(continued)- The only question was where? “I felt like I had already been in MLS,” said Driver, a Southern New Jersey resident.  “You get to the top of the mountain and then you’re looking out and going ‘Okay, what’s the next mountain to climb?’  I was looking around and nobody was doing anything for women’s soccer in the area.”

Driver set off to scale the new peak by purchasing two Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) teams.  The AC Diablos, located in Southern New Jersey, and the CDSA Future, based in Dover, Del., began play in 2006.  A year later Driver added the Philadelphia Liberty to complete his triumvirate of clubs under the Team Dynamics LLC umbrella in the Delaware Valley.   

 The AC Diablos, who he coaches, have enjoyed the greatest success winning the WPSL Mid-Atlantic Division the past two years.  In their first season, the Diablos were recognized with the 2006 Richard Cross Management Excellence Award. To his stable of WPSL franchises, Driver has added youth offerings ranging from summer camps to the Youth Premier Soccer League, which kicked off its inaugural season this month.  Each of these acquisitions has had one goal in mind.  

“Somewhere down the line we believed some sort of women’s pro league would come back and we would be positioned to be able to support that with our WPSL players, our youth system and our camps,” Driver said. 

Following the formation of Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) in September 2007, Driver dialed a contact from his USL and MLS years, Joe Cummings, the new league’s Senior COO Consultant and the Boston Breakers President & General Manager.  Driver initially proposed that his organization partner with a WPS club.  When he learned that no one in the Philadelphia area had expressed interest in investing in a professional franchise, Driver began to explore whether he could take on ownership.  

In parallel, an investor group led by Nick Sakiewicz was attempting to land a Philadelphia MLS team.  With Sakiewicz’s guidance and assistance, Driver decided that bringing a WPS franchise to the City of Brotherly Love was not only feasible, but a promising business opportunity.

 “We have a fantastic developing relationship with Nick and that was a major component of making all of this happen because I knew what he was doing,” said Driver.  “He shared some points of view and thoughts with me and also the direction he thought we needed to go in.”   

Late last week, Driver, acting as the managing partner for a growing investor group, signed a Letter of Intent to bring a WPS team to Philadelphia for the 2010 season.  The MLS Philadelphia side will also debut in 2010 at a soccer-specific stadium it is building in Chester, Pa.  As an example of the synergies that are unfolding between the two clubs, they have reached a tentative agreement for the WPS team to stage its home matches at the MLS facility.  

Driver is already devising his franchise’s preparations for its inaugural 2010 season.  When WPS kicks off in 2009, Driver will compose a select team from his three WPSL squads to play a series of exhibitions across the Delaware Valley to build interest within his market for the professional side.  He will also observe his future competition.  

“I’m looking at it as I’ve got probably the best opportunity off the field to get it right than any other WPS team who is competing in 2009 because I will get an opportunity to see what those guys do well and what they don’t do well during that year,” said Driver, who is considering joining his WPS team’s coaching staff.  “Then I’ll try to make the adjustments for what could potentially happen prior to us kicking off.”  As he reflects on the past few months and anticipates the work yet to be done, Driver can now clearly view the summit he is attempting to ascend. “We have a very unique model within WPS and we think we can expand upon it,” he said of his organization.  “Add in our relationship with the MLS folks and we’ve got a great opportunity to potentially be one of the best franchises in the league.”

Karyn Lush is a regular contributor to womensprosoccer.com and can be reached at  karyn.lush@womensprosoccer.com  .  The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s, and not necessarily those of Women’s Professional Soccer or womensprosoccer.com.