By Moses Leos III
On Monday, Zuzeca Affiliated Soccer Clubs announced the selection of the Central Texas Lobos as the name of the new team, which will be based in the Kyle/Buda area.
A Hays County-based semi-professional soccer club, which intends to make its debut in August, officially has a name to work with.
On Monday, Zuzeca Affiliated Soccer Clubs announced the selection of the Central Texas Lobos as the name of the new team, which will be based in the Kyle/Buda area.
According to a press release, the team, which initially went under the name San Marcos Football Club, earned the new name after a fan vote was conducted.
David Walding, president of ZASC, said in a statement the Central Texas Lobos name garnered 46 percent of the vote from fans.
The next closest option, which was the Hill Country Wolfpack, received 23 percent of the vote, while other names didn’t surpass 9 percent.
But Walding said in a statement there was some concern regarding the Lobos mascot, as it’s also the mascot for Lehman High sports teams.
“So we wanted to ensure fan input during the naming process,” Walding said in a statement. “However, the reference to (Lehman) high school was not seen as a negative by the fans.”
The Lobos soccer team, which is part of the Texas Premier Soccer League, will represent the Hays County and south Austin region. It is unknown at this time, however, where the Central Texas Lobos will play their soccer matches.
“We have a simple philosophy – this is the fan’s team ... on-and-off the field,” Walding said.
He added the plan was to keep a local focus on the area. The team partnered with Pedernales Brewing Company, based out of Fredericksburg, as a name sponsor for home matches.
“And we want to keep a local focus, so the partnership with Pedernales Brewing Company from Fredericksburg, and a name reflective of the Kyle community, are both in line with that vision,” Walding said.
The Central Texas Lobos compete in the TSPL, which is an outdoor semi-professional soccer league with clubs across the state. The league has teams in Austin, Dallas, Brownsville and Houston.
The TSPL season runs from September to March. All clubs registered to play with TPSL have an opportunity to qualify for the following season’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup due to the sanctioning by US Club Soccer, of the United States Soccer Federation (USSF).
