FC Cincinnati formally broke ground on the club's Milford, Ohio, training complex on Wednesday, which will be named the Mercy Health Training Center as part of an expanded relationship between the club and the local health system.
Mercy Health has also already signed on to be FCC's jersey sponsor when they begin MLS play in 2019.
Courtesy FC Cincinnati
The Mercy Health Training Center project, estimated to cost $30 million, will occupy approximately 24 acres and will serve as the base for the club's soccer operations, including the MLS first team and future FCC Academy training and performance activities. Additional staff will be based in the Mercy Health Training Center to support the team’s daily operations at the complex.
The facility is expected to be fully operational in August 2019. The FCC first team will relocate to the complex in January 2019 and will utilize temporary team facilities at the site until the training complex is completed later in the summer. All construction is being privately financed by the club.
Courtesy FC Cincinnati
The facility is expected to host between six and 20 soccer-related events a year, including first-team scrimmages, future FCC Academy games and local soccer tournaments, as well as other initiatives aimed at growing and raising the level of soccer in the Greater Cincinnati area.
When completed, the Mercy Health Training Center will include three full-size, lighted soccer fields (two grass, one artificial turf), as well as a goalkeeper-specific training area. FC Cincinnati’s MLS team will be housed in a 30,000 sq. ft., multilevel building adjacent to the fields, while the FCC Academy teams will have their own facilities at the Mercy Health Training Center. Additionally, there will be a 3,000 sq. ft. maintenance facility on the property.
