Hartford Athletic begin preseason training
Hartford Athletic players reported to the team’s offices in Windsor today, kicking off an eight-week preseason leading up to the 2024 season opener at El Paso Locomotive FC on Saturday, March 9th.
Beginning before the 2023 season ended, the work to rebuild Hartford’s roster started with the Club welcoming new CEO Nick Sakiewicz and forming a strategic partnership with Global Football Group. The offseason was then headlined by the hiring of Head Coach and General Manager Brendan Burke and the roster has been revamped, with 15 new players signing with Hartford and more to come. The slew of new signings began with Brazilian goalkeeper Renan Ribeiro, who joined Connecticut’s Team after years playing in Portugal’s top flight. Attacking firepower was added with the signings of Marcus Epps, Enoch Mushagalusa, and Romario Williams, who bring a combined 115 professional goals to the Green and Blue. Danny Barrera, Jay Chapman, and Anderson Asiedu bring a seasoned presence to Hartford’s midfield, paired with the young talent brought by Emmanuel Samadia, Joe Schmidt, and Beverly Makangila. The back line was bolstered by league veterans Thomas Vancaeyezeele Joe Farell, and Jamaican National Jordan Scarlett.
The Club hosted their sixth annual open tryouts in late December, held at the brand new Day Hill Dome in Windsor, CT. The opportunity to become a pro brought 261 hopeful footballers from 16 different countries to three days of tryouts, posting record numbers in the Club’s open tryout history. Players in attendance came from as close as West Hartford, to as far as The Gambia for their chance to show their skills and earn their spot on the Hartford Athletic roster. Players from other countries included Uganda, Morocco, Kenya, Haiti, Brazil, Peru, South Africa, Italy, Bolivia, Honduras, Venezuela, Colombia, and Jamaica.
Coach Burke and his staff selected six players from open tryouts to join the club for preseason training, the most ever from the Club’s tryout pool: Alister Cutler (Cambridge, Mass.), Omario Rosen (Ocho Rios, Jamaica), Akolade Gbadebo (Ado-Akiti, Nigeria), Rivendi Pierre-Louis (Haiti), Danilo Seglio (Campinas, Brazil), and Jaheel Hyde (Spanish Town, Jamaica). Hyde is a 26 year old Olympic track and field athlete for his home country of Jamaica, most recently taking home the gold medal in the men’s 400m hurdles at the Pan American Games in November 2023. While working towards an incredibly accomplished track and field career, Hyde also played for Jamaica’s U17 team in the Caribbean Football qualifiers in 2012. He scored a hat-trick against Bermuda in a 5-0 win to help Jamaica qualify for the CONCACAF section of the Under-17 World Cup, but turned down the chance to compete in that tournament to focus on the 2013 World Youth Championships.
For the second consecutive season, Hartford Athletic will travel to beautiful Bradenton, Florida on February 11th to train at the Premier Sports Complex and play a series of exhibition matches as part of the club’s partnership with the City of Bradenton. The team’s full preseason schedule will be released in the coming weeks. Single game tickets will be available at the end of January at HartfordAthletic.com/tickets.
Share your Hartford Athletic experiences with us by using #findingconnecticut on Instagram
Click here for the full home schedule for Hartford Athletic
Click here for the latest news for the Hartford Athletic
Click here for the latest news in Hartford
Click here for the upcoming events in Hartford
Click here for the latest news in Hartford County
Click here for the upcoming events in Hartford County
••••• Message center •••••••
Connecticut business owners:
Connecticut with us! Are you a local business owner in Connecticut looking to boost your visibility and reach more customers? Look no further! Our platform provides a unique opportunity to showcase your business to an engaged audience of people who love and live in Connecticut. By partnering with us, you can reach potential customers who are actively seeking things to do, places to dine, and local merchants and service providers to support. Don’t miss out on this chance to grow your business and connect with the local community!
Connecticut with us!
Get our news straight into your inbox daily
Stay connected with us on social media
Facebook • Instagram • Threads • Tiktok
Join our Reddit community
Share your Connecticut experiences with us by using #findingconnecticut on Instagram
Click here to return to Finding Connecticut’s home page
Looking for the latest news by region, topic and events
Latest news by region
Fairfield County • Hartford County • Litchfield County • Middlesex County • New Haven County • New London County• Tolland County • Windham County
Latest sports news by team
Hartford Wolf Pack • Hartford Yard Goats • Connecticut Sun • Norwich Sea Unicorns •
2024 schedules
Hartford Wolf Pack • Hartford Yard Goats • Connecticut Sun • Norwich Sea Unicorns
Events my region
Fairfield County • Hartford County • Litchfield County • New Haven County • New London County • Middlesex County •Tolland County • Windham County
Events by interest
Art • Sports • Family Friendly • History • Concerts • Farmers’ Markets
Events by the month
January 2024 • February 2024 • March 2024 • April 2024 • May 2024 • June 2024 • July 2024 • August 2024 • September 2024 • October 2024 • November 2024 • December 2024
Events by venue
College Street Music Hall • Space Ballroom • Westville Music Bowl • Wall Street Theater • Hartford Stage • The Bushnell • Goodspeed Opera House • Mohegan Sun