Wisconsin Soccer Central

The Milwaukee-area club soccer scene will continue to change – just not in the way that was anticipated for the past few months.

FC Milwaukee and Sockers FC Wisconsin recently announced that the clubs' proposed merger, which they reported was in the final stages in February, will not go through. In news releases, both clubs said the merger was abandoned because they "were not in alignment."

Instead, FC Milwaukee will rebrand itself as FC Wisconsin, bolster its coaching staff, alter its curriculum and partner with FC Wisconsin Eclipse, the top-level girls club formed last year by former Nationals coach Christian Lavers.

The club's boys teams in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy and the National Premier Leagues Midwest Developmental League will be known as FC Wisconsin Nationals, while the girls will play in the Elite Club National League as FC Wisconsin Eclipse.

Lavers and another former FC Milwaukee coach, Billy Solberg, will join Ben Shepherd as additions to the club coaching leadership.

Shepherd, a Cardinal Stritch assistant who previously was the assistant director of coaching at Elm Grove SC, will be the Development Academy director. Solberg, a Brookfield native with an extensive coaching resume who most recently was the ECNL director for Challenge SC in Houston, Texas, will be the Development Academy associate director. Lavers will add the title of technical director to his many soccer roles, which include being the executive vice president of U.S. Club Soccer, the president of the ECNL and an assistant coach for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women's Soccer League.

Chris McCreary will continue to be the NPL boys director, while Jon Coleman and University of Wisconsin assistant Keith Tiemeyer will assist with the Development Academy. Those coaches also will work with FC Wisconsin Eclipse coaches Andy Lee, Vito Parente and Monica White under a new "club-based" staffing structure intended to improve coaching ratios and provide personalized instruction.

Additionally, FC Wisconsin plans to implement a consistent teaching methodology and style of play for its teams at all age groups. To answer questions about the changes, the club is planning to hold several "town hall" style discussions with its teams and interested members of the community in the near future.

• FC Milwaukee news release
• Sockers FC Wisconsin statement