Irvine Zeta FC

Last updated

Irvine Zeta FC
Full nameIrvine Zeta Football Club
NicknamesZeta, IZFC
Founded2022
Stadium Championship Soccer Stadium
Irvine, California
Capacity5,000
OwnerAlex Filipovic
League United Premier Soccer League
National Independent Soccer Association
Website https://www.zetafc.com/

Irvine Zeta FC (known as Irvine Zeta FC, IZFC, and Irvine Zeta) is a professional soccer team based in Irvine, California. The club is established and financially backed by Chinese investors, the first Chinese-founded professional soccer team in the United States. It is the inaugural professional football club bearing the name of the city of Irvine. The club fields a senior team in the National Independent Soccer Association, as well as teams in NISA Nation, the UPSL, and youth leagues..

Contents

History

Zeta FC was established in September 2022 in Irvine, California by Cary Lyu. The club began play in the United Premier Soccer League in 2023, reaching the 2023 UPSL Spring League Division 1 Tier playoffs.

On March 16, 2023, Zeta FC submitted the application to join the National Independent Soccer Association for the 2024 season. [1] On May 22, Zeta FC received NISA's approval. [2]

NISA

Irvine Zeta FC made their U.S. Open Cup debut on March 20, 2024, defeating SC MesoAmerica, winners of the 2023 National Amateur Cup, 1-0. The team would go on to defeat Ventura County FC in the second round [3] , 3-0, before falling to Monterey Bay FC in the third round. [4]

Irvine Zeta FC kicked off its first professional season in April 2024. Irvine finished the 2024 season with a record of 11 wins, 4 draws, and 3 losses, second-best in the West Conference. Zeta FC defeated the Michigan Stars FC in the semifinal, 3-0 to advance to their first NISA Championship Game. [5] The game ended 1-1, with Irvine losing to Los Angeles Force 3-2 in penalty kicks. [6]

Colors and badge

Irvine Zeta's crest prominently features a lower-case orange zeta, with "IRVINE" across the top, and a stylized soccer ball and "FC" on the right side. The team's colors are two different shades of blue, with orange and white as accent colors.

Stadium

Zeta FC shares the Championship Soccer Stadium with other teams in Irvine. The stadium is part of the Great Park Sports Complex in Orange County, California. Built in 2017, the stadium has an overall capacity of 5,000, combines with sports infrastructures such as training fields, a box office, concession areas, etc. [7]

Roster

As of [8]
NO.NamePosition
1 Mitch North GK
12Matthew Escareno GK
30Jake Hansen GK
45Braeden Hatt GK
4Aaron Keita CB
2Greg Stratton CB
10Edson Alvarado CM
27Miguel Pena LB
13Israel Espinoza CB
33Alex Culwell CB
6Andrew Kleszewski CM
27Edgardo Artero MF
14Danny Moreno CM
3Joey Ciochetto CM
8Jonathan Estrada CM
11 Shinya Kadono FW
9Christian Fernandes Fecula FW
18Marcel Salceda FW
19George Almeida FW

Club staff

2024 Season
PresidentCary Lyu
General ManagerLeo Furquim
Marketing ManagerOscar Yu
PR ManagerMonica Lin
Academy DirectorPlatini Soaf
AdministrationDekel Keinan

Club trophies

Year League Title
2023 2023 UPSL Spring League Division 1 Tier Champions
2023 2023 Del Real Foods SoCal Regional Cup Champions

References

  1. ↑ "West Coast Club Irvine Zeta FC Submits Application to NISA For 2024 Season". www.nisaofficial.com. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  2. ↑ "NISA Board Approves West Coast Club Irvine Zeta FC for 2024 Season". www.nisasoccer.com. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Irvine Zeta FC eliminates Ventura County Futbol Club in U.S. Open Cup 2nd-round match". Los Angeles Daily News. April 3, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Pro Soccer: Ayon's two goals lift Monterey Bay F.C. past Irvine Zeta in U.S. Open Cup". Monterey Herald. April 17, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Los Angeles Force Hosts Irvine Zeta FC for 2024 NISA Championship". October 14, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Los Angeles Force Tops Irvine Zeta FC For First NISA Championship". October 19, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Great Park Sports Facilities". July 5, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Team-Zeta FC". Zeta FC. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.