Tiago Dias, Aurie Briscoe amped to chase another Valley Division title
Two of the best players in Fort Wayne FC history, Tiago Dias and Aurie Briscoe, will be back on the pitch at Bishop D’Arcy Stadium this season.
Fort Wayne FC began unveiling its 2025 roster Monday with Dias, who captained the club last season, and star goalkeeper Briscoe. Both were key cogs in Fort Wayne FC winning Valley Division championships each of the last two seasons in USL League Two.
Their returns are pending league and federation approvals.
After Fort Wayne FC chases a third straight Valley Division title this season, it will move up to the professional ranks of USL League One – and move into a new stadium at Bass Road and I-69 – in 2026.
“Returning to Fort Wayne FC feels like coming home,” said Dias, a 23-year-old defender. “Big summer ahead, can’t wait to be back and work toward a three-peat in the Valley Division.”
Dias, who hails from Portimão, Portugal, has appeared in 24 games for Fort Wayne FC, totaling four goals and one assist while helping the team to clean sheets in 62.5% of games in which he played.
“Tiago Dias, our captain, was the first call when we started this season’s roster build,” Fort Wayne FC coach Mike Avery said. “Tiago is an exceptional leader, a fierce competitor, and a talented player who bleeds blue. He loves playing for Fort Wayne FC and his passion for the game, for his teammates, and for the FWFC faithful inspires all of us to do our best.”
After playing for Fort Wayne FC last summer, Dias captained Indiana Tech and garnered Third Team All-American honors at the NAIA level. He was selected the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year.
In 18 games with Indiana Tech, he scored five goals and helped the Warriors to nine clean sheets, as well as their sixth straight WHAC Tournament championship and a spot in the NAIA National Tournament.
Briscoe, a 23-year-old from Edgewood, New Jersey, has held opponents scoreless in 16 of the 26 games he’s appeared in for Fort Wayne FC.
Last season, he anchored Fort Wayne FC to an 8-2-2 regular-season record, its first ever playoff victory and a spot in the Central Conference Finals, before rejoining the Rutgers University squad.
“I am super excited to return to Fort Wayne FC for a third year,” Briscoe said. “I am looking forward to winning a championship once again, training with the coaches and playing in front of the best fans.”
Briscoe’s 2023 Fort Wayne FC season included a run of eight straight scoreless games. He won the USL League Two’s Golden Glove award. He was selected to Puerto Rico’s national team in 2023, too.
“Aurie has been a phenomenal goalkeeper over the past few years for us, so the opportunity to bring him back to Fort Wayne was one that we could not pass up,” Avery said. “Aurie is another player who has fallen in love with Fort Wayne, the club and the community. Aurie is an exceptional athlete, quick and sure-handed, and he is capable of making not only the routine saves but also the spectacular ones.
“Aurie has a calm demeanor and a quiet confidence that fits our style of play perfectly. FWFC will be a team that plays bravely and Aurie models that kind of courage.”
About Fort Wayne FC
Fort Wayne FC, founded in 2019, is currently a pre-professional club in USL League Two’s Valley Division in the Central Conference. The club won Valley Division championships in 2023 and 2024. Fort Wayne FC is moving to the professional ranks of USL League One in 2026 at a new state-of-the-art stadium. www.fortwaynefc.com
About United Soccer League
Founded in 1986, the United Soccer League (USL) is the largest and fastest-growing soccer organization in the United States, impacting more than 200 communities nationwide. The USL is the first and only organization to offer a comprehensive youth-to-professional pathway for both men and women under one ecosystem. This structure includes four men’s leagues: the newly announced, top-tier professional Division I league, the USL Championship (Division II), USL League One (Division III), and USL League Two (pre-professional). The women’s pathway includes the top-tier USL Super League (Division I), which debuted in 2024, and USL W League, the country’s leading pre-professional women’s league. The USL also oversees USL Academy, a progressive talent development platform, and USL Youth, a premier national youth platform.
