Pictured (L to R): Marcus Walfridson, CEO and sporting director of Sarasota Paradise, and Justin Papadakis, USL deputy-CEO and chief real estate officer. Photo courtesy of Hunter Butler

Professional sports have officially touched down in Sarasota. On February 19, the United Soccer League (USL) announced that the Sarasota Paradise would be making the leap from League Two, a pre-professional league, to the fully professional League One in 2026.

The jump from USL2 to USL1 is the culmination of an odyssey into professional soccer from team founder Marcus Walfridson that began long before the Paradise officially took form in 2023. For the Swedish soccer entrepreneur, creating a professional soccer team in Sarasota has always been the main objective.

“This has been the goal from day one, so it's special to have this to look forward to,” said Walfridson, who will serve as managing partner of the USL1 team through his company Audigr Group Inc. “Ever since I came to Sarasota, I thought that a soccer team could help engender a sense of community. There are so many studies that show how professional sports teams can help foster that local strength and identity.”

For the Paradise, the 14-team USL1 will not just be a step-up in professional status, but a rise in the level of play. USL1 is a national league—the Paradise will have to travel as far as Spokane, Washington to battle with the Spokane Velocity FC in 2026—that operates in Division III of the U.S. Soccer Pyramid, just two levels beneath that of Major League Soccer.

While the Paradise actively court some of the top NCAA Division I soccer players on its current roster, playing at the professional level is a whole different ballgame, said Walfridson.

“Part of the story this summer will be seeing who, if any, of our current roster will make the USL1 team,” said Walfridson. “I foresee two to five of our current players potentially making the roster in 2026. That’s how competitive it is.”

For now the team is focused on making its mark as one of the nine USL2 teams to participate in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup when it squares off against FC Naples at its new home in Premier Sports Campus March 18. In May, the Paradise will focus on defending its South Florida Division title when the USL2 season kicks off.

Pictured (L to R): Marcus Walfridson, CEO and sporting director of Sarasota Paradise, and Justin Papadakis, USL deputy-CEO and chief real estate officer. Photo courtesy of Hunter Butler

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