Wiregrass Futbol Club

DOWN IN SOUTH ALABAMA, ONE OF THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISES IN THE WORLD of soccer is taking place thanks to the work of a club based in the home of the boll weevil, Enterprise. The Wiregrass Futbol Club has, over the last couple of years, developed into a successful club competing for, and winning, championships on the Division II level with ideas of conquering Division I play in its sights. Overseeing the club's rise is Ken LeBlanc, a former military man with little to no experience with soccer until he was drafted to help coach his son's team a little over a decade ago. “We're a small community and we don't have the pick of the litter of soccer players around this state,” explains LeBlanc. Originally known as the Enterprise Soccer Club, then Enterprise Futbol Club, the club originally only fielded three teams, and struggled to find players to fill out those rosters. LeBlanc knew the only way to grow the club and be competitive with the BUSAs, Vestavias, and Huntsvilles of the world was to cooperate with neighboring communities. “We found out that being a small community, we had players KEN LEBLANC in Dothan, Troy, Ozark, and Andalusia but they didn't want to play with the club because it was called Executive Director USSF E Enterprise Futbol Club. They wanted to play for their city,” explains LeBlanc. "We changed the name to USSF Referee Wiregrass and immediately when we did that we went up to 19 teams that season. It's taken off." "All we have are the players that are in this area that go to Enterprise High School or Dothan TYPES OF PROGRAMS OFFERED: High School, but we get a lot accomplished," he added. Indeed they do. In 2015, the Wiregrass U-17 Competitive | Academy and U-18 boys teams each won Division II state championships, and the U17s lost in the regional ADDRESS championship final in College Station, Texas. The U-17 will represent Alabama in the regional 200 Brookwood Drive tournament in Tulsa, Oklahoma, later this year. Enterprise, AL 36330 For LeBlanc, however, the success on the field means nothing without the club's dedication to PHONE: 334-498-7560 the community. The club has no one on salary and has established dynamic partnerships with the WEBSITE: www.wiregrassfutbol.com local business community, helping keep costs down. The club has also donated money, clothing, and even furniture to families in need and even paid for the development of a new soccer field in the city of Enterprise. “The club's motto is ‘building the community around soccer one program at a time.’ I tell my people, you tell me who needs help so we can help them," says LeBlanc. "That's what the Wiregrass Futbol Club does. We give first."