Orlando to Use Eminent Domain to Seize Land Needed for Soccer Stadium

City council voted to take the land if owners didn't want to sell

The Orlando City Soccer Club was praised at City Hall on Monday for its championship win as Orlando moved another step closer to building a new stadium for the team.

Players came to a City Council meeting to be congratulated on the team's winning the USL Pro Championship on Sept. 7. Mayor Buddy Dyer and city commissioners donned team scarves and posed for photos with the championship trophy and players Jamie Watson, Rob Valentino, Ian Fuller, Luke Boden, Anthony Pulis and Bryan Burke.

"The atmosphere at that last game was just incredible as we march toward MLS status," Dyer said.

But the bigger benefit for the team came after the pictures were taken and the players had left. The council voted to take two parcels of land if their owners won't sell. The land is among the last parcels needed for a new soccer stadium for the team, a linchpin in its quest for a Major League Soccer franchise.

h/t Jonathan Chapin