New England Force Owner Don Whitaker details USL League Two expansion, financial investment, and long-term stadium ambitions

Founded in early 2025, New England Force has quickly expanded across southeastern Massachusetts, building its youth programs and gaining acceptance into MLS NEXT and Girls Academy.

Less than two years later, the club is preparing for its inaugural USL League Two season in 2027, with ambitions that include a permanent home and further opportunities beyond youth soccer.

In an exclusive interview with Prost International, owner and general manager Don Whitaker discussed the club’s expansion, earlier talks about a USL League One franchise, the financial demands of launching a League Two team, and his vision for a soccer-specific stadium on the South Shore.

Force’s route to USL League Two began well before its September announcement, with early discussions briefly taking the club toward the professional ranks.

“From the start of the club, we talked about providing opportunities on the South Shore that really didn’t exist,” Whitaker told Prost International. “That was always kind of like the driving force here.”

The initial focus was on creating summer opportunities for college-age players, but a prospective investor’s interest opened discussions about a USL League One franchise.

“We actually were pretty deep in talks about a League One spot,” Whitaker said.

According to Whitaker, the proposed investment fell through after changes within the league would have required the investor to restart the process. The investor pursued professional soccer opportunities overseas, while Force concentrated on establishing its youth programs.

In hindsight, Whitaker believes that pause gave the club valuable time to develop before taking on another commitment.

“To be fair for us, [it]was probably the best thing, just because I think it would have been biting off more than we could chew in year one,” he explained.

Whitaker reopened conversations with USL officials about League Two membership roughly four to five months before the interview. Those talks moved quickly, helped by the league’s interest in the South Shore market, and ultimately secured Force’s place in the competition for 2027.

New England Force’s entry into USL League Two will give college-age players across southeastern Massachusetts an opportunity to compete closer to home.

For players on the South Shore and Cape Cod, comparable pre-professional opportunities can involve lengthy commutes. Whitaker estimates that some have traveled one to two hours each way for training, adding to the demands of balancing soccer with summer jobs and internships.

“How can you make it convenient?” Whitaker asked. “By delivering it to the doorstep, I think that was probably the biggest piece.”

The program will be fully funded, with no participation fees for players. Whitaker believes removing both the financial barrier and the burden of extended travel will help college athletes maintain a competitive summer schedule while preparing for their collegiate seasons.

Within the club, the team will also create a next step for players progressing through Force’s youth academy. Its recent formation means that connection will take time to develop, but Whitaker hopes academy graduates will eventually form a significant portion of the League Two roster.

“We would love players to look at New England Force, who are coming through our program,” Whitaker said. “Hopefully the next step for them is to join our USL team.”

Younger players could gain exposure to that level by training with the League Two squad while continuing to compete with the club’s reserve team in summer showcase competition.

Connecting those stages of development will be part of the inaugural head coach’s role, making the appointment an important step in shaping both the first team and the pathway beneath it.

Whitaker said the club had received more than 40 applications for the head coaching position, attracting candidates from Massachusetts, across the United States, and overseas.

Force intends to hire a full-time coach whose responsibilities will extend beyond the summer season and into the club’s broader development structure.

“Whoever comes in as the coach of the USL team, we want them to be with us as a full-time employee,” Whitaker explained. “You’re going to be a part of the bigger New England Force picture and what we’re trying to do from the grassroots all the way up through pre-professional.”

At the time of the interview, the club planned to narrow its candidate pool ahead of October interviews, with a goal of announcing its first head coach by mid-November.

Player tryouts were tentatively scheduled for December and January, aligning with college athletes’ winter break.

Former United States men’s national team forward Charlie Davies is also helping shape the program. Whitaker said the two speak almost daily about the club’s direction, with Davies contributing to the coaching search and roster-building process.

“Charlie is involved in this process,” Whitaker said. “We want to tap into his resources as well, with the people he knows around the country.”

While Davies’ experience and connections will inform those decisions, Force is primarily seeking a separate head coach with a college or USL background.

“I don’t believe so,” Whitaker said when asked whether Davies would coach the team. “We haven’t completely ruled it out, but we are looking to bring somebody else in.”

Interest in joining the team has extended beyond the coaching position, with prospective players also responding strongly to the expansion announcement.

According to Whitaker, more than 150 players have already submitted interest forms following the expansion announcement.

Those inquiries include former players associated with the club’s coaching staff and college athletes competing at institutions such as Stanford University, Duke University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Massachusetts.

While the majority of the roster is expected to consist of college-age players, Whitaker indicated that the club would remain open to recruiting experienced players outside that demographic.

“I think the majority of the roster is going to be made up by that college-age player, but I think it would be foolish if we ruled out players who were looking to come in who were maybe a little bit on the older side,” Whitaker said.

Launching the League Two team represents a substantial financial commitment for a club entering just its second year of operation.

Whitaker said the operating budget had not been finalized, with coaching appointments and other expenses still being determined. Expected costs include league membership fees, player registration, officials, insurance, transportation, training facilities, matchday operations, and livestream production.

Coaching compensation is expected to be among the largest ongoing expenses.

The team will operate under the same ownership group as Force’s youth organization, but the two programs will maintain separate finances.

“The finances will be separated from the youth to the pre-pro, but obviously, the club is the club, and the brand is the brand, and that doesn’t change,” Whitaker explained.

For families in Force’s youth programs, he offered a direct assurance that their participation fees would not fund the League Two team.

“We’re not going to subsidize the USL through the youth club,” he stated.

Instead, Force plans to generate revenue through ticket sales, sponsorships, matchday partnerships, concessions, and other commercial opportunities. Whitaker said conversations had already begun with prospective corporate partners interested in the visibility of a national pre-professional league.

Force plans to offer separate sponsorship packages for its youth and League Two programs, reflecting their different audiences and reach.

For the inaugural season, Whitaker’s financial target is to break even.

“If we can get to a break-even point in year one, we’re going to be thrilled,” he said.

Building a sustainable operation would support reinvestment in the team and lay the groundwork for the club’s most ambitious long-term goal: a permanent soccer-specific facility.

Force plans to play its inaugural USL League Two season at Norwell High School while exploring a permanent stadium and training complex elsewhere on the South Shore.

Whitaker said preliminary discussions had taken place with several municipalities, including earlier conversations with Weymouth officials. His vision includes a stadium surrounded by additional fields for training, youth matches, and community use.

“I’d love a 5,000 to 8,000-seat stadium in the next five years, with training and game pitches kind of around it, where New England Force is having — that’s the home of New England Force,” Whitaker said.

Sharing that space with local programs would be central to the project.

“Any facility we build is going to be shared with the town programs and the youth programs, to make it beneficial to the groups we’re working with as well in these towns,” Whitaker explained.

At the time of the interview, no stadium agreement, financing arrangement, or construction timeline had been finalized.

Beyond shared facilities, Whitaker sees opportunities for the League Two team to benefit the local economy, with visiting clubs and supporters bringing business to South Shore restaurants, hotels, and other establishments during the summer.

Force plans to involve local businesses through matchday promotions, sponsorships, and recommendations that encourage visiting supporters to explore the area before and after games. Those relationships could help connect the team to the South Shore while giving businesses a role in the club’s inaugural season.

The organization already works with regional partners that provide recovery and sports performance resources for its youth players. Whitaker sees the League Two program as an opportunity to build on those relationships and reach additional businesses interested in supporting local soccer.

Force also has a potential supporter base within its own organization. According to Whitaker, approximately 1,600 players participate across its youth programs, academies, camps, and clinics.

Engaging those players and their families will be an important part of establishing a matchday audience. For younger players, attending games could also make the club’s development pathway more tangible, giving them a chance to watch college athletes compete in the same badge they wear themselves.

Force plans to offer discounted season tickets to families in its youth programs, turning that existing connection into a foundation for support at Norwell High School.

Whitaker has set an ambitious attendance target of between 3,000 and 5,000 spectators per match.

“I’m hoping we can get 3,000 to 5,000 people at a game over in Norwell this summer,” Whitaker said. “That’s the goal, is to really build excitement and build energy around this program in this area.”

To encourage supporters to return, the club envisions a family-friendly matchday experience featuring local vendors and opportunities for children to interact with players. The aim is to make games a regular summer gathering for the surrounding soccer community.

Building that following will come alongside the challenge of competing in a region that includes established clubs such as Vermont Green FC, Boston Bolts, NEFC, and Seacoast United.

Whitaker understands that Force will have to establish itself both on the field and in the stands. Even so, his ambitions for the inaugural season extend beyond assembling a team and gaining experience. He expects Force to compete from the outset.

“I want to compete with Vermont Green,” Whitaker declared when asked how he would define success in the club’s first season.

Vermont Green’s sporting success, community engagement, and matchday atmosphere offer a benchmark for what he hopes to build on the South Shore.

“They are the exemplar template right now, and that’s what we want to become in this area,” Whitaker explained.

While he acknowledged the challenges of launching a team, his expectations remain high.

“We’re going to do the things we need to do to make a splash right away,” he said.

A future move into professional soccer through USL League One remains a possibility, but Whitaker wants Force to establish a competitive, financially sustainable League Two operation before taking that step.

“We have to show we can dominate regionally, and then nationally, before we’re going to make that jump,” he explained.

League One is not the club’s only avenue for growth. Force is also exploring how to extend its pre-professional pathway to the women’s game.

Whitaker said preliminary conversations have begun about expanding Force’s U23 women’s program into a pre-professional competition such as the USL W League.

“We have a vision of being in a similar space in the girls’ program — women’s program — where we’re going to try and get into one of the pre-professional women’s leagues as well,” Whitaker said.

A women’s team would give local college athletes and graduates of Force’s youth programs another opportunity to compete during the summer, extending the pathway the club is building through its men’s League Two side.

Although those discussions remain preliminary, the ambition reflects the purpose Whitaker outlined from the beginning: giving South Shore players more opportunities to develop and compete close to home.

With its inaugural season approaching, Force’s immediate task is to turn those plans into a team and a matchday experience that South Shore supporters will embrace. Hiring a head coach, assembling the roster, and securing sponsors will shape that first campaign.

“We’re the new kids on the block on the South Shore,” Whitaker said.

For all the discussion of budgets, facilities, and future expansion, his invitation to local families is more personal: come see what the next stage of a young player’s journey can look like.

“Come watch those kids play right in your backyard, because those are the kids who had the same dreams you did five, 10, 15 years ago,” Whitaker said.

When New England Force takes the field in 2027, its ambitions will face their first real test: building a club that South Shore players aspire to represent and supporters return to watch.