BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The Illinois Fire Juniors Soccer Club (IFJ) announced an exciting addition to their leadership team and welcomes Mike Matkovich as the new Sporting Director. Matkovich is certainly no stranger to the sport and brings with him an impressive resume. With 30 years of experience, he has coached at the international, professional, and youth levels. Mike most recently served as the Assistant Coach for the Columbus Crew. Prior to that, he worked as the Director of Operations and Coaching for the Chicago Fire Juniors Soccer Club from 2011-2018, and served as the head coach of the Des Moines Menace of the Premier Development League from 2015 to 2016.

In addition to his professional experience with Columbus Crew SC, Matkovich has served as Assistant Coach with the Chicago Fire (2009-2013), Chivas USA (2008-2009) and Toronto Football Club (2007-2008). Mike also has served in a number of roles within the US Men’s National Team system, including as the US Men’s U-18 Head Coach from 2009-2011.

Matkovich’s vision and demonstrated success in coaching and player development will bring an elevated level of competitive soccer to Central Illinois. Mike brings a passion for building successful club organizations and in his role with IFJ, he will oversee all aspects of club, coach, and player development for the travel and recreational sides of the club, as well as fundraising and oversight of the new complex construction.

Currently, he is assessing where the club is at and is excited about the future. His early focus has been on the structure and culture within the club, and ensuring that the roadmap to success has been clearly defined. “The success of the club starts with the right platforms, the right type of coaching, and the right type of facilities. We cannot have a program without a facility.”

Plans are underway for a new complex on the land located at Raab (north), Towanda (west), Shelbourne (south), and Rt 66 (east). Acquiring the land, having a plan, and a little money to get going is a good start, but this project will take a significant amount of community support and numerous local business partnerships to create the new home for the largest sports organization in town.

To put into context the size of the newly acquired land, the existing fields at the airport extend across 60 acres of property. There are currently 20 fields of various sizes, ranging from a couple full-size fields to numerous smaller fields for the younger athletes. The new space is 100 acres and the first phase will include ten full-size 400×300 foot fields that can be split into 40 smaller fields. Then phase two will include seven smaller youth fields, as well as a full-size championship field, eventually yielding 11 full-size fields and seven youth fields. This is enough space to allow the complex to host big regional tournaments with over 50 youth size fields in total! Ultimately, the goal is to have a year-round program, with an indoor season from November through March.

Over 2,000 athletes of all ages from across Central Illinois come through the Illinois Fire Juniors Soccer program. IFJ is truly a one-stop soccer service for all levels. The club’s mission and culture has been to create a pathway for all of the players. “It’s not always about the top-level athletes, but rather creating an opportunity for all, regardless of whether they intend to go on and play competitively. Some of our athletes will go on to play at a higher level, some will end up coaching the sport, and others will choose to referee.” All of these roles are important to the future of the club. Where former players certainly fills the roles of coaches, referees, and field supervisors at IFJ, the club is always for parents and fans to fill more positions. For information on how you can get involved, reach out to Mike at [email protected].

Between the addition of Mike Matkovich and the new field complex, the Illinois Fire Juniors is poised to lead the way in soccer and player development in Central Illinois for years to come. Tim Koch, President of Illinois Fire Juniors states, “We are very excited to have Mike on board as our new Sporting Director. His leadership will help our club build on past successes and help us drive to a brighter future. His prior experience will help us as we build our new Sports Complex and continue on our path to provide an unparalleled soccer experience at all levels.”

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