Florida Sports Wire

FLORIDA SPORTS WIRE ORLANDO – Orlando City SC and head coach Oscar Pareja have mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately. Assistant coach Martín Perelman has been appointed interim head coach following Pareja’s departure. “I want to thank Oscar for the dedication, leadership and professionalism he brought to our club,” said Ricardo Moreira, Orlando City SC General Manager & Sporting Director. “He delivered one of the most significant moments in Orlando City’s history with the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and helped establish the competitive foundation that has propelled us forward, highlighted by our active club-record run of six straight playoffs appearances, which is currently the longest streak in MLS. At the same time, we believe this is the right moment to take the Club in a new direction as we look to the next phase of our growth and ambitions. We are grateful for everything Oscar has contributed and wish him nothing but success in the next chapter of his career.”...

  ORLANDO - No. 9 Orlando City SC will face No. 8 Chicago Fire FC in the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference Wild Card game on Wednesday, Oct. 22, at SeatGeek Stadium, the league announced today. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m. ET on MLS Season Pass and Apple TV. The winner of Wednesday’s Wild Card game will advance to the Audi MLS Cup Round One Best-of-3 series.  The Lions’ six straight playoffs appearances stand as the longest active streak in MLS. Over that six-year span, Orlando City has amassed 308 regular-season points, fourth-most in the league. This year’s squad added to that legacy, setting a new club record with 63 goals scored in a single season.  Orlando City will host a series of activations to celebrate the start of the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs, including Kingston’s Scavenger Hunt—a city-wide fan experience featuring exclusive prizes, playoff swag, and more—along with official watch parties for all away playoff matches. More details, along with addi...

 ORLANDO – Orlando City SC is set to take on the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the Round of 32 of the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the 110th edition of the cup competition.  The match, reigniting the I-4 Derby, will take place on Wednesday, May 7 at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida, with all Round of 32 matches scheduled to take place from May 6-7. City’s match against the Rowdies is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on Paramount+.  Additionally, hosting priorities for the Round of 16 were determined as a part of Thursday morning’s draw live on CBS Sports Golazo Network’s Morning Footy. The Lions hold hosting priorities in the Round of 16 and, should they advance past Tampa, would host the winner of the matchup between Nashville SC and Chattanooga Red Wolves SC.   The Rowdies currently rank 10th in USL Championship through the first five matches of the 2025 campaign, posting a 1-4-0 record for three points. Tampa Bay comes into the Rou...

ORLANDO – Orlando City SC is set to take on Canadian-side Cavalry FC in Round One of the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup. Specific match details, including ticket information, will be announced at a later date.   Orlando City was drawn into position A8 from Pot 1, being placed into Pot 1 by virtue of the Club’s standing in the Concacaf Club Rankings, with Cavalry FC being drawn into position B8 from Pot 2.   The 59th edition of the Concacaf Champions Cup, the region's premier men's club competition, will be played between February and June 2024. The annual tournament, comprised of five direct elimination rounds and the best clubs from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, crowns the Confederation's club champion and is the sole qualification route for the region's clubs to the new and expanded FIFA Club World Cup. The competition's first four rounds (Round One, Round of 16, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals), all include home and away play, while the Final is p...

NEW YORK  –  Orlando City SC forward Ramiro Enrique was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire for Matchday 32 of the 2023 MLS season.  Enrique produced his first career brace and added an assist in Orlando City’s 4-3 comeback victory over the Columbus Crew at Exploria Stadium on Saturday, September 16. The Argentine forward scored both the game-tying and game-winning goal for Orlando after the 85th minute of play.  With the pair of scores, Enrique became the first player in club history to score both a game-tying and game-winning goal in the 85th minute or later of a match and just the second player to accomplish the feat this year, joining Atlanta United’s Thiago Almada (February 25). Enrique is the third player in Orlando history with at least two goals and one assist in a match, and he is the first to do so since Nani on September 14, 2019.  After a back and forth opening 70 minutes to the match, Orlando found them...

MONTRÉAL (Florida Sports Wire) –   No. 7 Orlando City SC fell 2-0 to No. 2 CF Montréal on Sunday evening, with the loss knocking the Lions out of play in the Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs. The defeat brings one of Orlando’s most successful seasons to a close, with the team securing its first hardware of its MLS era earlier in the year, when they lifted the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup trophy. The Lions had a handful of chances in the first half, but each opportunity went just over the frame and after a feisty first half, the two sides entered the locker rooms even. However, it was the home side who broke through in the second 45, with Ismaël Koné netting the game-winner in the 68th minute before Djordje Mihailovic added the insurance with a stoppage-time penalty goal. Midfielder Júnior Urso recorded his 100th appearance across all competitions for the Lions with his start, with all coming in an Orlando kit.

ORLANDO - Orlando City SC (8-10-6, 30 points) were defeated by the New England Revolution (7-7-9, 30 points) on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium by a scoreline of 3-0.  The Revolution were backed by three different goalscorers, as well a pair of assists from Tommy McNamara. The match saw winger Iván Angulo make his debut for City after being acquired by the Club on July 25.  The 23-year-old is currently on loan from Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras of Brazil’s Série A, joining the Lions for a 12-month spell with an option to extend an additional six months. City returns to action on Saturday, Aug. 13, traveling to take on the New York Red Bulls Kickoff set for 6 p.m.

  ORLANDO (SportsTicker) - Orlando City SC dropped a 3-1 decision to English Premier League side Arsenal FC on Wednesday night at Exploria Stadium. The friendly was part of Arsenal’s US Tour in conjunction with Florida Cup’s FC Series.  Following a brief rain delay, the two sides finally met for the first time on the pitch. The Gunners struck early when Gabriel Martinelli found the back of the net in the fifth minute, but the Lions answered later in the first half with a sensational goal from Facundo Torres.  Torres brought down a gorgeous pass from Antonio Carlos and kept his composure by finding his footing, cutting on his left foot and firing the ball past a diving Aaron Ramsdale.  The Arsenal was backed by two goals in the second half coming from Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson to seal the victory for the London-based side.  The match saw a plethora of players enter the match with each side allowed 10 substitutions each, including OCB product Moises Tablante ...

ORLANDO - Orlando City SC (8-7-4, 28 points) earned a 1-0 victory over intrastate rival Inter Miami CF (6-8-4, 22 points) on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium. With the victory, the Lions are now unbeaten in five-straight matches against their neighbors to the south across all competitions. The two sides had to wait quite some time to take part in their first regular season matchup of 2022, with a near three-hour rain delay pushing the match to a 10:25 p.m. kickoff. Following 90 minutes of play, the sides remained scoreless, until a cross from Jake Mulraney whipped in from the left side deflected off Inter Miami’s Damion Lowe for an own goal to decide the match in stoppage time.  With the clean sheet, goalkeeper Pedro Gallese matched his single-season high with his seventh shutout of the campaign. In addition, defender Robin Jansson set a new Club-record with his 92nd start for the Lions in league play, surpassing former City goalkeeper Joe Bendik, while teammate Benji Michel beca...

Jacksonville SportsDay JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville's Charles Eloundou scored late in the match to give the Armada FC a 1-0 preseason victory over MLS foe Philadelphia at Community First Park Saturday night. Eloundou took a pass from Akeil Barrett and curled it over the Union goal keeper for the score. Jacksonville new head coach Tony Meola’s debuted a formation and new signings during the rain soaked contest. The Armada introduced with five defenders, including new signings Tyler Ruthven, Beto Navarro and Bryan Burke. The Armada will be back in action next Saturday when they host another MLS club, Orlando City SC, at 6 p.m.  Tickets, starting at $10, can be purchased by calling 1.844.2.ARMADA or visiting armadafc.com/tickets.