A professional soccer club is coming to Queens with David Villa as part owner
New York City FC's David Villa, left, fights for the ball against Atlanta United FC's Michael Parkhurst in New York, Nov. 4, 2018. (AP File)
NEW YORK - A second-division professional soccer team is coming to Queens in 2021, according to the club's ownership, which includes Spanish national team star David Villa.
Queensboro FC will play in the United Soccer League's top tier, according to a news release. The club will play in a planned new stadium at York College in Jamaica and also intends to host some matches at Citi Field, the home of the New York Mets.
Villa, 37, helped Spain win the 2010 World Cup and 2008 European Championship. He also played for New York City FC, a Major League Soccer club, from 2014 to 2018. In a statement, he called Queens a "special place."
"I love the cultures, the food, the people and their passion for life and, of course, soccer," Villa said in the statement. "There is no other place like it in the world. It's a dream to help build this football club in Queens and I couldn't choose a better location."
The club has already launched a website, YouTube channel, and social media platforms.
USL Championship, sanctioned by U.S. Soccer, is a notch below MLS. Several USL clubs are either owned by or affiliated with MLS teams.
Queens has seen some pro soccer over the years. The now-defunct FC New York (not to be confused with NYCFC) played on the campus of St. John's in 2011.