Ventura County FC explained

Ventura County FC should not be confused with Ventura County Fusion.

Short Name:VCFC
Stadium:William Rolland Stadium, Thousand Oaks, California
Dignity Health Sports Park Track & Field Stadium
Carson, California
Capacity:2,000 (Thousand Oaks)
5,000 (Carson)
Season:2023
Current:2024 Ventura County FC season
Clubname:Ventura County FC
Upright:0.74
Fullname:Ventura County Fútbol Club
Founded:, as LA Galaxy II
Owner:Oak Sports Holding
LA Galaxy (AEG)
Manager:Matt Taylor
League:MLS Next Pro
Website:https://vcfcpro.com/
Position:14th, Western Conference
Playoffs: Did not qualify
American:true
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Ventura County Fútbol Club is an American professional soccer team based in the Greater Los Angeles area town of Thousand Oaks in Ventura County, California, United States that plays in MLS Next Pro, the third tier of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team of the LA Galaxy and was formerly known as LA Galaxy II from its founding in 2014 until 2024. The team previously played in the USL Championship until the end of the 2022 season.

History

It was announced on January 29, 2014, that the LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer would be fielding their own team in the USL Pro to serve as their reserve team beginning with the 2014 USL Pro season. The Galaxy chose to create their own team in the league instead of affiliating with a current USL Pro team after the two leagues formed a partnership the previous year. The current assistant coach of the senior squad, Curt Onalfo, would become head coach of the reserve squad. The club would play its home matches at Dignity Health Sports Park's Track & Field Stadium, a 1,200-seat stadium near the main stadium, home to the senior club. Onalfo had led the Galaxy's previous reserve squad to two consecutive MLS Reserve League West Division titles. In the process, the LA Galaxy became the first MLS club to own and operate its own USL Pro side.[1]

About forming the reserve team, Galaxy President Chris Klein said, “The creation of LA Galaxy II, through USL PRO, provides the Galaxy with a fully realized, in-house player development program starting with the Under-12 Academy through the LA Galaxy first team. The investment of AEG and the Galaxy for LA Galaxy II will allow us to continue to develop the best players in Southern California while closing the gap between the Galaxy Academy and the LA Galaxy.”[2]

2014 season

See main article: 2014 LA Galaxy II season. The club's first match took place on February 13, 2014, as they defeated Fresno Fuego of the USL Premier Development League 2–1. Travis Bowen scored the team's first-ever goal.[3] The team made its USL Pro debut on March 22, 2014, defeating the league's other LA club, the Orange County Blues FC, 3–1 at home. Charlie Rugg scored their first goal in USL Pro competition.[4] [5] In the regular season, the Galaxy II earned third place in the league's standings, having a 15–6–7 (W-L-T) record, qualifying for the playoffs. The Galaxy II had faced against the Rochester Rhinos during the quarter finals, who they defeated and advance to face Sacramento Republic FC in the semifinals. The Galaxy II were defeated against Sacramento Republic therefore being eliminated, and ending their inaugural season.

Daniel Steres was named captain, and was named Defender of the Year.[6] [7]

2015 season

Los Dos finished 5th in the Western Conference during the regular season of the newly formatted USL. During the playoffs, The Galaxy II defeated Sacramento Republic in overtime, advancing to face first seeded OKC Energy in the Conference Finals. Los Dos became Conference champions, after defeating OKC Energy, and went on to face Rochester Rhinos in the USL championship. The Galaxy II were defeated in the championship game.

Daniel Steres was again named Defender of the Year.[6] [7]

MLS Next Pro

MLS announced that it would be one of the new eight teams to join MLS Next Pro in 2023.[8]

In March 2024, the team announced a partial relocation to Thousand Oaks, California and rebranded to Ventura County FC.[9]

Stadium

The team currently plays in the Track & Field Facility at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. The field has 2,000 permanent seats, but can be expanded to hold as many as 10,000 fans.[10] The main stadium at Dignity Health Sports Park holds 27,000 attendees and is the home of the LA Galaxy first team.

Club culture

Rivalries

LA Galaxy II competes in the 405 Derby against rivals Orange County SC.[11] The clubs are, as of late 2022, in a dispute over who will play at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine, California, Orange County SC's current home stadium, after leaked documents showed the Galaxy organization is attempting to seize full-time usage of the venue.[12]

Players and staff

The squad of VCFC is composed of an unrestricted number of first-team players on loan to the reserve team, players signed by Galaxy II, and LA Galaxy Academy players. Academy players who appear in matches with VCFC retain their college eligibility.[2]

Coaching staff

RoleNameNation
Head Coach
Assistant Coach
Goalkeeping Coach
Video Analyst

Team records

Year-by-year

YearDivisionLeagueRegular season W-T-LPlayoffsU.S. Open CupAvg. attendanceTop scorerGoals
20143USL3rd: 15–6–7Semifinals3R597 Chandler Hoffman14
2015USL5th, Western: 14–3–11bgcolor=silverRunner-Up2R969 Ariel Lassiter11
2016USL5th, Western: 12–11–7Conference quarterfinalsNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)1,211 Jack McBean15
20172USL13th, Western: 8–5–19did not qualifyNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)1,215 Justin Dhillon
Adrian Vera
6
2018USL14th, Western: 10–7–17did not qualifyNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)1,048 Frank López13
2019USLC9th, Western: 12–12–10Play-in roundNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)881 Ethan Zubak
Kai Koreniuk
9
2020USLC8th, Western: 8–2–6
2nd Group B
Conference quarterfinalsNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)N/A Augustine Williams13
2021USLC11th, Western: 11-6-15did not qualifyCanceledN/A Preston Judd17
2022USLC11th, Western: 11-7-16did not qualifyNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)N/A Preston Judd13
20233MLSNP14th, Western: 5-6-17did not qualifyNot eligible (MLS Reserve Team)N/A Aaron Bibout14

Head coaches

All time Ventura County Coaching Stats! Coach !! Nationality !! Start !! End !! Games !! Win !! Loss !! Draw !! Win %
Curt Onalfo
Mike Muñoz
Junior Gonzalez (Interim)
Junior Gonzalez
Yoann Damet
Marcelo Sarvas
Matt Taylor

Honors

Player honors

YearPlayerCountryPositionHonor
2014Chandler Hoffman United StatesForwardAll-League First Team
André Auras FranceMidfielderAll-League Second Team
Daniel Steres United StatesDefenderAll-League Second Team
2015Daniel Steres United StatesDefenderAll-League First Team
2016Jack McBean United StatesForwardAll-League First Team
2018Efraín Álvarez MexicoMidfielderYoung Player of the Year
2020[13] Augustine Williams Sierra LeoneForwardAll-League First Team

Notes and References

  1. Web site: LA Galaxy announce they will form their own USL PRO franchise named LA Galaxy II. Major League Soccer. January 29, 2014. August 18, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150818012027/http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2014/01/28/la-galaxy-announce-will-form-own-usl-pro-franchise-named-la-galaxy-ii. dead.
  2. Web site: LA Galaxy Place Team in USL PRO . USL Pro . January 29, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140203182755/http://uslpro.uslsoccer.com/home/783769.html . February 3, 2014 .
  3. Web site: LA Galaxy II victorious in first ever match with a 2–1 win over Fresno Fuego. LA Galaxy. February 13, 2014. March 25, 2014. October 6, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006072730/http://www.lagalaxy.com/news/2014/02/la-galaxy-ii-victorious-first-ever-match-2-1-victory-over-fresno-fuego. dead.
  4. Web site: LA Galaxy II announce USL PRO schedule. LA Galaxy. January 30, 2014. October 6, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006090211/http://www.lagalaxy.com/news/2014/01/la-galaxy-ii-announce-usl-pro-schedule. dead.
  5. Web site: LA Galaxy II win inaugural match over Orange County Blues 3–1. LA Galaxy. March 22, 2014. March 25, 2014. October 6, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006102039/http://www.lagalaxy.com/news/2014/03/la-galaxy-ii-win-inaugural-match-over-orange-county-blues-3-1. dead.
  6. Web site: Getting 2 know Galaxy II: Defender Daniel Steres . April 15, 2015. LA Galaxy .
  7. Web site: Daniel Steres LA Galaxy:Profile. August 6, 2016.
  8. Web site: MLS NEXT Pro Unveils 21 Clubs for Inaugural Season . orlandocitysc.
  9. March 15, 2024 . LA Galaxy Partner with Oak Sports Holding to bring MLS NEXT Pro Affiliate to Ventura County . MLS Next Pro . March 16, 2024.
  10. Web site: Track & Field Facility. Dignity Health Sports Park. September 12, 2018.
  11. Web site: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW WHEN ORANGE COUNTY SC VISITS LOS DOS. orangecountysoccer.com. July 21, 2022. July 27, 2022.
  12. News: Calhoun . Damian . August 8, 2022 . Irvine City Council's plans to discuss use of Championship Soccer Stadium moved off of agenda . The Orange County Register . August 8, 2022.
  13. Web site: USL Championship Reveals 2020 All-League Teams. USLChampionship.com Staff. October 28, 2020. October 28, 2020.