DIEHARD SUPPORTER HAS LOVED SEEING HIS CLUB GROW TO MLS
NASHVILLE – Newton has seen it all.
When Nashville SC started as a small amateur club, he was directly involved in helping it grow with its fans. When the club became professional in the USL Championship, he was right there, leading supporters in cheers at the club's announcement. And now, he’ll be there to see Nashville SC take the field at the highest level of professional soccer in this country, Major League Soccer, as a Season Ticket Member.
Newton, who serves as the president of one of Nashville SC’s supporter groups, The Roadies, believes the authenticity of the club in Music City is one of the things that continues to draw him closer and closer to it.
“It’s Nashville’s club,” he said. “It didn’t come from somewhere else. It started here. The club is my family.”
He vividly remembers how he felt when MLS Commissioner Don Garber announced that Nashville would become an MLS city back in December of 2017, and how much work went in to making that happen.
“The energy around us and the sense that we’ve done something,” Newton said. “This thing that started as 150 or 200 people putting this club together has now become this big thing, this recognized thing.”
Another aspect of Nashville SC drawing Newton closer to the game is the feeling he gets inside the stadium at matches. You can always catch him in the supporters section chanting and cheering alongside hundreds of his fellow fans.
“There’s a real sense of camaraderie in the stadium,” he said. “We have a big party. It’s a lot of fun. It’s really electric, that’s the word that comes to mind. When we can tell from our spot in the stadium that the attack is on, that the pressure is on, that something is building, it just starts to build up. I get goosebumps thinking about it. It’s awesome. It’s unlike any sport I’ve ever been a part of.”
If you haven’t given soccer a try yet or haven’t been to a Nashville SC match, Newton has a message for you as well.
“Give it a chance,” he said. “I did not grow up a soccer fan. I started following it in high school, but what I would tell people is come to a match. Give it a chance. Maybe the supporter section isn’t your thing, but dip a toe in the water and feel what it’s like to be in the stadium when the team is on the attack, when they’re building momentum, when things are starting to come together. Just get there.”
Want to join this passionate group of soccer fans in Music City? Click below to order your season tickets for Nashville SC’s inaugural MLS season.
