Rooster and the Villain: An American Soccer Podcast

Interview Series: Jake Hemmesch of Futsal Collective Co

Jake is building an indoor soccer company in St. Cloud, Minnesota. We talk with Jake about the inspiration beyond the brand, how he's building it up, and what the next steps are.

Interview Series: Connor Tobin, Executive Director of the USLPA

With the USL Championship's Collective Bargaining Agreement ending on December 31, 2025, the USLPA is in the verge of its toughest negotiation yet. 

We talk about the Connor's playing career, the first CBA that was ratified in 2021, and what the challenges will be as they finalize the new CBA that they've been working on for over two years. 

Jake and Mike: F it! We'll do it live!

Mike lit the beacon, and Jake answered the call. Come join us as we cover a wide range of US soccer topics!

Interview Series: Rob Chappell of Talkin' Flock

Forward Madison and their flamingo crest is one of the more recognizable brands in USL League One. As one of founding members of League One back in 2019, with consistent attendance numbers of ~4,000 fans, the club has been a model of what clubs can strive to be in the 3rd tier of Professional soccer in this Country.

Rob Chappell has been following along since the beginning through his podcast, “Talkin’ Flock.” The podcast has been giving Forward Madison supporters an inside look into their club since those early days of 2019.

Rob and I dive into what has made this project so successful in the League One space.

Jimmy and Jake's USL Adventure Show - Vacation Prep

Interview Series: Bill Taylor of Boise Pro Soccer (USL League One and USL Super League)

USL League One spreading out West is an essential part of the plan over the next few years (“Manifest Destiny for L1”). Forming a Western Division would cut down on travel costs and make a 3rd tier professional club more affordable to operate. It is cities like Boise that are the perfect fit for joining the USL Western Front.

The intrigue for the city as a potential soccer hotbed piqued after two friendlies produced sell-out results in the recent history. There was an Athletic Bilbao vs Liga MX Club Tijuana in 2015 that drew nearly 22k people into Boise State (where the infamous blue turf was covered with grass for the event…). Then there was a very unique event - where a USL Championship regular season league game took place (Portland Timbers II vs Swope Park Rangers) in 2016 at a High School in Boise and sold out the field at 4,350 people. The feeling of it being a good fit for USL is proving to be true as the club have already sold 3,500 season tickets for their USL League One Inaugural year. That is even without the branding in place (which is set to be released on June 27th).

There was a brief period where the local Minor League Ownership group (of Boise Hawks) was speaking with USL to get a USL Championship squad. But Covid changed the narrative there. Now the timing is right and an All Star Front Office composed of four individuals - each with a different, unique specialty, are the ones backing this new project. There’s NBA Executive experience, US Soccer Experience, Idaho Youth Soccer, and Real Estate Development experience all coming together to give this project legs.

The Stadium project is perhaps one of the best stadium projects in the Country at the moment as well. They are converting an old horse racing track into a 6,000 fan soccer-specific stadium that has an incredible mountain backdrop. Phase 2 of the stadium project, which will hopefully be necessary as USL institutes promotion/relegation, would add an additional 5,000 seats for a capacity of 11,000 people.

Needless to say, I’m looking forward to watching how things unfold in Boise, Idaho and I appreciate Bill Taylor for taking the time to speak with me.

Here’s a snippet of our conversation. If you want the full videos, visit our YouTube channel here.

Jimmy and Jake's USL Adventure Show - Episode 10 - Flying Solo

Jake attempts a solo-dolo episode and gets a little help from someone special to him.

Jimmy and Jake's USL Adventure - Episode 9 - What'd We Miss?

Sorry folks, we've been taking a personal break lately. This "new" show is more discussion based, and we leave more room for how we feel about our favorite league in the world. So come welcome us back and listen to us wax poetically about Cal Jennings, the Locomotive attack, and what's gone wrong with Tampa Bay. Also, Jake says nice things about New Mexico United!

Interview Series: Matt Valentine of Atletico Dallas

In late 2024, USL Dallas announced their intention to add Dallas to their list of USL Championship clubs for 2027. Led by co-founders and long time friends, Matt Valentine and Sam Morton, the club is poised to enter a market that is also occupied by Major League Soccer.

I was fortunate enough to have Matt on the podcast to discuss this exciting USL project. We talk about Matt’s personal history with the beautiful game, the Ownership group behind the club, the vision of the next few years as they work towards their goal of playing in 2027, why Dallas makes sense, and more.

Jimmy and Jake's USL Championship Adventure Show - Episode 8

Just wanted to get the word out on the USL Adventure Show on the R&V channel. If you haven't yet, go check it out on Beyond the 90!