Skip to main contentPortland is getting a new soccer team. The Timbers and Thorns aren’t going anywhere, but starting this May, the Rose City will be the new home of a United Soccer League Two team.
The Portland Pickles, the popular collegiate wood-bat baseball team, will own the new soccer team. The name and logo will remain a mystery until early February, when the Pickles will announce further details.
The new team will be part of USL League Two, a “pre-professional” soccer league in the U.S. and Canada. Like the Pickles, it’s a way for college players to train and compete in the summer while maintaining their collegiate eligibility.
“We are incredibly excited to bring a USL2 team to Portland,” Pickles owner Alan Miller says in a statement. “We see the rise of this level similar to how college baseball has exploded in the Pacific Northwest. We can’t wait to bring Pickle vibes to the soccer world.”
The coach will be Jorge Villafaña, a former Portland Timber and U.S. Men’s National Team defender, USL League Two announced. Villafaña played five seasons for the Timbers across two different stints with the team, starting in 2014. He announced his retirement from professional soccer in April 2024.
The new soccer club will play games at Hilken Community Stadium at 2811 NE Holman St. on the former Concordia University campus. It will compete in the Northwest Division against teams such as FC Olympia and West Seattle Junction FC.
The Portland Pickles, which play home games at Walker Stadium in Lents Park, are coming off a 2024 championship season. The team leads the West Coast League in attendance.
Six-week season ticket packages will be available for sale in the coming weeks. Fans can sign up for the waitlist at portlandpicklesbaseball.com/usl2pdx.