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After a 30-year hiatus, interscholastic soccer is returning to Chester High School thanks to a partnership between the Philadelphia Union, its foundation, Power Home Remodeling, adidas, the Chester Upland School District and the City of Chester.
The new program will go into place next school year and will give students with an opportunity to represent their school and their city on boys and girls junior varsity teams in year one and varsity teams in 2020 and beyond.
Games will be played at the STEM Academy and select matches will be hosted at Talen Energy Stadium.
Through the partnership, which includes a $500,000 investment over the next three years and $150,000 a year beyond that, the Chester soccer program will have access to pro level outfitting, coaches, game operations and more.
Talk of varsity soccer returning to Chester High School is almost as old as the Union itself and Union chief business officer Tim McDermott has mentioned more than once publicly the team’s intention to do just that.
Chester Upland Youth Soccer, which launched in the city in 2012, has been laying the groundwork with after school and weekend programs and in 2017 started a team at the middle school.