North Carolina Football Club suspending operations in hopes of going into new league

CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- North Carolina Football Club is suspending operations for next season, so in the team's words, it can reset its men's strategy for the future.

NCFC Chairman Steve Malik said the decision was a "deeply difficult one that came after extensive thought."

"The men are not going to be playing next year in USL Championship," Malik said. "It's bittersweet. I have a lot of investment, financial, emotional time, energy into NCFC."

That means that after this year's USL Championship ends, all players will be released from their contracts and eligible to play elsewhere.

Malik told ABC11 that he was taking a pretty sizable gamble with this decision -- and was betting big on the future.

"If you don't strive for it, you have no chance at it. And so we're making every effort that we can," Malik said.

This comes as the club plans to apply for a new league, USL Division One. That league is not expected to launch until 2028. An official new name for Division One has yet to be announced.

To be eligible to play in that division, the league requires teams to have a stadium that seats a minimum of 15,000 fans. First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park only seats 10,000. There's also no guarantee that the new league would accept the club.

Also, at least 75% of the league's teams would need to be in metro areas with a population of 1 million or more.

"We check every box except for the facilities," Malik said.

He told ABC11 that he was seriously revisiting the idea of a soccer stadium near downtown Raleigh.

"I do have an interest in Downtown South, and that, you know, we feel like downtown Raleigh is a great location," Malik said. "It's one of the largest metropolitan areas in the country without any kind of downtown facility."

But as of now, nothing is for certain.

"There's no guarantee," Malik said.

Fans who spoke with ABC11 on Tuesday had mixed reactions.

"It's a big deal. Especially for the local soccer community," said Jennifer Hall, who runs The Soccer Post in Cary, a store dedicated to all things soccer.

Hall is a big fan of NCFC and said she was bummed that the team will be suspending operations after this season.

"Right now, that's our only professional team, men's team," she said.

Meanwhile, Ryan Jernigan, with the fan group Oak City Supporters, said he, too, was disappointed to see things go this way.

"I have a kid on the way, and I always thought like, I'm going to raise my kid going into the NCFC games, and pretty discouraging that the year that this is happening, that's not going to be the case," Jernigan said.

He said he remains cautiously optimistic about the future of men's professional soccer in the Triangle.

"Soccer in America is a, can be a sketchy thing as far as teams popping up and going away very quickly," Jernigan said, "So, I really do hope that's the case, and I really do hope this is a kind of a pause for a few years and then we can come back."

Despite low attendance numbers for men, Malik said the success of the women's team, the North Carolina Courage, and The Soccer Tournament (TST) means people want soccer in the Triangle. And playing on a higher tier than where NCFC is now, he said he believes, is the answer.

"We're making every effort that we can. We think Raleigh's got a strong bid, and we think the community will respond if we're playing at the highest level," Malik said.

The decision on NCFC does not affect the Courage or the NCFC Youth program. The club will be reaching out to those to have already purchased 2026 season tickets.

"The USL believes Raleigh has strong potential as a future Division One market if it meets the league's professional standards, including a minimum 15,000-seat, purpose-built soccer stadium that will serve as an anchor for real estate development," the USL said in a statement to ABC11.

In the meantime, in what could be the team's final match, NCFC plays against Rhode Island FC this Saturday in a playoff quarterfinals matchup at 7 p.m. at First Horizon Stadium.

SEE ALSO: NC Courage end regular season with win, break club's attendance record