Toronto FC II

Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, who play in MLS Next Pro, a third tier league of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of Toronto FC as well as in partnership with Toronto FC Academy.

Toronto FC II
Nickname(s)Young Reds
Short nameTFCII
FoundedNovember 20, 2014 (November 20, 2014)
StadiumYork Lions Stadium
OwnerMaple Leaf Sports & Entertainment
PresidentBill Manning
Head coachGianni Cimini
LeagueMLS Next Pro
202311th, Eastern Conference
Playoffs: DNQ
WebsiteClub website
Toronto FC
Active teams
MLS MLS Next Pro MLS Next
Affiliates
Windsor (L1) London (L1) DeRo TFC

History

Pre-history

Upon their entrance into Major League Soccer, Toronto FC fielded their reserves in the MLS Reserve League from 2007 to 2013. In 2014, Toronto FC entered into a one-year partnership with the Wilmington Hammerheads of the USL to serve as their affiliate, with whom they would loan players to.[1]

Formation

On November 20, 2014, Toronto FC announced the creation of a reserve team that would play in the third-tier United Soccer League under the name Toronto FC II.[2][3][4] The team began play in March 2015, playing at the then-newly constructed 3,500-seat stadium at the Ontario Soccer Centre in Vaughan, just north-northwest of Toronto.[5] They played their first match on June 27, 2015, against Wilmington Hammerheads.[6] From 2017, the USL was sanctioned as a second-tier league.[7]

On July 2, 2018, the team announced they would move down from the United Soccer League to USL League One for the league's first season in 2019.[8] TFC II played in Saskatoon for the first SK Summer Soccer Series, which is hosted by the Saskatchewan Selects.[9] The Selects defeated TFC II 2–0.[10]

In July 2020, the team withdrew from the 2020 USL League One season, due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[11] They returned to the league in 2021, beginning the season at the Grande Sports World training facility in Casa Grande, Arizona, due to continued travel restrictions caused by the continuing pandemic.[12] After playing their first three home games there, following three home games were played at Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Florida. Toronto FC II ultimately resumed playing their home games in Toronto on July 30, 2021, when they hosted Greenville Triumph SC at the BMO Training Ground.[13]

MLS Next Pro

The club announced on December 6, 2021, that it was joining the 21-team MLS Next Pro for the inaugural 2022 season.[14] In their debut season, they qualified for their first-ever playoff berth, after winning the Northeast Division.[15] After defeating Philadelphia Union 2 in the Conference semi-finals, they were defeated by Columbus Crew 2 in extra time in the Conference finals.[16]

Players and staff

Roster
As of September 24, 2023[17]

Out on loan
No. Pos. Player Nation
38 DF Jalen Watson (at Pacific FC)  Canada

Technical staff
As of March 30, 2022[18]
Coaching staff
Head coach Canada Gianni Cimini
Assistant coach Canada Marco Casalinuovo
Goalkeeping coach Canada David Monsalve

Record
Season Tier League Record Rank Playoffs Ref
2015 3 USL 6–5–16 11th, Eastern did not qualify [19]
2016 6–5–17 13th, Eastern did not qualify
2017 2 6–7–19 15th, Eastern did not qualify
2018 4–6–24 16th, Eastern did not qualify
2019 3 USL League One 9–9–10 7th did not qualify
2020 Withdrew due to COVID-19 restrictions
2021 10–8–10 7th did not qualify
2022 3 MLS Next Pro 12–3–9[note 1] 2nd, Eastern Conference Final
2023 6–8–14[note 2] 11th, Eastern did not qualify
  1. MLS Next Pro teams played shootouts to earn an extra point after ties. Of the three ties in 2022, Toronto FC had two Shootout wins and one Shootout loss for a total record of 12-2-1-9
  2. MLS Next Pro teams played shootouts to earn an extra point after ties. Of the eight ties in 2023, Toronto FC had three Shootout wins and five Shootout losses for a total record of 6-3-5-14

Coach History

Stadium

The expansion Toronto FC II hosted their games at a new stadium constructed at the Ontario Soccer Centre beginning with the first season in 2015. However, after the planned expansion of the OSC to 5,000 seats, which is a minimum requirement set by the United States Soccer Federation for the USL to be sanctioned as a division 2 league, did not materialize, the club announced that it would move its home games to BMO Field and Lamport Stadium beginning with the 2018 season.[20]

In 2018, the team used Monarch Park Stadium for one game in May, relocated one game to Charlotte, and relocated another four games to Rochester's Marina Auto Stadium, while waiting on availability at Lamport Stadium.

With their drop to the division 3 USL League One for the 2019 season, the team moved their home games to BMO Training Ground.[21]

On April 4, 2022, after the team left USL League One to join the newly formed MLS Next Pro, Toronto FC II announced that York Lions Stadium would serve as their new home stadium,[22] while also playing 2 home games at BMO Field as a second match of a double header with their parent club, Toronto FC.

See also

References
  1. "Toronto FC Partners With Wilmington". Toronto FC. January 22, 2014. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014.
  2. Molinaro, John (January 20, 2015). "TFC's USL-Pro team to be called Toronto FC II". Sportsnet.
  3. "Toronto FC announces USL PRO team". Toronto FC. November 20, 2014.
  4. "Toronto FC Unveils USL PRO Details". USL Pro. January 21, 2015. Archived from the original on January 22, 2015.
  5. "OSA, Toronto FC and Vaughan partner in new stadium". Ontario Soccer Association. January 21, 2015. Archived from the original on January 22, 2015.
  6. Gallo, Anthony (June 27, 2015). "TFC II's New Journey Starts Tonight". Waking the Red.
  7. "U.S. Soccer Board of Directors Grants Provisional Division II Status to NASL and USL". U.S. Soccer. January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  8. "Toronto FC II joins USL Division III as Founding Member". Toronto FC. July 2, 2018. Archived from the original on July 7, 2018.
  9. Jacques, John (July 16, 2019). "SK Summer Soccer Series To Host Toronto FC II This August". Northern Tribune.
  10. Jacques, John (August 12, 2019). "SK Summer Soccer Series Finishes On A High Note For Football In Saskatchewan". Northern Tribune.
  11. Rhodes, Benedict (July 8, 2020). "Toronto FC II withdraw from 2020 USL League One season". Waking the Red.
  12. Singh, Michael (March 16, 2021). "Toronto FC II officially announces return to USL League One in 2021". Waking the Red.
  13. "Toronto FC II return to Canada to play first match at home on July 30". Toronto FC communications. July 29, 2021.
  14. "MLS NEXT Pro Unveils 21 Clubs for Inaugural Season". Toronto FC. December 6, 2021.
  15. "Toronto FC II win MLS NEXT Pro Northeast Division, clinch spot in 2022 MLS NEXT Pro Playoffs". Toronto FC. September 19, 2022.
  16. "Toronto FC II suffers heartbreaking loss to Columbus Crew II in MLS Next Pro playoffs". Toronto Star. October 2, 2022.
  17. "Toronto FC II Roster". MLS Next Pro.
  18. "Staff | Toronto FC". Toronto FC. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  19. "Toronto FC II Statistics". Canadian Soccer History Archives.
  20. Kelly, Tim (August 29, 2017). "TFC II leaving Vaughan for Toronto after 3-season run; stadium size at issue". Vaughan Citizen. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  21. "Toronto FC II 2019 USL League One Regular Season Schedule Announced". Toronto FC. December 10, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  22. "Toronto FC II announce York Lions stadium as home field for 2022 MLS NEXT Pro season". Toronto FC II Communications. April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
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