By Wayne Heilman
Just months after winning the United Soccer League (USL) championship, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks Football Club is now fully owned by Weidner Apartment Homes, which acquired the remaining 40% of ownership from the founding Ragain family.
Terms were not disclosed, but Weidner said in a Feb. 5 news release that it had extended multiyear contracts for the team’s sporting director, Stephen Hogan; head coach James Chambers; and technical director Allan McCann. Switchbacks President Nick Ragain and brother James Ragain, the team’s executive vice president, will remain with the team as consultants for six months and a board of four Weidner executives will oversee the business.
“Ed [Ragain, Switchbacks founder] told us that now is the time for [his family to make] an exit, coming off winning a championship. It is time (for him) to do something different and cash out with his partner for the past nine years,” says Greg Cerbana, Weidner’s vice president of public relations and government affairs. “We will make sure the franchise doesn’t go anywhere and remains in Colorado Springs for perpetuity.”
Colorado Springs native Dean Weidner, who owns 16 local apartment complexes, had owned 60% of the team since 2020 and bought naming rights to the 8,000-seat Downtown Colorado Springs stadium where the Switchbacks play home games. The Switchbacks won the USL title on Nov. 23 in their home stadium by defeating Rhode Island FC 3-0. The team played all its playoff games last season at home.
The company quickly put its stamp on the team by appointing Brad Estes as president. Estes was president of USL member Louisville City Football Club and National Women’s Soccer League member Racing Louisville Football Club from 2018-2022 after previously serving as a consultant and executive vice president. During his time with Louisville City, the team won back-to-back USL championships in 2017-2018.
Estes joined the Switchbacks on March 3. A former accountant, Estes is now a business consultant after spending two years as chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Synchrony Health Services, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“There are times when opportunities present themselves that force you to adjust your plan and take decisive action, and this is one of those times,” Cerbana says. “It was a fortuitous meeting for us to get acquainted with Brad and learn of his experience, his passion and his record of success in private business as well as within the league. It didn’t take long to convince us that he is the right person to lead this club, both on and off the field, and build upon the winning tradition that’s been established here in the Springs.”
The Ragain family was awarded a USL franchise in 2013 and the team began play in 2015 in a small stadium adjacent to UCHealth Park in northeast Colorado Springs, but with an eye toward eventually building and playing in a larger downtown stadium. The stadium became part of the City for Champions initiative to use $120.5 million in state tax breaks to build a series of projects that also included the nearby U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum.
Weidner, based in the Seattle area, was started in 1977 with a single apartment complex in Seattle; it has grown to become one of the nation’s largest apartment management companies, with 316 complexes in 13 states and Canada.
“When we buy a new business, we figure out how they operate and what they are doing. Our goal is long-term stability, making sure we understand the business and make it even better,” Cerbana says. “We want to see a good product on the field, support a winner and to create an environment where that is welcoming to all, exciting and where our players are approachable. This is a $7 million-a-year business, and we hope that it continues to grow.”
Weidner is in early discussions about possibly expanding Weidner Field, which hinges on the team selling out all its games, but no firm plans have been developed yet, Cerbana says. Exponential Impact, an incubator for technology startups, will continue to lease space in the stadium’s northwest corner, but that space eventually will be converted to a restaurant as the company builds out an adjacent apartment complex, Cerbana says.
The Switchbacks plan to start a foundation to give scholarships to help underserved youth play club soccer but those plans are in early stages, so the number of recipients, amounts and club soccer partners haven’t been determined. The team also wants to put together local events around next year’s World Cup, soccer’s premier championship featuring 48 teams playing in 16 North American cities.
Cerbana says Weidner is not facing any pressure to move the team to a larger market and that league officials attending the championship game told team officials that they want to spread the energy and enthusiasm they saw at the game to other USL markets. The company doesn’t have plans to buy any other professional sports teams, but is on the lookout to acquire a local franchise for a women’s professional soccer team, should one become available.
