Javier Armas transfers to Fort Wayne FC

When the construction crews finish the work at Bass Road and I-69, the pitch at Fort Wayne FC Park will sit seven feet below the surrounding grade. This architectural decision creates a lower-bowl environment for a 9,200-seat stadium that is now the largest outdoor venue in Northeast Indiana.

The physical structure, privately funded by Mark Music, matches the organizational shift occurring inside it. After three consecutive division titles in the pre-professional USL League Two, Fort Wayne FC is moving into the professional ranks of USL League One. The transition involves moving from the 3,500-seat Bishop John M. D’Arcy Stadium to a facility featuring a continuous canopy roof and 14 pitch-level suites.

To anchor the midfield for this inaugural professional season, the club announced the signing of 26-year-old Javier Armas in January. The move followed a 2024 season in which Armas played every minute of every match for Atlanta United 2. During that campaign, he recorded seven goals and two assists from a deep midfield role.

Fort Wayne FC

The stadium at Bass Road and I-69 anchors the club’s move into professional soccer. Mark Music, who provided the private funding for the project, has described the facility as a purpose-built environment designed to function as the largest soccer-specific venue in the state. The design sets the pitch seven feet below grade, placing the lower rows of the 9,200 seats in a direct line with the field. This layout keeps the crowd inside a tight perimeter, emphasizing proximity over expansion.

The move into USL League One follows five seasons in USL League Two and three consecutive division titles. The transition to a professional license shifts the calendar to a schedule that runs from early spring through fall. This change expands the duration of the competitive season while maintaining the club’s regional focus.

Director of Football Operations DaMarcus Beasley, a Fort Wayne native and four-time World Cup veteran with the U.S. national team, manages the club’s daily operations. His career unfolded across international tournaments and long competitive cycles. Within the club, the professional roster and youth academy are organized under a shared technical framework.

The initial signings, including Javier Armas, have arrived with multi-year samples of competitive minutes. Training camp opens January 26. The team have thus far announced 5 players.

Fort Wayne

The move takes Armas from Atlanta, a sprawling metropolitan hub of six million people, to a city of approximately 270,000. Fort Wayne is a city of three rivers - the St. Marys, St. Joseph, and Maumee - where the skyline is lower and the economy is anchored in manufacturing and logistics. While 65% of the surrounding Allen County is dedicated to agriculture, the city itself functions as a dense industrial and distribution center for the Midwest.

The professional soccer club arrives as the third pillar of this local routine, joining the Komets (hockey) and the TinCaps (baseball). The move places Armas in a market where the opening of a new stadium and a professional license are the primary drivers of the weekend schedule.

Javiar Armas

Armas has moved through three distinct soccer environments: a Spanish academy system, four years of college soccer, and two seasons in MLS NEXT Pro. He developed at Deportivo La Coruña, where training centers on positional responsibility, before moving to Oregon State. By his senior year, he was starting nearly every match for a team that reached the College Cup semifinals. He handled the middle of the field without drawing attention to himself.

Atlanta United selected him in the second round of the MLS SuperDraft. In the professional environment of NEXT Pro, the schedule tightened and the game sped up. In 2024, Armas played every minute for Atlanta United 2, becoming the fixed point around which the rest of the midfield rotated.

Head coach Mike Avery has identified Armas for a defensive midfield role, a position Fort Wayne treats as a structural anchor. Avery has been specific about the Defensive Midfield position, stating that Armas provides the “steady and mature presence” required to connect possession while protecting the back line. When Fort Wayne evaluated Armas, they were looking for a player accustomed to staying in the center of the picture for ninety minutes.

The signing coincides with the club’s move into a professional league structure involving a 34-week regular season and routine travel. Upon joining, Armas described the project as a “positive step” in a career that has required him to adapt to shifting competitive tiers. The professional era begins on March 7 with a road match against FC Naples, followed by the home opener at Fort Wayne FC Park on May 2 against the Charlotte Independence.