ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After a little more than four months, the Tampa Bay Rowdies will be back out on the soccer field this weekend!
Tampa Bay begins its upcoming USL Championship campaign on Saturday, March 11 as the team welcomes Indy Eleven to Al Lang Stadium in downtown St. Petersburg.
As fans get ready to cheer on the Rowdies for another exciting year, here are three things you need to know ahead of the season opener.
New players
Tampa Bay has added a total of 10 new players with two of them being familiar faces.
Defender Forrest Lasso rejoined the club in January after leaving last year to get a taste of European soccer with Swedish side GIF Sundsvall. Before he left, Lasso was a three-time USL Championship Defender of the Year and will look to replicate that form in the new season.
The Rowdies also brought back midfielder Jordan Doherty, who has already spent three years with Tampa Bay. He returns after playing with Bohemians in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland.
Other new players that the Rowdies have signed are forwards JJ Williams from Phoenix Rising, Ariel Martinez from Hartford Athletic, Felix Schroter from Norwegian side FK Jerv and Cal Jennings from MLS's Los Angeles FC; midfielders Zachary Herivaux from Birmingham Legion FC and Charlie Dennis from Oakland Roots SC; defender Freddy Kleeman from MLS side Austin FC and goalkeeper Connor Sparrow from in-state rival Miami FC.
An awkward homecoming
During the offseason, Tampa Bay announced the departure of the team's all-time record goalscorer Sebastian Guenzatti.
He also served as the captain for the Rowdies and has recorded the second most appearances by any player in the club's modern era with 161 games. In total, he scored 65 goals.
Now, the Uruguayan forward is with Indy Eleven after signing with them in December. Guenzatti returns to Al Lang Stadium in an unfamiliar fashion as this time around, he will look to score and defeat the Rowdies instead of being their reliable and top performer.
This game will also be the first time that former Tampa Bay forward Juan Tejada plays against his old team after he was traded to Indy Eleven midway through last season.
Tejada, who was considered a homegrown talent by many fans after playing collegiate soccer with Eckerd College in St. Pete, spent three and a half seasons with the Rowdies and logged 14 goals in 75 appearances.
Tickets
Tickets for this Saturday's game are still available and range from $15 to $39.
For those who can't make it to the season opener, there are still single-game tickets for other home matches this season.
The team is also offering season ticket packages with prices starting at $357.
All tickets can only be purchased through the Rowdies' official website. To learn more about ticket information, click here. To view the team's full schedule this year, click here.
Kickoff is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. for Saturday's game on March 11 against Indy Eleven.