Soccer training complex to open second Charlotte-area location

A facility that offers recreational and competitive soccer training will open its second area location in Indian Trail.

Strikers Soccer Center has purchased about 6.6 acres along Stinson Hartis Road at the new Monroe Bypass, according to a statement this week from Charlotte-based MPV Properties. The new complex will include turf soccer fields with walls and netting.

Called “Strikers 2,” the complex will be similar to the other one that Strikers has off Alexandriana Road in Huntersville, which has seven small fields and one larger field. The new Indian Trail location will offer training for kids and adults as well as youth programs, camps and birthday party packages.

“Strikers soccer centers offer soccer enthusiasts of all ages continuous play with netted walls which ensure that the balls never leave the field of play,” owner Ian Steedman said.

An opening date for the Indian Trail facility was not immediately available.

Strikers was first opened in Huntersville in 2000 by the Steedman family, who once operated a professional soccer club in Scotland, according to the company’s website.

Soccer has grown in popularity and prominence in Charlotte just like it has elsewhere throughout the U.S.

Spanish giant FC Barcelona opened an official soccer school in Charlotte in 2016 as part of its push to expand its U.S. presence, for instance. Bank of America Stadium hosted a well-attended friendly matchup between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan last year. A group led by race track executive Marcus Smith tried, albeit unsuccessfully, last year to land a Major League Soccer team in Charlotte.

This story was originally published February 7, 2018 at 3:36 PM with the headline "Soccer training complex to open second Charlotte-area location."