FC Cincinnati is a Major League Soccer team playing at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. Originally founded in 2015 by Carl H. Lindner III and co-CEO Jeff Berding, FCC started play in the United Soccer League (USL) in 2016. FCC entered MLS as the 24th team in 2019. The club’s wide and diverse ownership group is led by controlling owner Lindner III; as well as managing owners Meg Whitman and Dr. Griff Harsh; Scott Farmer; and George Joseph.
FC Cincinnati opened the club’s privately funded, 26,000-seat soccer-specific TQL Stadium in the West End neighborhood of Cincinnati in 2021, a venue which has won numerous global awards including the World Football Summit Best Venue 2022 in Madrid and the 2022 Prix Versailles World Title in the Sports Category in Paris, France.
FC Cincinnati won the 2023 Supporters’ Shield – the annual award given to the team with the most points in the regular season – and clinched a spot in the 2023 MLS Playoffs for the second straight year. The club won the 2018 USL Regular-Season Championship in record-setting fashion and earned postseason berths in all three of its USL seasons. In 2017, FC Cincinnati also advanced to the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, a run that included victories over two MLS squads.