Jacksonville’s first professional women’s soccer team gears up to make its debut
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Jacksonville’s first professional women’s soccer team gears up to make its debut

  • July 25, 2025

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – In just one week, Jacksonville’s first professional women’s soccer team will make its debut.

To celebrate ahead of the team’s debut in the Gainbridge Super League, Sporting JAX is putting on a kickoff party Friday night in Downtown Jacksonville, where players and coaches will take photos with fans and sign autographs.

Twenty-four players are on the roster, including at least 10 who are from the Jacksonville area. They’ll play 16 home matches at UNF’s Hodges Stadium.

RELATED | Meet the first two players in Sporting JAX women’s soccer history

Team captain and midfielder, Sophie Jones, said she wants Sporting JAX to make a difference on and off the field.

“Inspiring young girls in Jacksonville to play soccer. I think that is a total win for us,” Jones said. “We value being hard-working, competitiveness. We want you to watch our games and you be like ‘Hey that is a fun team to watch.’”

Sporting Jax player Sophie Jones. (Sporting Jax)

There’s been some interest and enthusiasm to see these players in action.

A UNF poll conducted in May revealed:

  • 42% of women and 37% of men said they’ll likely attend Sporting JAX matches.

  • Those surveyed said factors that would influence their decision to attend a match include ticket price, game times, parking and accessibility

  • 59% of women and 48% of men feel it’s very or moderately important for Jacksonville to have a professional soccer team

Sporting JAX President Steve Livingstone said he wants to put a quality product on the field and create a pathway for the next generation of local athletes to pursue pro soccer at home.

“We are really focused on making our community a better place through soccer and through sport. We are particularly focused on women’s sports, we are particularly focused on the special-needs community and we are also focused on communities that are underserved,” Livingstone said.

Steve Livingstone, President of Sporting Jax. (Sporting Jax)

Sporting JAX is hosting 2 preseason friendlies.

  • The first one is Aug. 2, when the team plays the Hibernian FC Women

  • Then Sporting JAX takes on Wrexham AFC Women on Aug. 10.

  • Both of those matches start at 7 p.m. at UNF

Sporting JAX’s regular season in the Gainbridge Super League kicks off on Aug. 23 with a home match against DC Power FC at 7 p.m.

Click here for the full schedule

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