When you think of Orlando, Florida, you probably think of Disney -- one of the largest tourist destinations in the United States. The Orlando Magic might also come to mind -- and NBA franchise that's celebrating it's 25th year in the league.
Now you can add one more thing to your list: Major League Soccer.
Last Tuesday, Orlando and the Orange County Commissioner's Office agreed to help fund a new $84 million downtown multipurpose stadium, which pretty much did all but seal the deal to bring the MLS to Orlando -- hopefully by the 2015 season.
With the move, Florida will be getting it's first MLS franchise since the league shutdown two teams, the Tampa Bay Mutiny and the Miami Fusion in the early-2000's. Orlando City Soccer will be the only MLS team in the southeast, and is sure to draw a large following.
"That was an entirely different era," MLS President Mark Abbott said of the failed Florida franchises. "That was over a decade ago. Both the country and the league have changed significantly over that time."
This is a move that Florida soccer fans have been asking for, and it's what they're finally going to get.
Orlando is a city that has a passion for the sports they have, and soccer is one of the sports that they are willing to show up for.
When Orlando City hosted USL Pro Championship game at the Citrus Bowl in September, more than 20,000 people showed up to support the Lions to their second USL championship in three years since beginning play in Orlando.
"When they drew 21,000 fans for the USL Pro Championship game, that really woke up not just us in the MLS, but it really woke up the world of soccer," said MLS spokesman Dan Courtemanche.
Orlando City already has a loyal fan base, and Lions President Phil Rawlins is hoping that the team can build on that, and turn the club into something more then just another MLS franchise.
"Our goal is to build a truly global soccer brand. I believe in less than 10 years we will be counted as one of the more significant brands in the world of soccer, not just in the U.S.," Rawlins said. "That's because we have this opportunity of 57 million visitors annually to Orlando."
And Orlando has an advantage over most team because of the tourism that their city attracts. Millions upon millions of people come to Orlando each year, and maybe a good handful of them will go see a game. Maybe they buy a shirt, scarf or jersey while they're at the game. They go back to their homestate, or country and advertise the team worldwide.
So not only is the team benefiting from the worldwide attraction, but the city will benefit from a little more traffic coming for the games.
Orlando City has a deal in-place with the MLS to guarantee the MLS All-Star Game coming to Orlando within the first five years of the new stadium opening -- there's a heavy load of incoming soccer fans.
The new stadium will also host about five US Men's international matches, bringing in a great deal of US supporters.
And coming up in November, the US Women's National Team with take on the Brazilian National Team at the Citrus Bowl -- there's your load of international traffic.
Soccer is undoubtably the world's most popular sport, and it's growing wildly in the US. In a 2011 Poll by ESPN, results showed that soccer is actually the second most popular sport in the US, behind only football, in the age 12-24 demographic.
Sometimes you can look at the decisions people make and say, "Gosh, that was a dumb idea." But in this case, approving the deal for a new soccer stadium to help bring the MLS to Orlando was one of the smartest moves any government has made in a long time.
We are the purple and red. MLS, here we come.
Follow @GavinEwbank2013 on Twitter.
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