By Jon Johnson
Thunder roared at times during a town hall gathering for potential team investors Wednesday night, prompting Dothan United president and co-owner Steve Donner to insinuate perhaps God was looking down.
“He’s applauding,” co-owner Mike Schmitz added, drawing a chuckle from the crowd.
While the sound of thunder and rain pouring somewhat muffled Donner’s voice at times, the message being conveyed was crystal clear: Time is ticking down for supporters interested in owning a share of the local United Soccer League Two franchise.
An initiative to involve community ownership within the framework of the club was launched in early July and is now active for potential investors with the end of August as a deadline.
“This is a one time boost, really, and then you get to share in our long term growth,” Donner said.
He believes soccer is on the verge of tremendous boon after the success of the World Cup recently being hosted by the United States.
“Part of the vision here is soccer is a rising tide,” Donner said. “This World Cup had attendance and viewership beyond anything they’ve ever witnessed, so there’s going to be a 10-year boost in soccer.
“We already have a team and we just want to maintain it and grow. We’ve done well in three years. We’re not profitable yet, but we’re on a good path.
“We’re a national brand now and we’re competitive, but we just need to look after ourselves to make sure we’re here for the next 10-15 years (and beyond).”
Dothan United has partnered with Vicinity Ventures, an investment platform that connects potential investors with local businesses, to facilitate the project. Those wanting to own a piece of the soccer franchise can sign up through the website www.vicinityventures.co and also view detailed information of what an investment entails.
“Our vision is huge,” Schmitz said. “We’re Dothan … we’re going to be the best of the best at whatever we do. Financially, it’s important that we continue to grow. We would love for you to become our partners.”
Vicinity Ventures representative Josh Rollins was on hand to talk to those gathered at the meeting, which was held at Bob Woodall Air Care Systems in downtown Dothan.
“We’re finance nerds,” Rollins said. “We love looking at investments and deals and ways that the company and the community can grow together. It’s really all about connecting people to the projects that are really engaging for their city.
“Us as a partner, we’re here long term to help see the team grow and to support investors with communications with everything that is needed through the life of this.”
The minimum investment to become a Dothan United shareholder is $1,000, which includes many investor perks that are listed on the Vicinity Ventures website. There is potential for return on the investment.
“This is an investment in an ownership stake in the team,” Rollins said. “They are offering what ends up being 15 percent of the club to the community. So you get to buy in as an actual owner of the team and this means that you share in the upsides as the team grows.
“You’re coming in as a limited partner. There’s no requirement for additional checks. This is simply the capital raise. Ideally, the plan is this is the only capital raise offered externally to the public. It’s simply a one time investment.”
Donner, who has been involved in professional sports for many years throughout the country, understands the importance of community involvement.
“I’ve been in sports almost 40 years now and I was able to start 12 different teams in different sports – major league level and minor league level in soccer, hockey, lacrosse,” Donner said. “I think of the 12 teams I started, 10 are still active today.
“I’ve picked markets that I think would succeed and I’ve learned a lot of lessons over the years. To make it work in a small market, everyone has got to buy in.”
Dothan United has seen that buy in from the community during its three years of existence. This past season, the Dragons ranked third out of 158 USL2 teams in attendance as fans flocked to Rip Hewes Stadium for home games.
Rollins attended several Dothan United matches this past summer as the idea of offering community investment was being studied.
“The engagement and electricity that you have going on here is very exciting,” Rollins said. “We’re happy to have this opportunity to connect you as an investor to this team.”
The soccer club not only captured the hearts of fans in Dothan, but has produced strong results on the field. The Dragons were one of 32 teams to make the playoffs for the second straight year and finished this past season with a 9-2-2 record while earning the South Central Division title in the Southern Conference for the first time in franchise history.
Donner said the coach for the first two years of Dothan United, Carl Reynolds, initially made around 200 phone calls to put together a roster because none of the players knew where Dothan was or how a soccer franchise here would be perceived.
“Mike (Schmitz) tells the story that he was expecting maybe 200 people opening night (in 2024) and we had 5,000 people opening night, and they never stopped coming,” Donner said. “Even at the highest level I’ve worked at, oftentimes fans are supportive, but will stand off. Literally, we had 17 players from around the world coming to little Dothan and our community opened their arms to our players.”
Reynolds didn’t have any trouble attracting players in the second year, nor did Ricky Davey before last season after he took over as head coach.
“Going into year two, we had 320 players call us to play in Dothan,” Donner said. “So the pendulum swung 180 degrees and they were from all over the world. You know why? Because we treat players right, the community loves our players, we get great crowds, and we win.”
Dothan United players also do their part to have a strong presence around town.
“When our players come here, they’ve got to know that we’re not just playing soccer, we’re going to be in the community giving back,” Donner said.
Schmitz pointed out that being in a smaller market than most USL teams means having to go the extra mile to succeed and attain the lofty goals set in place.
“The housing, the food … we have to step up,” Schmitz said. “We want to win a national championship. Now, we understand how hard that is, but we’re committed to that. So, we have to out-recruit everybody else – from coaches, to players and continue to grow.
“The cost of doing business is higher. That’s just a fact. But we’re going to make it work and we’re going to succeed, and win a national championship at some point.”
Donner notes that funds raised through community ownership could potentially go to further stadium improvements, fan enhancements on game nights and the development of a soccer academy.
“I think part of the long term future is growing our own local hometown products – the start of a soccer academy here,” Donner said. “One of our biggest expenses is recruiting. Our long term plan is to have our own academy here and become a feeder system into our big team. The academy would be part of any investment we all do together.”
Donner was appreciative of those who showed up Wednesday night to learn more about the investment opportunity.
“To get this kind of crowd for a non-soccer game to talk about soccer just speaks volumes for what it means to this community,” Donner said.
