference Win %
Regular Season 52 30 11 11 130 62 +68 057.69
Playoffs 10 6 0 4 20 19 +1 060.00
Total 62 36 11 15 150 81 +69 058.06
  • Updated as of July 15, 2023

Head coaches
  • Includes all competitive matches: regular season and playoffs[30]
CoachNationalityStartEndGamesWinDrawLossGFGAGDWin %
Adam Kay  England February 21, 2017 March 15, 2022 36 19 8 9 105 49 +56 052.78
Niall Burley  England March 16, 2022 Present 26 17 3 6 45 32 +13 065.38

Honors

Club
  • UPSL Spring Central Conference
    • Playoff Champions (1): 2019[31]

Player honors
Year Player Country Position Honor
2019 Niall Burley  ENG Forward Spring UPSL Best XI - Second Team
2021 Callum Shepherd  ENG Forward NPSL Team of the Month - May
2021 Fabian Forisch  GER Defender NPSL Heartland Conference XI
2021 Muhammad Bilal  ENG Midfielder NPSL Heartland Conference XI
2021 Muhammad Bilal  ENG Midfielder NPSL South Region XI
2023 Isaias Silva  USA Forward Heartland Conference XI
2023 Jack O'Riordan  IRL Midfielder Heartland Conference XI
2023 Keshon Carter  TTO Defender Heartland Conference XI
2023 Niall Burley  ENG Manager Heartland Conference XI

Records

Finals
Record
Won Lost GF GA
1 2 4 8
Finals
Date Competition Opponent Result Score Location
July 15, 2023 NPSL Heartland Conference Final Tulsa Athletic Lost 1-2 Claremore, OK
July 16, 2022 NPSL Heartland Conference Final Tulsa Athletic Lost 1-5 Tulsa, OK
July 17, 2019 UPSL Central Conference Final Inocentes FC Won 2-1 Fort Worth, TX

References
  1. "NPSL TEAMS".
  2. "United Premier Soccer League Announces OKC 1889 as New Central Conference Expansion Team".
  3. Jack Hazzard (June 17, 2017). "Who are the Oklahoma City Fighting Imps?".
  4. "2018 UPSL Central Table".
  5. "2019 UPSL Spring Central Conference".
  6. "2019 Spring UPSL Central Playoff".
  7. "United Premier Soccer League Presents the 2019 Spring Season National Finals". July 22, 2019.
  8. "The United Premier Soccer League (#UPSL) announces 2019 Spring Season Best XI Teams". August 19, 2019.
  9. "UPSL Announces June 20 as the Start of the Spring Season".
  10. "Lower League eCup". Protagonist Soccer. March 21, 2020.
  11. "FC Tucson vs OKC 1889". May 12, 2020.
  12. "OKC 1889 FC JOINS THE NPSL FOR THE 2021 SEASON". March 24, 2021.
  13. "NPSL 2020-2021 League Standings".
  14. "2021 Playoff Schedule".
  15. "May 2021 NPSL Team of the Month Announced". National Premier Soccer League. 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  16. "NPSL Announces 2021 Conference XI Selections". National Premier Soccer League. 2021-07-22. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
  17. "NPSL Announces 2021 Region XI Selections". National Premier Soccer League. 2021-07-26. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
  18. "WELCOME BACK!!".
  19. "National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2022-07-10.
  20. "OKC 1889 Schedule 2022". NPSL.
  21. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
  22. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
  23. "NPSL Announces Conference Alignment Ahead of 2023 Season". National Premier Soccer League. 2023-03-01. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  24. "2023 Conference Standings". National Premier Soccer League. 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  25. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
  26. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2023-07-31.
  27. "MEET OKC 1889 FC". April 4, 2018.
  28. "Scissortail Podcast". Listen Notes.
  29. "OKC 1889 (NPSL)". June 7, 2021.
  30. "Game Recaps".
  31. "2019 Spring Central Conference champions".
  32. "Game Report - Game ID #7571980".
  33. "Irving FC vs OKC 1889". Eleven.
  34. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  35. "Game Report | National Premier Soccer League". npsl.bonzidev.com. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  36. "Goal OKC 1889".
  37. "Game Report - Game ID #7571980".
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