Exclusive: U.S. Soccer CEO shares how Atlanta became the Federation’s new home

In an exclusive interview, USSF CEO JT Batson discusses the origin story of U.S. Soccer’s move to Atlanta, and what locals can expect as the city hurtles toward hosting the 2026 World Cup.

via U.S. Soccer

After being hired as the new Chief Executive Officer of U.S. Soccer, JT Batson’s first official meeting took place somewhere he never expected : The Arthur M. Blank Family Office.

Batson arrived to the palatial space off of Northside Parkway in Atlanta in the late summer of 2022 to talk with Blank and his team about the possibility of the city becoming the permanent home for the U.S. Soccer Federation.

“Early on in the process, Arthur and team were very clear that they wanted to do whatever they could to bring this project to life,” Batson told Five Stripe Final. “They're big believers in soccer. They're big believers in Atlanta. And they're big believers that there's no better place in the world to do this than Atlanta.”

A year later, just before Atlanta United played Inter Miami at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, U.S. Soccer officially unveiled the country’s first-ever designated National Training Center, complete with facilities to be utilized by all 27 of its teams and support for coaching and referee development. Arthur Blank, noted with the title of “philanthropist” in U.S. Soccer’s release, would be contributing $50 million to help make it happen.

Batson said that upon embarking on a new home for U.S. Soccer headquarters, there were a number of key criteria the Federation was seeking. Chief among them an ability to use a new facility year-round, proximity to a major international airport, and thriving communities that would help attract top talent. 

“Directly related to coming out of that meeting, there were a number of introductions and a number of sort of actions taken by Arthur and [Vice Chairman of AMB Sports and Entertainment Steve Cannon] and team that propelled us forward,” Batson said.

U.S. Soccer didn’t just need cash to help the vision become reality. Batson’s team needed Blank’s network. Blank’s team spent the following months introducing Batson and U.S. Soccer officials to various individuals – from leaders in business, philanthropy, government on down - so Batson could share the vision for the project. 

“We needed to be a part of the community with corporate and philanthropic and governmental support. You need that to pull off projects like this,” Batson said. “It also needed to be a place where not just our staff would want to live, but where their families would want to live. That there would be a robust enough local community to where… significant others, parents, and kids would have opportunities for their own career development as well as great educational opportunities. Overall, you know, great place to live.”

For Batson, a Georgia native born in Augusta, it feels more than a bit surreal.

“I definitely would have had to pinch myself, given that I remember going to Atlanta Silverback games at the old [Grady] Memorial Stadium. And I remember helping sell tickets for a women's national team game at Memorial Stadium back in the day… we’ve sure come a long way,” Batson said. “And I think it's just the beginning. I mean, we have such an opportunity to transform what soccer looks like. Obviously, Atlanta United has already made huge strides in how America thinks about soccer and soccer fandom, about how people think about soccer in Atlanta. This is our opportunity to continue that momentum and show the world what Atlanta and soccer can be.”

In other words, buckle up. Atlanta, often overlooked in past years when it came to hosting international soccer events, has steadily ramped up its capacity for international games. Mercedes-Benz Stadium has hosted Mexico’s El Tri on multiple occasions in the past handful of years, the venue welcomed the Premier League’s Newcastle United and Chelsea for a friendly, and there’s a ton more on the horizon. 

First up is the United States Women’s National Team, who will be back playing in Atlanta for the first time since 2016 in the SheBelieves Cup against Japan on April 6. Six weeks later, Argentina and Lionel Messi will play the Copa America opener at MBS on June 20. That’s before the USMNT will play against Panama in the tournament on June 27, the first time the men’s team will have played in Atlanta since 2015 in the Georgia Dome.

“So, immediate fruit of U.S. Soccer relocating is coming to bear here,” Atlanta United President and CEO Garth Lagerwey told Five Stripe Final in a wide-ranging interview which you can listen to here. “That is how we raise the boats. You have all these folks coming out to Atlanta to see these premium games and specifically to see games from Mexican teams, from women's teams, from people who haven't been here who are people we want to be part of our audience long term. And now we’re saying, ‘Hey, you've decided to come to this event. Would you like to come to an Atlanta United game as well?’ I don't think we're going to get 100 percent conversion. I don't know if we're going to get 10 percent conversion. But it certainly seems to make sense to me to say that's the audience to whom we should be speaking. Those are fans of our sport.”

All of this development is happening with the sport’s most prestigious tournament in the World Cup coming to Atlanta in 2026. For Batson, it’s a critical moment to build interest and enthusiasm. And how do you do that? You get people, particularly kids, playing the game.

“I think there's an opportunity to leverage the excitement, the energy, the passion, and the fact that people all across the country want to get involved,” Batson said. To have people really push their local school districts to make sure that soccer is in every school, to make sure that those facilities are available for kids to play in after school, to communities building more places to play.

“We should use this next period to normalize the idea that every park, every school, needs soccer. We want it to where every American can walk, ride their bike, or take public transit to a safe place to play soccer… Getting rid of any friction makes such a big difference.”