Orlando City SC facts for kids
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| Nickname(s) | The Lions | ||
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| Founded | 2010 | ||
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| Owner | Zygi, Leonard and Mark Wilf | ||
| Head coach | Óscar Pareja | ||
| League | Major League Soccer | ||
| 2024 |
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Orlando City Soccer Club is a professional soccer team based in Orlando, Florida. They play in Major League Soccer (MLS), which is the top soccer league in the United States. The team is known as The Lions. They play their home games at Inter&Co Stadium in downtown Orlando.
Orlando City started in a league called USL Pro in 2010. They were very successful, winning three regular season titles and two league championships in their first four years. Because of their success, they were chosen to join MLS in 2015, along with New York City FC. Since 2021, the club has been owned by the Wilf family. They have won the U.S. Open Cup in 2022 and have played in the CONCACAF Champions Cup twice. Orlando City also has a women's team called Orlando Pride and a development team called Orlando City B.
Contents
Team History
How the Club Started
Orlando City was created in 2010 by Phil Rawlins. He bought the rights to a soccer team and moved the Austin Aztex FC team to Orlando. He renamed them Orlando City SC. Rawlins hoped to bring a Major League Soccer team to Orlando within a few years.
In their first season in 2011, Orlando City won the USL Pro regular season title. They also won the 2011 USL Pro championship by beating the Harrisburg City Islanders in a penalty shootout.
The team continued to do well. In 2013, they won their second USL Pro championship. In November 2013, it was announced that Orlando City would join Major League Soccer.
Joining MLS and Early Years
In May 2014, Orlando City showed off their new team logo. A month later, they signed their first big MLS player, Kaká, a famous player from Brazil. Kaká was loaned to another team until the MLS season started.
Orlando City played their first MLS game on March 8, 2015, at the Citrus Bowl. They played against New York City FC, another new team. A huge crowd of 62,510 fans watched Kaká score a goal late in the game, making it a 1–1 tie. Their first win came in the next game against Houston Dynamo FC.
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In their first MLS season, Orlando City finished 7th in their conference and just missed the playoffs. A player named Cyle Larin scored 17 goals, which was a record for a rookie player, and he won the Rookie of the Year award.
The team struggled in the next few years. They changed coaches several times and did not make the playoffs. In 2017, they moved into their new home, Orlando City Stadium. Kaká left the team and retired from playing soccer at the end of 2017.
Recent Success
Before the 2020 season, Orlando City hired Óscar Pareja as their new head coach. The 2020 season was different because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Orlando played in a special tournament called the MLS is Back Tournament and reached the final, but lost to the Portland Timbers.
Under Coach Pareja, Orlando City finally made the playoffs in 2020, ending a long wait. They reached the conference semi-finals.
In May 2021, the team's owner, Flavio Augusto da Silva, announced he was selling the club to Zygi and Mark Wilf, who also own the National Football League team Minnesota Vikings. The sale was completed in July 2021. Orlando City made the playoffs again in 2021.
On September 7, 2022, Orlando City won their first major trophy as an MLS team! They beat Sacramento Republic 3–0 in the 2022 U.S. Open Cup final.
In 2023, Orlando City played in the CONCACAF Champions Cup for the first time. They finished the MLS regular season in second place, which was their best finish ever. They also made it past the first round of the playoffs for the first time, but were then knocked out by the Columbus Crew.
In 2024, Orlando City played in the CONCACAF Champions Cup again and won their first game in that competition. They also had a club record of 59 goals scored in the regular season. The team went further than ever before in the playoffs, reaching the Eastern Conference final.
Home Stadium
Orlando City plays its home games at Inter&Co Stadium in downtown Orlando. The stadium was built specifically for soccer.
In 2013, the City of Orlando bought land for the stadium. There were discussions about how to pay for it, including using state funds and tourism taxes. In 2015, the club's owner, Flávio Augusto da Silva, announced that the stadium would be fully paid for by the club itself. The stadium's capacity was also increased to between 25,000 and 28,000 seats.
The stadium officially opened on March 5, 2017, with Orlando City playing against New York City FC. Cyle Larin scored the first goal in the new stadium, and Orlando City won 1–0.
Inter&Co Stadium is special because it has hosted games for MLS, the NWSL, and the USL all in the same place. It has also hosted important international matches, including games for the United States men's national soccer team and the United States women's national soccer team.
In 2019, the stadium's name changed to Exploria Stadium. Then, on January 18, 2024, it was renamed Inter&Co Stadium.
Camping World Stadium
Before moving to Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando City played its games at the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium. This stadium can hold 70,000 fans. In their first MLS season in 2015, Orlando City had huge crowds, averaging over 30,000 fans per game at this stadium.
Player Development
Orlando City has a system to help young players grow and become professionals.
Orlando City B
Like many MLS teams, Orlando City has a reserve team called Orlando City B (OCB). This team plays in MLS Next Pro, which is a league for developing players. OCB plays its home games at Osceola County Stadium.
Before OCB was created, Orlando City had a partnership with Louisville City FC. Later, Orlando City started its own USL team, which became OCB. The team has taken breaks but returned in 2022 for the first MLS Next Pro season.
Youth Programs
Orlando City also has youth soccer clubs, like the Orlando City Youth Soccer Club. They help young players from ages 8 to 18 develop their skills.
In January 2025, Orlando City and Orlando Pride started a new soccer program for children aged 3–14 called The Lions Pride Jr. This program works with the YMCA of Central Florida to teach kids about soccer and good sportsmanship. Children in the program get special jerseys and tickets to Orlando City and Orlando Pride games.
Training Facilities
In 2019, Orlando City opened a large training complex at Osceola Heritage Park. This facility is used by the main MLS team, OCB, and the youth academy. It has four practice fields, a fitness center, a players' lounge, and offices. This helps all parts of the club's player development work together.
Team Colors and Badge
Orlando City's first logo was shown in December 2010. The club chose the nickname "Lions" because of an older professional soccer team in Orlando called the Orlando Lions.
The team's colors are "Regal Red," "Pride Purple," and "Championship Gold."
- Red shows their passion and desire to win.
- Purple represents the pride of the city, fans, and club.
- Gold stands for the trophies they want to win.
The team's crest (logo) features three lions. These lions represent the team's defense, midfield, and attack, and also connect the past and present of soccer in Orlando.
When the club joined MLS, they updated their logo. It still has the purple color and a lion's face. The new logo has a gold lion face with 21 sun flares around it. The 21 flares represent Orlando City as the 21st team in MLS. The sun-shaped mane is a nod to Florida's nickname, "The Sunshine State."
Mascot
Orlando City's mascot is named Kingston. He is a lion with brown and purple dreadlocks. He wears purple war paint and the team's uniform.
Team Sponsors
Orlando Health has been the official shirt sponsor for Orlando City since 2010. This means their logo is on the team's jerseys. Adidas is the company that makes the team's uniforms.
Club Culture
Supporters
Orlando City has a very strong fan base. Before their first MLS game in 2015, they had sold over 13,000 season tickets. For their first home game, 62,510 people attended, which was a record for a new MLS team.
The club has two main fan groups:
- The Ruckus is the oldest group, formed in 2009.
- The Iron Lion Firm started separately from The Ruckus.
These two groups often combine on game days to create "The Wall," a special section in the stadium where fans stand and cheer loudly. Orlando City also has official fan clubs in Brazil and the United Kingdom.
Rivalries
Orlando City has a rivalry with Inter Miami CF, which is the only other MLS team in Florida. This rivalry started in 2020 when Inter Miami joined the league.
Before Inter Miami, Orlando City had a rivalry with Atlanta United FC because they were the only two MLS teams in the southeastern United States. There have been some intense moments between these teams and their fans.
Orlando City also had a rivalry with New York City FC because both teams joined MLS at the same time in 2015. Their first game against each other was a dramatic 1–1 tie.
Players
Current Roster
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Club Staff
| Executive Team | |
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| Majority owner and chairman | Mark Wilf |
| Majority owner and vice-chair | Zygi Wilf |
| Majority owner and vice-chair | Leonard Wilf |
| Vice President of Soccer | Ricardo Moreira |
| Coaching Staff | |
| Head coach | Óscar Pareja |
| First assistant coach | Diego Torres Ortiz |
| Second assistant coach | Martín Perelman |
| Strength and conditioning coach | Fabián Bazán |
| Goalkeeping coach | César Baena |
Club Owners
The first owners of Orlando City were part of a group called Orlando Pro Soccer. In 2010, Phil Rawlins bought the rights to the team and moved it to Orlando.
Later, Flavio Augusto da Silva became the main owner in 2013. He helped the club join Major League Soccer.
In 2021, Flavio Augusto da Silva sold the club to Zygi and Mark Wilf, who are also owners of the Minnesota Vikings football team.
Team Achievements
| National Titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitions | Wins | Years Won |
| U.S. Open Cup | 1 | 2022 |
| USL Pro Championship | 2 | 2011, 2013 |
| USL Pro Regular Season Title | 3 | 2011, 2012, 2014 |
Team Records
This is a list of Orlando City's performance in recent seasons.
Season by Season
| Season | League | Position | Playoffs | USOC | Continental | Other | Average attendance |
Top goalscorer(s) | Head coach(es) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Div | League | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Conf. | Overall | Name(s) | Goals | ||||||||
| 2020 | 1 | MLS | 23 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 40 | 25 | +15 | 41 | 1.78 | 4th | 5th | QF | NH | DNQ | MLS is Back Tournament | RU | 6,346 |  Chris Mueller |
10 |  Óscar Pareja |
| 2021 | MLS | 34 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 50 | 48 | +2 | 51 | 1.50 | 6th | 10th | R1 | NH | Leagues Cup | QF | 15,644 | Daryl Dike |
11 | |||
| 2022 | MLS | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | 44 | 53 | –9 | 48 | 1.41 | 7th | 13th | R1 | W | DNQ | 17,283 |  Facundo Torres |
13 | ||||
| 2023 | MLS | 34 | 18 | 9 | 7 | 55 | 39 | +16 | 63 | 1.82 | 2nd | 2nd | QF | R4 | Ro16 | Leagues Cup | Ro32 | 20,590 | Duncan McGuire |
15 | ||
| 2024 | MLS | 34 | 15 | 7 | 12 | 59 | 50 | +9 | 52 | 1.53 | 4th | 9th | SF | DNE | Ro16 | Leagues Cup | Ro32 | 22,804 | Facundo Torres |
20 | ||
| Total | – | – | 431 | 186 | 110 | 135 | 671 | 599 | +72 | 668 | 1.55 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Facundo Torres |
47 | – | |
1. Avg. attendance includes statistics from league matches only.
2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in MLS, Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup, MLS is Back Tournament, Leagues Cup, CONCACAF Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, and other competitive matches.
North American Record
| Season | Competition | Round | Country | Opponent | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | CONCACAF Champions League | Round of 16 |  |
Tigres UANL | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 |
| 2024 | CONCACAF Champions Cup | Round one |  |
Cavalry FC | 3–1 | 3–0 | 6–1 |
| Round of 16 | |
Tigres UANL | 0–0 | 2–4 | 2–4 |
Head Coaches
This table shows the coaches who have led Orlando City in competitive games.
| Name | Nationality | From | To | Games Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals For | Goals Against | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adrian Heath |  England |
October 25, 2010 | July 6, 2016 | 200 | 108 | 44 | 48 | 296 | 178 | 54.00 |
| Bobby Murphy (interim) | United States |
July 7, 2016 | July 23, 2016 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 0.00 |
| Jason Kreis | United States |
July 24, 2016 | June 15, 2018 | 65 | 22 | 13 | 30 | 90 | 117 | 33.85 |
| Bobby Murphy (interim) | United States |
June 16, 2018 | July 1, 2018 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0.00 |
| James O'Connor |  Ireland |
July 2, 2018 | October 7, 2019 | 56 | 13 | 14 | 29 | 69 | 95 | 23.21 |
| Óscar Pareja | Colombia |
December 4, 2019 | present | 195 | 85 | 54 | 56 | 295 | 253 | 43.59 |
Team Captains
| Years | Name | Nation |
|---|---|---|
| 2015–2017 | Kaká |  Brazil |
| 2018 | Jonathan Spector |  United States |
| 2019–2021 | Nani |  Portugal |
| 2022–2023 | Mauricio Pereyra |  Uruguay |
| 2024–present | Robin Jansson |  Sweden |
Partner Clubs
Owned by Orlando City
- Orlando Pride (a women's soccer team in the NWSL)
- Orlando City B (a development team in MLS Next Pro)
Other Partnerships
- Sporting CP
- Black Knight Football Club UK Limited
- AFC Bournemouth, Auckland FC, Hibernian FC, and FC Lorient
See also
In Spanish: Orlando City Soccer Club para niños
