Orange County SC
Orange County Soccer Club is an American soccer team that plays in the Orange County, California city of Irvine. Started in 2010 as the Los Angeles Blues, the team currently plays in the Western Conference of the USL Championship, the second level of American soccer.
| OC-Primary.png | ||||
| Full name | Orange County Soccer Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1998 (as Los Angeles Blues) | |||
| Owners | James Keston Community Ownership | |||
| Coach | Danny Stone | |||
| League | USL Championship | |||
| 2025 | 6th, Western Conference Playoffs: Conference Semifinals | |||
| Website | [orangecountysoccer.com Club home page] | |||
| ||||
The team plays its home games at Championship Soccer Stadium, inside Great Park in Irvine.
History
The then Los Angeles Blues were made by Iranian-American Ali Mansouri in 1998 and announced as a USL Pro team on December 7, 2010.[1][2][3][4][5] The team was a part of the United Soccer Leagues W-League team LA Blues, and was part of the larger Orange County Blues group, which has competed in Los Angeles-area amateur leagues since 1998.[6]
During the 2012 season, the Los Angeles Blues changed their name to the Orange County Blues FC. This was due to a disagreement between the club and its fans, who wanted the club to be named after the area where the club played soccer.[7]
In 2016, the team was purchased by American businessman James Keston, rebranded to Orange County SC.[2] Prior to the 2017 season, Orange County became the USL affiliate of Los Angeles FC in a multi-year deal, which was ended after 2018.[8][9]
In the 2021 season, Head Coach Braden Cloutier was let go during the season and replaced by Assistant Coach Richard Chaplow.[10] OCSC went on to end up second in the Pacific Division, and played in the USL Championship Final, defeating Tampa Bay Rowdies in at St. Petersburg, Florida, 3–1.[11]
Stadium
- Titan Stadium; Fullerton, California (2011–2013)
- Anteater Stadium; Irvine, California (2014–2016)
- Championship Soccer Stadium; Irvine, California (2017–now)
In October 2023, the City of Irvine and Orange County SC created a 5-year agreement for the team to play in Championship Soccer Stadium.[12] On October 23, City Council agreed to the deal. The 5-year agreement includes one 5-year renewal.[13]
Club culture
Fan groups
Orange County has one main fan group, named the County Line Coalition.[14] A fan group that was made in 2014 when the team changed their name from the Los Angeles Blues to the Orange County Blues SC,[15] they sit in the left corner of the team's stadium behind the north goalpost, singing songs similar to popular music, like "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver.[16]
Mascot
On April 9, 2021, Orange County showed their new mascot, Gnarly.[17] He is an orange monster that can be seen during games and at Orange County SC activities around the county.[18]
Players and staff
Current team
- As of June 25, 2025
- ^ USL Academy Contract
Office
James Keston – Owner & CEO[19]
Peter Nugent – Sports Director- Dan Rutstein - Interim President of Business Operations
Coaches
- Danny Stone - Head Coach
Robert Earnshaw – Helper Coach
Didier Crettenand – Helper Coach- Victor Nogueira – Goalkeeping Coach
List of head coaches
- Charlie Naimo (2011–2012)
Jesus Rico-Sanz (2012–2013)
Dariush Yazdani (2013–2014)- Oliver Wyss (2014–2016)
- Barry Venison (2016)
- Logan Pause (2017)
- Braeden Cloutier (2018–2021)
- Richard Chaplow (2021–2023)
Morten Karlsen (2023–2024)- Paul Hardyman (2024)
- Danny Stone (2024-)
Record
Year-by-year
This is a small list of the last five seasons completed by the club. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Orange County SC seasons.
| Season | League | Position | Playoffs | USOC | Continental / Other | Average attendance | Top goalscorer(s) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Div | League | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Conf. | Overall | Name | Goals | |||||
| 2020 | 2 | USLC | 16 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 24 | 1.50 | 9th | 17th | DNQ | NH | DNQ | 3,188 | Sean Okoli |
7 |
| 2021 | 32 | 15 | 10 | 7 | 44 | 37 | +7 | 52 | 1.63 | 2nd | 7th | W | NH | 3,302 |  Ronaldo Damus
|
16 | |||
| 2022 | 34 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 49 | 59 | -10 | 34 | 1.00 | 13th | 23rd | DNQ | R3 | 4,230 | Milan Iloski
|
22 ♦ | |||
| 2023 | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 39 | +7 | 57 | 1.68 | 2nd | 5th | SF | R3 | 4,411 | Milan Iloski
|
17 | |||
| 2024 | 34 | 13 | 14 | 7 | 40 | 47 | -7 | 46 | 1.35 | 6th | 14th | SF | R32 | 4,138 | Ethan Zubak
|
11 | |||
^ 1. Avg. attendance include statistics from league matches only.
^ 2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in league play, playoffs, U.S. Open Cup, and other competitive matches.
Honors
- USL Championship
- Winners: 2021
- USL Championship Western Conference (playoffs)
- Winners: 2021
- USL Championship Western Conference (regular season)
Orange County SC Media
View of the main grandstand in the Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine, Calif. on August 3, 2024 from the Northwest corner of the stadium
View of Orange County SC's main supporter group, the County Line Coalition, during a match
Gnarly after a March 2025 match
References
- ↑ "Irvine-based soccer team changes ownership". Orange County Register. September 8, 2016. https://www.ocregister.com/2016/09/08/irvine-based-soccer-team-changes-ownership/. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 USLSoccer.com Staff (September 8, 2016). "Blues Purchased by Southern California Businessman Keston". United Soccer League. https://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/695245-blues-purchased-by-southern-california-businessman-keston. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
- ↑ "Mehrshad Momeni: Consumed by the Game". OurSports Central. August 10, 2011. https://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/mehrshad-momeni-consumed-by-the-game/n-4271854. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
- ↑ "OC Blues 2015 Player Postmortem: Mehrshad Momeni". Angels on Parade. https://www.angelsonparade.com/2015/11/22/9776626/orange-county-blues-2015-player-postmortem-mehrshad-momeni-usl-iran-esteghlal. Retrieved June 1, 2018.[dead link]
- ↑ LA Blues Set to Play in USL PRO Archived December 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Los Angeles Blues Sign First Three Players. Retrieved December 15, 2010.
- ↑ Register, Kimberly Pierceall | Orange County. Professional soccer team makes move to Irvine (in en-US). Orange County Register (2014-02-07). Retrieved 2024-06-29.
- ↑ USLSoccer.com Staff (December 7, 2016). "LAFC, Orange County Blues FC Announce Multi-Year Partnership". United Soccer League. http://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/731323-lafc-orange-county-blues-fc-announce-multi-year-partnership. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
- ↑ MLSSoccer.com Staff (December 14, 2018). "LAFC announce end of USL affiliation with Orange County SC". Alicia Rodriguez. https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2018/12/14/lafc-announce-end-usl-affiliation-orange-county-sc. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
- ↑ Orange County SC dismiss head coach Braeden Cloutier. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
- ↑ Orange County SC drops Rowdies to win its first USL Championship title - SBI Soccer (in en-US). sbisoccer.com (November 30, 2021). Retrieved 2022-01-12.
- ↑ Orange County SC - City of Irvine - Great Park Championship Soccer Stadium Use Proposal (in en-US). Orange & Black SoccerCast (2023-10-08). Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ↑ No Title. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
- ↑ Home | County Line Coalition (in en). County LineCoalition. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
- ↑ Supporters Groups (in en-US). Orange County SC. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
- ↑ Supporter Chants (in en-US). Orange County SC. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
- ↑ EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE ORANGE COUNTY SC HOSTS SAN ANTONIO (in en-US). Orange County SC. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
- ↑ Turner, Andrew. City of Irvine considering options for future use of Championship Soccer Stadium (in en-US). Daily Pilot (2022-08-13). Retrieved 2024-06-18.
- ↑ Front OfficeOrange County Soccer Club. Retrieved March 10, 2025.