While Fort Wayne FC will make its official move to USL League One, a professional soccer league, in 2026, its five seasons playing in League Two have provided the lessons needed to be successful in the pro ranks from the outset.

The club’s focus on players as individuals and its efforts to give the players a professional environment in a pre-professional league were done with a long-term lens.

That also means scheduling professional competition, including tonight when Fort Wayne FC returns to Bishop D’Arcy Stadium at Saint Francis to play host to an international friendly against the U-23 reserve club for Atlas FC, which competes in Liga MX, the top league in Mexico.

“In these early stages, it’s more about funding an initiative that is understood from Day 1, to do it the right way, you can’t do it and have a good financial outcome,” Fort Wayne FC principal owner Mark Music said. “Our top priority was to see where this thing could go relative to playing full professional soccer, and the only way to accomplish that proof of concept was to behave more like a professional organization, front office, etc.

“When it’s a sports business, nothing comes risk-free. Nothing comes where you can actually have 100% confirmation, but it gave us enough testing on a whole lot of levels to where we felt like we could be an organization that fit in the fabric of this community in a way that creates value.”

In a league where amenities range as widely as one could imagine, Fort Wayne FC has committed to providing an experience that exceeds what League Two mandates. Be it charter bus travel to away matches – or even a charter flight, as the club traveled by plane for its match at FC Buffalo in 2023 – compared to other clubs that make players drive their own vehicles, or dorms on the Purdue Fort Wayne campus with built-in kitchens compared to other clubs that sometimes fit as many as six players into a single bedroom, the club’s business side works in concert with the sporting side to ensure proper care for the players.

“Every club runs their semi-professional team differently,” said DaMarcus Beasley, Fort Wayne FC director of football operations. “We run ours a different way. We try to mimic a professional environment. How they travel, how they eat, how they dress, all those things matter to the club. They have a certain dress code on the road. Some of these players, especially the young players, haven’t been in those type of environments, but you want to show them what it’s like at that next level.”

Those efforts start even before players arrive in the Summit City. During the recruitment process, Mike Avery, head coach and current sporting director, discusses what each player needs during their time with the club. Some players need to find employment to supplement their income on top of the provided housing and weekly stipend, which can cover the cost of groceries. Once players have been selected for the roster, Avery and team administrator Rene Sanchez work together to ensure that the players’ needs and requests are met.

Fort Wayne FC defender Reid Sproat works with former FWFC assistant coach Nick Potter on the coaching staff of HY2 Soccer Training Center, which operates out of Parkview Sports Medicine’s Empowered Sports Club.

Sproat also was an assistant under Potter after he was named the interim head coach of Huntington’s men’s soccer program last fall.

Fort Wayne FC forward Rood Schnaider Beaubrun also coaches with HY2 on a part-time basis, while goalkeeper Christian Herluf officiates youth soccer matches in the city.

“I’ve been helping out there, and I’m enjoying it,” Sproat said. “It’s good just to give back to the community in that way. A lot of parents in the area are looking for ways to train their kids.”

Other players may desire to complete mentorships or short internships in their field of study. Based on those needs, those within the club’s front office will work in concert with the players to find employment or internship opportunities that complement the training and game schedule. Each of those tasks supplement the club’s goal of establishing what goes into living the lifestyle of a professional athlete.

“We try and handle all the processes and systems so that when we come into January of next year, we don’t have to start all over again,” Avery said. “Everybody’s on their own individual situation. Some guys need some work, and some guys can’t work because of their visa situations.

“We try and help them connect to things, whether it’s working some coaching jobs or camp jobs, but it’s really on them to figure out how to they’re going to occupy their time from noon until tomorrow morning when we train again.”

Many players at the League Two level are 18 to 22 years old, using the summer in the league to prepare for their college seasons in the fall. While the on-field training sessions accomplish that task, those take place in the mornings, giving the players afternoons potentially free of obligations.

That lifestyle varies greatly from their time in college, where they fit training into a full schedule that includes coursework, studies and a social life.

“It’s a real learning point, because the life of a college student is very busy,” Avery said. “You have all these obligations from your team, plus your obligations with class. But as a pro athlete, you have two or three hours a day that you’re in to work, and then you’ve got to find a way to occupy your time without being on your feet and conserving your physical energy.

“I think they all see the limelight and what happens under the lights in the stadium, but how you manage yourself so that you’re at peak performance all the time to play in those environments is really important.”

Some of that time management includes helping Beasley bring to life his long-stated club goal of community involvement. On Monday, four players – Caio Oliveira, Hideto Gondo, Nathan Ntalu and Sproat – visited Wholesome Roots Cooking’s International Adventures Summer Camp, where they worked alongside children attending the camp, speaking about and cooking food from their homelands.

With some players returning to the club for multiple seasons – Sproat, a native of Auburn and a Leo graduate, has played in at least one match for Fort Wayne FC in all five seasons, while goalkeeper Aurie Briscoe and defender Tiago Dias are now in their third season with the club – their increased familiarity with Fort Wayne has helped them pursue personal interests during their free time.

Briscoe, for instance, explained that he enjoys fishing, often spending three to four hours in the evenings several days a week out on the water.

Like a true angler, Briscoe declined to reveal his favorite fishing spot but explained that the club encourages players to find activities not strictly focused on soccer during their free time.

“You have to find your options and find something outside of soccer,” Briscoe said. “You can go on Friday with Reid to Smoothie King or just spend time with your teammates in the dorms. There’s plenty of opportunities outside of soccer to do whatever it is you like to do.

“There’s a lot to find in (Fort Wayne), so you can go find and discover some hidden gems.”