Greenville, SC, Has a Variety of Sports for Amateur Athletes

Amateur athletes elevate their game at the region’s sports facilities.

By Kevin Litwin on October 4, 2023

Stephen Stinson

No matter what sport you are into, you’re likely to find a team to join in Greenville, SC,. Or, you can at least be part of a fan base that supports growing sports activities like soccer, lacrosse and cycling.

For fans of soccer, Greenville Triumph SC began in 2019 as the region’s first professional soccer team. It competes in USL League One, which represents the third tier of U.S. professional soccer. The Triumph plays their home games at the 16,000-seat Paladin Stadium and has a strong following in the Greenville community, including a passionate group of supporters called the Reedy River Riot made up of fans from Greenville, Anderson and Spartanburg.

For adults who want to keep playing the sport, Greenville County Rec organizes men’s and coed leagues that play on soccer fields billed as some of the finest in the Southeast. All Greenville County Rec adult soccer leagues are sanctioned through the South Carolina Amateur Soccer Association and the U.S. Adult Soccer Association.

For local youth, Greenville County Rec is also sanctioned by South Carolina Youth Soccer, and youth leagues are available through Carolina Elite Soccer Academy. Area youth teams in the region play at MESA Soccer Complex, which features 16 fields.

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Lots of Lax

Greenville Lacrosse Leagues was recently established with a goal to strengthen the lacrosse community in the Upstate.

It features a 10-week summer season followed by playoffs. GLL started as a youth league program but is now exclusively for men who want to continue their lacrosse careers.

“We focus on fun, with no practices, just games,” says Sky Dupree of the Greenville Lacrosse Leagues. “We have quite a few former collegiate and professional lacrosse athletes who are playing. There are also some high schoolers who use this league to prepare for when they will be playing lacrosse in college.”

Dupree says four full GLL teams compete Thursday nights throughout the summer at Upward Star Center, located off Interstate 85 between Greenville and Spartanburg. Besides the league teams, a travel team is occasionally put together to compete in tournaments on the East Coast.

LowLax Greenville, a sporting goods store near Greenville Convention Center, stocks everything related to lacrosse.

“We continue to add players in our league as the word gets out about us,” Dupree says. “Lacrosse is largely a sport played in the Northeast U.S., but its popularity is growing in Southern cities like Charlotte, Atlanta and Orlando. Greenville isn’t far behind.”

Stephen Stinson

Gearing Up

The city has also become a popular destination for cycling enthusiasts, with its scenic roads and challenging terrain. Cyclists can join several organizations, including the Greenville Spinners Bicycle Club, which leads group rides and hosts special events.

The Greenville Spinners took their first ride on New Year’s Day in 1979, with only three bicyclists who participated. Today, the group has more than 600 members, with cyclists meeting and riding every Tuesday night as well as during several signature rides throughout the year.

The presence of the Greenville Spinners along with other groups has earned Greenville an unofficial nickname of “Bike Town,” touting the city as one of America’s most bike-friendly places. Cyclists have access to riding destinations ranging from the Blue Ridge Mountains to single-track mountain bike trails to the 22-mile-long Prisma Health Swamp Rabbit Trail.

Greenville is also growing in popularity for welcoming big-time cycling events like the Gran Fondo Hincapie, a multiday cycling celebration.

Gran Fondo riders of all levels participate in 15-mile, 50-mile or 80-mile routes, largely through the Blue Ridge Mountains. The event is organized by Hincapie Sportswear of Greenville, whose owner and famed cyclist George Hincapie once pedaled to a stage win in the 2003 Tour de France.