Some of the biggest names in FC Cincinnati club history are getting back together to chase a $1 million prize.
The first-ever edition of The Soccer Tournament, a winner-take-all, seven-versus-seven tournament running June 1-4, will feature Nati SC, which will be comprised of some of FC Cincinnati's early heroes.
University of Cincinnati alum and local entrepreneur Michael Millay, a member of the inaugural FC Cincinnati team in 2016, is heading the project as the team's general manager while MLS Cup winner, fellow UC alum and one-time FCC player Omar Cummings will serve as head coach.
Nati SC's roster will include Millay, Andrew Wiedeman (2016-17), Francisco Narbon (2016-17), goalkeeper Dallas Jaye (2016-17), midfielder Kenney Walker (2016-18), Corben Bone (2016-19), Jimmy McLaughlin (2016-2020), and defender Matt Bahner (2017-18).
Additional roster inclusions will be announced on the team's Instagram page, @TheNatiSC. The team will also feature Erik Hegerty, a futsal player who works for Rooted Creative, the Downtown-based creative agency of which Millay is creative director and chief executive officer.
“When I first heard about TST, I knew I had to get the gang back together,” Millay said. “Living in Cincinnati, you hear FC Cincinnati fans talk all the time about the inaugural season (in 2016) and how incredible that year was, specifically because of how integrated our team was within the community. Our Nati SC team will feature a large group of players who paved the way for what the club is today and really laid the foundation for professional soccer in our community. We will be documenting as much of the journey as possible to give fans a walk down memory lane with all these club fan favorites, and hopefully bringing home a championship and $1 million for our city.”
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McLaughlin, Bone and Walker were three of the most prominent on-field leaders for FC Cincinnati during its time in the United Soccer League from 2016 to 2018.
McLaughlin and Bone would go on to join the club in Major League Soccer, with McLaughlin earning a contract extension into 2020 and making a single appearance under then-head coach Jaap Stam.
McLaughlin departed FC Cincinnati following the 2020 season as the club's career leader in appearances with 104.
The other Nati SC players all played a valuable role in making the club a mainstay in the Cincinnati sports scene, and ultimately an MLS expansion side.
Nati SC is the fourth publicly-announced team in TST’s 32-team field. Other entrants include former Seattle Sounders and USMNT star Clint Dempsey’s "Team Dempsey" and a side representing Liga MX's Club Necaxa.
More than 300 teams have applied to be included in the inaugural TST event, according to organizers, and the complete field will be revealed in the coming months.
Local college basketball fans will be familiar the the TST concept, which is staged by the same organizers of The Basketball Tournament. In 2022, the TBT featured Xavier men's basketball, which saw some of its alumni reform under the banner of "Zip'em Up," and UC's so-called "Nasty Nati" team.
The 2023 TST will be held in Cary, North Carolina, which is a noted soccer hotbed.
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