FC Tulsais an American professionalsoccerteam based inTulsa, Oklahomawhich competes in theUSL Championship,the second tier of theAmerican soccer pyramid.
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| Nickname(s) | Roughnecks | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | December 18, 2013(asTulsa Roughnecks FC) | |||
| Stadium | ONEOK Field Tulsa,Oklahoma | |||
| Capacity | 7,833 | |||
| Owners | Ryan, J.W. and Kyle Craft | |||
| Head Coach | Luke Spencer | |||
| League | USL Championship | |||
| 2024 | 10th, Western Conference Playoffs: DNQ | |||
| Website | fctulsa | |||
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History
editThe club was founded asTulsa Roughnecks FCby Jeff and Dale Hubbard, brothers and co-owners of theTulsa Drillersminor league baseball franchise. The Hubbards were announced as co-owners and co-chairs on December 18, 2013.[1][2]Prodigal, LLC., owner ofOklahoma City Energy FC,another USL club, served as a minority owner.[3][4]
On February 26, 2014, it was announced that the team would be known as Tulsa Roughnecks FC, paying homage to theoriginal Roughneckswhich played in theoriginal North American Soccer Leaguefrom 1978 until the league folded in 1984 (and were best known for winningSoccer Bowl '83).[5]The name received nearly 50% of the votes in a "name the team" contest held in February 2014.
The team logo, colors and uniforms were introduced on September 2, 2014.[6]Theoil derrickin the original logo, as well as the name of the team, was a reference to Tulsa's"Oil Capitol"heritage; the dictionary definition of a "roughneck"is a worker in an oil-well drilling crew.[7] The team colors are Orange and Navy Blue with all kits supplied byAdidas.[8]
On August 20, 2019, it was announced that the Craft family, composed of Tulsa natives and brothers JW, Ryan, and Kyle Craft, had acquired the club from the Drillers and Prodigal Soccer.[9]
On December 4, 2019, the club announced that it would be renamed as FC Tulsa beginning with the 2020 season.[10]The team's new logo was designed byMatthew Wolff.
Stadium
edit
The team plays atONEOK Field,a 7,833-seat stadium in the Greenwood District of Downtown Tulsa. The field opened in 2010 and was made the FC Tulsa's home in 2015. In order to transform the field from a baseball field to a soccer pitch, real sod is laid down atop the entire infield and the pitch stretches the length of the stadium, with one goal on the North side of the pitch and the other on the South side.
Club culture
editFC Tulsa's main rivals areOklahoma City Energy FCin theBlack Gold Derby,with both teams being located in Oklahoma. The supporters group of both teams established a trophy, a four-foot wrench painted with the colors of each team on either side, which is awarded to the regular season winner of the derby.
83UNITED are the only supporters group recognized by the club.[11] There are two unofficial supporters groups: Tulsa Lunatics and 918 Brigade.
FC Tulsa also shares a local derby withTulsa Athletic,with both teams playing in Tulsa. While the teams have played in preseason, they can only meet in official competition during theLamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup,which has now happened twice:
FC Tulsa win Draw Tulsa Athletic win
Sponsorship
edit| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 2015–2016 |  Admiral
|
Oculto |
| 2017–2018 |  New Balance
|
Osage Casino |
| 2019 |  Adidas
| |
| 2020–2021 | Williams | |
| 2022–2024 | Puma
| |
| 2025–present |  Hummel
|
Players and staff
editCurrent roster
edit- As of February 5, 2025[13]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules;some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
- ^USL Academy player
Staff
edit- As of January 9, 2025
- Caleb Patterson-Sewell– sporting director / general manager
- Mario Sanchez– technical director
- Luke Spencer– head coach
- Alexis Vizarelis - assistant coach
Andy Costin – Director of Performance- Adam Lewis – goalkeeping coach
- Johnathon Millwee – head athletic trainer
Year-by-year
edit- As of October 29, 2024
| Season | Record | Position | Playoffs | USOC | Average Attendance |
Top Goalscorer | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Div | League | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Conf. | Overall | Name | Goals | ||||
| 2015 | 3 | USL | 28 | 11 | 11 | 6 | 49 | 46 | +3 | 39 | 1.39 | 7th | 14th | DNQ | R3 | 4,714 |  Sammy Ochoa
|
9 |
| 2016 | USL | 30 | 5 | 21 | 4 | 25 | 64 | −39 | 19 | 0.63 | 15th | 29th | DNQ | R2 | 3,950 | Sammy Ochoa
|
11 | |
| 2017 | 2 | USL | 32 | 14 | 14 | 4 | 46 | 49 | −3 | 46 | 1.44 | 7th | 13th | CQF | R4 | 3,851 | Ian Svantesson
|
13 |
| 2018 | USL | 34 | 3 | 19 | 12 | 36 | 77 | −41 | 21 | 0.66 | 17th | 22nd | DNQ | R2 | 3,094 |  Joaquin Rivas
|
12 | |
| 2019 | USLC | 34 | 8 | 16 | 10 | 45 | 69 | −24 | 34 | 1.00 | 17th | 31st | DNQ | R2 | 2,031 |  Rodrigo da Costa
|
9 | |
| 2020 | USLC | 15 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 21 | 16 | +5 | 25 | 1.67 | 7th | 13th | CQF | NH | 2,636 |  Darío Suárez
|
8 | |
| 2021 | USLC | 32 | 14 | 13 | 5 | 49 | 48 | +1 | 47 | 1.47 | 8th | 15th | CQF | NH | 3,438 | Rodrigo da Costa
|
11 | |
| 2022 | USLC | 34 | 12 | 16 | 6 | 48 | 58 | −10 | 42 | 1.24 | 8th | 16th | DNQ | R3 | 4,044 | JJ Williams[A]
|
9 | |
| 2023 | USLC | 34 | 10 | 15 | 9 | 43 | 55 | −12 | 39 | 1.15 | 10th | 21st | DNQ | R2 | 4,445 | Phillip Goodrum
|
12 | |
| 2024 | USLC | 34 | 9 | 14 | 11 | 33 | 48 | −15 | 38 | 1.12 | 10th | 21st | DNQ | R16 | 3,714 | Stefan Stojanovic
|
5 | |
^1.Avg. attendanceinclude statistics from league matches only.
^2.Top goalscorer(s)includes all goals scored in league, league playoffs,U.S. Open Cup,CONCACAF Champions League,FIFA Club World Cup,and other competitive continental matches.
- ^Top Goalscorer by highest goal rate per 90 minutes played (JJ Williams:0.61;Darío Suárez:0.41;Rodrigo da Costa:0.32)
Head coaches
editAs of October 29, 2024
| Coach | Nationality | Start | End | Games | Win | Draw | Loss | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Irving | England
|
November 18, 2014 | December 6, 2016 | 61 | 17 | 10 | 34 | 27.87 |
| David Vaudreuil |  United States
|
December 6, 2016 | June 25, 2018 | 52 | 15 | 12 | 25 | 28.85 |
| Michael Nsien |  Nigeria
|
June 25, 2018 | June 17, 2022 | 114 | 36 | 28 | 50 | 31.58 |
| Donovan Ricketts(interim) |  Jamaica
|
June 17, 2022 | December 31, 2022 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 54.55 |
| Blair Gavin[14] | United States
|
January 1, 2023 | January 8, 2024 | 35 | 10 | 9 | 16 | 28.57 |
| Mario Sanchez[15] | United States
|
January 16, 2024 | November 13, 2024 | 37 | 11 | 11 | 15 | 29.73 |
| Luke Spencer[16] | United States
|
November 13, 2024 | present | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Total | 310 | 95 | 71 | 144 | 30.65 | |||
- Includes USL regular season, USL playoffs, and U.S. Open Cup
Affiliations
editDuring the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Tulsa Roughnecks had anMLSaffiliation with theChicago Fire FC.The Roughnecks' head coach at the time, David Vaudreuil, had made 26 appearances for Chicago during the 2001–2002 MLS season.[17]The Roughnecks' affiliation with the Chicago Fire was dissolved as of January 2019.[18]
On February 11, 2020, Tulsa formed a partnership withEFL ChampionshipsideWigan Athleticafter tweeting about a possible friendship with a Championship side, to which Wigan responded.[19]
On January 18, 2024, FC Tulsa announced a strategic partnership withSerie CteamUS Triestina Calcio 1918covering all areas of technical squad management including scouting, data analysis, player development and operational best practices.[20]
References
edit- ^"Tulsa to Join USL PRO in 2015"(Press release).United Soccer Leagues.December 18, 2013. Archived fromthe originalon January 21, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 30,2014.
- ^"Tulsa USL PRO soccer franchise holds contest to name team".Tulsa World.January 26, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 30,2014.
- ^Moss, John (December 18, 2013)."Professional Soccer Is Returning To Tulsa".Tulsa, Oklahoma:KTUL-TV.RetrievedJanuary 30,2014.
- ^Brown, Mike (December 19, 2013)."Pro soccer headed to ONEOK Field in 2015".Tulsa World.RetrievedJanuary 30,2014.
- ^Bailey, Eric (February 26, 2014)."Fans vote to resurrect Roughnecks name for new Tulsa pro soccer team".Tulsa World.RetrievedFebruary 27,2014.
- ^"Roughnecks Unveil Logo, Uniforms"(Press release).United Soccer Leagues.September 2, 2014. Archived fromthe originalon October 6, 2014.RetrievedSeptember 2,2014.
- ^"Roughneck".Merriam-Webster.RetrievedFebruary 8,2019.
- ^Eckert, T. J. (March 3, 2019)."Tulsa Roughnecks Announce Two New Changes".KTUL.RetrievedApril 5,2019.
- ^"Tulsa Roughnecks Enter New Era Under Craft Family Ownership".Tulsa Roughnecks FC. August 20, 2019. Archived fromthe originalon August 20, 2019.RetrievedAugust 20,2019.
- ^"FC Tulsa Unveils New Name, Colors and Crest".USL Championship. December 4, 2019.RetrievedDecember 4,2019.
- ^"83UNITED".83united.org.RetrievedDecember 14,2020.
- ^Staff Reports (March 24, 2022)."Tulsa Athletic wins U.S. Open Cup opener, sets up showdown with FC Tulsa".Tulsa World.RetrievedApril 4,2022.
- ^"2021 Roster".fctulsa.RetrievedMarch 12,2024.
- ^Galbreath, Nolan (October 25, 2022)."Blair Gavin Named the Next Head Coach of FC Tulsa".fctulsa.FC Tulsa.RetrievedOctober 25,2022.
- ^"FC Tulsa announces first-ever Head Coach and Technical Director, Mario Sanchez".fctulsa.FC Tulsa. January 16, 2024.RetrievedJanuary 24,2024.
- ^"FC Tulsa promotes Luke Spencer, appointed new Head Coach".USLChampionship.USL Championship.RetrievedNovember 14,2024.
- ^Gordon, Bridget (March 16, 2018)."5 Things You Should Know About The Tulsa Roughnecks".Hot Time In Old Town.RetrievedApril 3,2019.
- ^Apostol, Ruel (January 16, 2019)."A Look At The Fire's New Affiliate Teams".Hot Time in Old Town.RetrievedSeptember 11,2019.
- ^"🤔 We've had a few people ask what on earth is going on with @FCTulsa, so let us explain a little bit..."Twitter (@laticsofficial).
- ^FC Tulsa (January 18, 2024)."FC Tulsa Announces Transformational Partnership with Italian Professional Club Triestina".FC Tulsa.