Heat Announce Assistant John Powell as Head Coach for 2020

Powell Has Been with the Organization Since Returning to Competitive Soccer in 2018; Assistant Coach Also Named

Laredo, TX (Wednesday, January 15, 2020) – With the upcoming National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) Season just a few months away, preparation for the Gateway City’s franchise participation in 2020 has been in high gear since the 2019 campaign ended abruptly for the Heat in early July.

For the second time since the club’s inception in 2004, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club did not make the playoffs, a tough pill to swallow for the proud South Texas soccer franchise.

Part of the process to get back to their winning ways and most importantly, start a new playoff streak, the Heat did not have to look too far for their new head man after Coach Aidan Davison informed the club that he would not be returning in 2020 in order to pursue other professional interests overseas.

The Heat picked Assistant Coach John Powell to lead the team into the 2020 NPSL Season.

Powel has been involved with the organization since the Heat returned to play in 2018 after a two-year hiatus (2016/2017). Currently, Coach Powell is the Associate Head Men’s Coach at California State University, Stanislaus (NCAA D-II program), a position he has held since July of 2013.

Coach John Powell was also a player for CSU, Stanislaus during his collegiate career and in 2010-11, was recognized as the Male Scholar Athlete of the Year. Powell graduated in 2011 from California State University, Stanislaus with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management (double concentration in Marketing and Human Resources and a minor in Communications Studies).

In addition to coaching at the NCAA D-II level, Powell also has experience at Modesto Junior College and with San Jose Earthquakes Youth Program plus he is the Director for Soccer Operations for Path2Pro, a scouting service designed to give elite soccer players the opportunity to be seen and scouted in high level games by multiple professional teams.

Coach Powell will be joined on the sidelines by Roger Bonilla. Bonilla, a former TAMIU soccer player and current Youth Coach with the Heat Youth Soccer Academy was named Assistant Coach for the NPSL Season.

“I’ve been around soccer my entire life and being a mentor to young players and an instructor of the beautiful game has been a passion of mine since my playing career came to an end. I feel that I have the experience and leadership skills needed to bring players together in Laredo and have the Heat back in the playoffs immediately”, Coach John Powell.

“Laredo has grown on me since I first visited in 2018 and the Heat organization, the TAMIU facilities and the city makes it easy to want to return year after year and now for 2020, being the Head Coach, I am looking forward to making an impact with a quality, composed and attacking team in the NPSL”.

Powell concluded, “The opportunity being afforded to Roger and myself by the Vaswani Family is priceless and we both anticipate in taking full advantage of it and we promise that we will have a team that will play hard game in and game out and will make the game of soccer entertaining for all the fans that come out to watch us play this season”.

About the NPSL

The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is the successor to the Men's Premier Soccer League (MPSL), which was formed in 2002. The league started in the West Region with teams from the Northern California area. In 2005, the league expanded to a national format with the introduction of a Midwest region. The NPSL expanded further in 2007 by adding a Northeast region. In 2011, with the addition of a Southeast region, the National Premier Soccer League has truly become a nationwide league. In 2014, NPSL became the largest national soccer league in the US Soccer development pyramid with over 80 teams all over the country. Over 30 expansion teams joined the NPSL for the 2014 season, and the league is nearing the entrance of its 100th team.

The NPSL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF), the governing body of soccer in the United States. The NPSL operates and is managed as a team-run league. The structure of the league allows each team to have one vote. Each team is individually owned and operated, and is responsible for maintaining league minimum standards. New teams seeking membership into the NPSL are subject to approval by existing team owners.

NPSL Philosophy: We compete for 90 minutes on the field, we are business partners...always. We all work together to grow the game, build the NPSL, and develop our respective clubs.

NPSL Mission: To grow the sport of soccer in the United States of America -- by providing our members with a sustainable business model and professionally managed soccer platform, and by serving as an inspiration to players and soccer fans in our members' communities.

 NPSL Vision: To be the foundation of the U.S. Soccer development pyramid with over 100 profitable teams in 100 communities; in turn, doing our part to help the United States become a soccer nation and win a World Cup.

For additional information on sponsorship opportunities, tickets and the Laredo Heat Soccer Club, please contact the Heat Front Office at (956) 723 – 4700 or visit our website at www.laredoheatsc.com , LIKE us on Facebook www.facebook.com/laredoheatsoccer or Follow Us on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat @LaredoHeatSC.