AFC Mobile, the local men’s soccer club known to its fan base as the Azaleas, is set to return to the pitch this weekend for the first time in more than a year, opening its long-delayed National Premier Soccer League season on the road against Southern States SC in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
The club had been building toward its NPSL debut in 2020 after three seasons in the Gulf Coast Premier League, but those plans were shelved when the league canceled its summer schedule because of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than a year later, AFC Mobile is finally ready to take the field in one of the largest amateur soccer leagues in the country, which fields nearly 100 teams across 14 regional conferences nationwide.
Wieczorek’s Outlook
Head coach Steve Wieczorek, who holds a doctorate in sports management from Troy University, said the club is eager to make up for lost time. “There is a build-up of anticipation,” Wieczorek said. “We had a few resign from our 2019 team, but a lot stayed onboard. Now we have added a few more players for this season. In that regard, we will hit the ground running with a full year of preparation.”
Wieczorek recently stepped down as Spring Hill College’s soccer coach to focus full-time on AFC Mobile. He said the pandemic-forced pause, while disappointing at the time, ultimately gave the organization room to grow off the field. “The break allowed us to start our youth academy,” he said. “A year away from the senior team turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It turned out to be really positive for the club.”
The Road Trip and Home Opener
Following Saturday’s opener in Hattiesburg, AFC Mobile will travel to New Orleans on May 8 to face the New Orleans Jesters before returning home May 15 to open its home slate against Port City FC of Gulfport at Archbishop Lipscomb Stadium, known locally as The Lip, located at 3610 Michael Blvd. in Mobile. Kickoff for home matches is scheduled for 7 p.m., and club officials said seating capacity will be limited this season.
The venue, Archbishop Lipscomb Stadium, is the home athletic field of McGill-Toolen Catholic High School, a Yellow Jackets program with a long history of high school football and soccer in Mobile. The Lip has hosted AFC Mobile home matches since the club was founded, and fans in the area have come to associate Saturday evenings at the stadium with the Azaleas’ distinctive brand of fast, attacking soccer.
Who Leads the Roster
Leading the roster is forward and team captain Chisom Ogbonna, the franchise’s all-time leading scorer with 20 goals in 18 career games. Ogbonna, who has been with the organization since its Gulf Coast Premier League days, first wore the captain’s armband during the canceled 2020 season and will do so again this year. “He is a very influential player who has been with us since the GCPL days,” Wieczorek said. “He has the right level of maturity and experience to be our captain.”
The Azaleas also return a deep group in net, headlined by Will Blake, a McGill-Toolen Catholic High School graduate who now plays collegiately for Florida Gulf Coast University. Wieczorek said the club can also call on goalkeepers Barou Ndaw, who played for him at Spring Hill College, and Salvador Plaza, who plays at the University of Montevallo.
Defense and Midfield
Defensively, Wieczorek pointed to returning players Zubair Taylor and Vlad Margolin, along with newcomers Stanley Joseph and Andrew Rhoda. Several of the club’s defenders see regular action in the Gulf South Conference at the collegiate level, and Wieczorek said the roster also includes two promising products of the club’s U-19 program, Ryan Green and Salia Carr, who are moving up to the senior team this year.
One newcomer Wieczorek is especially excited about is Blake Palmquist, an NCAA Division II player from Montana. “He is very exciting and very athletic,” the coach said. “I can’t wait to work with him.” The midfield group rounds out with returners Arad Lev Ari, Mike Conneh, Eddie Dakwa and Iba Ndaw, another former Spring Hill College player.
Wieczorek said building a roster that blends homegrown talent with players recruited from outside the region has been central to the club’s approach. “We want to make sure to identify the top talent in Mobile,” he said. “It was also important to retain the majority of players we brought in from outside the city. Both groups raise our profile and attract the highest level of players from across the U.S.”
The Coaching Staff
Wieczorek will be joined on the sideline by assistant coaches Brent Grube, of Mary G. Montgomery High School, and Ruben Risco, of UMS-Wright Preparatory School. The coach said the step up to the NPSL marks a significant milestone for soccer in the Mobile area. “The NPSL is the highest amateur league in the country,” he said. “This is a really big step for Mobile. I am proud and excited for the opportunity.”
The presence of two local high school coaches on the Azaleas’ bench underscores the connection between AFC Mobile and the broader youth soccer scene in Mobile and Baldwin counties. Mary G. Montgomery High School, in Semmes, and UMS-Wright Preparatory School, in Mobile, both field competitive soccer programs, and the ties between those programs and the NPSL club give Mobile-area players a clear developmental pathway from high school to the senior amateur ranks.
The Gulf Coast Conference
AFC Mobile will compete in the NPSL’s Gulf Coast Conference alongside Florida Roots FC of Panama City, Jacksonville Armada FC, the New Orleans Jesters, Pensacola FC, Port City FC, Southern States SC and Tallahassee SC. Wieczorek said the club already has some familiarity with a couple of conference foes thanks to its U-19 squad’s matches last fall. “Because of our U-19 team last fall, we got to see Southern States and the Jesters in action,” he said. “This gives us an insight into how their senior team will play. I think we will have a highly competitive and exciting season. All the teams I coach approach the games in a fast-break style. We will certainly be in contention. We just have to do it on the field.”
Season Pass Options
Fans looking to support the Azaleas this season can choose from four season pass packages. Package A includes an AFC Mobile-branded silicone wristband along with admission to all home matches and exclusive club events. Package B provides admission to every home match, including any home playoff games, plus a choice of a 2021 season scarf or T-shirt, both designed by Mobile-based artists and set to be unveiled before the season begins. Package C combines home-match admission with both the season scarf and shirt, and Package D, the top-tier option, includes admission to all home matches and playoffs along with the club’s first-ever custom home jersey, designed locally and produced by Hummel.
Tickets and additional information on AFC Mobile are available at afcmobile.net or by calling 251-272-9507.
What the Season Means for Mobile
The arrival of NPSL competition is being treated locally as a significant step forward for the sport on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Amateur soccer in Mobile has long been organized around adult leagues and club tournaments, and the Azaleas’ promotion to the NPSL gives the city a pipeline from youth soccer through college and into a national-level amateur league without players having to leave the region. For high school programs at McGill-Toolen, UMS-Wright, Mary G. Montgomery and elsewhere, the existence of an NPSL team in their own market gives young players a visible next step in their development.
The Azaleas also serve as a bridge for college players in the area who want to test themselves against high-level amateur competition during the summer. Spring Hill College, the University of Mobile, the University of South Alabama, Spring Hill College and other programs along the I-10 corridor all produce players who, in past years, would have had to travel out of state to find meaningful summer soccer. With the Azaleas in the NPSL, those players now have a local outlet that plays the same regional opponents they will face in regular conference play across the Southeast.
Mobile’s soccer community has rallied around the Azaleas in recent years, with volunteer boards, sponsor partners and a steady stream of fans turning out at The Lip each summer Saturday. The pandemic pause tested that base, but the club’s quick pivot to launch a youth academy kept the organization visible and active during the layoff. That academy is now feeding players directly into the senior roster, with Ryan Green and Salia Carr among the first graduates of that pipeline.
Wieczorek’s decision to step away from Spring Hill College to coach the Azaleas full time also marks a commitment to the club that goes beyond a single season. Holding a doctorate in sports management from Troy University, Wieczorek combines coaching credentials with the kind of administrative background that small clubs need as they grow. His arrival allowed the Azaleas to plan more deliberately for the NPSL transition, including expanding the front-office work, formalizing the academy and locking in the conference schedule.
For longtime fans, the simple fact of a Saturday night home opener at The Lip is itself a kind of return to normal. More than a year without senior team soccer in Mobile has been the longest competitive pause in the Azaleas’ short history. The home opener on May 15, against Port City FC of Gulfport, will mark the end of that gap, and the limited seating announced for the season reflects both the indoor-style protocols the club is observing and the strong demand it expects from a fan base eager to see its team back on the field.