FAYETTE COUNTY, Ga. — The United States Soccer Federation headquarters is coming to Fayette County, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced on Thursday.
Until the announcement, it was unclear exactly where the headquarters would be in the metro.
“After announcing in September that U.S. Soccer was coming to Georgia, it’s exciting to officially welcome them to their new home in Fayette County,” Kemp said. “U.S. Soccer joins a long and proud tradition of sports in the Peach State, including our fast-growing soccer fanbase. This project will solidify Georgia’s position at the forefront of this increasingly popular sport, from the success of our own Atlanta United team to the FIFA World Cup 2026 events in a few short years.”
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The training center will be used by all 27 U.S. Soccer’s National Teams. The goal is to help drive interest and the growth of soccer in the country.
The site will be located near Lees Mill Road and Veteran’s Parkway and is expected to break ground in the spring. Kemp said this new headquarters will create 440 new jobs and bring a $228 million investment to the area.
Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United owner Arthur Blank is donating $50 million to U.S. Soccer in support of the development of the training center.
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“As I said at the announcements of our gifts to support the development of a national training center, we could not be more thrilled that America’s very best soccer players will be training here in metro Atlanta,” Blank said. “Today’s announcement of the location for the new National Training Center will go down as another historic milestone in the rich sports history of this region and our state and I think the site is going to be terrific for U.S. Soccer and the thousands of players, coaches and staff who will benefit from this investment for decades to come.”
U.S. Soccer Board members and athletes will celebrate this announcement on Dec. 13 at the Town Stage at Trilith.
Fayette County isn’t a stranger to U.S. Soccer. Kelley O’Hara, who grew up in Fayetteville and was a star at Starr’s Mills, won two World Cups with the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Channel 2′s Justin Carter spoke with people excited for the development.
“We’ll have a national team in town training, and they will have some public sessions. And you can just imagine how excited I am to get the kids that I coach, ‘hey let’s go watch the national team train, let’s go meet some of those people,’” Bryan McDermott, president of the Fayette County Youth Soccer League said.
Back in September, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced that it would build its first-ever national training center and new headquarters in metro Atlanta.
The groundbreaking is expected for spring 2024.
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