It's been a while since I wrote something substantive on a club. But when I saw that World Class Premier was rebranding to Maryland Bobcats FC, I knew this was the perfect opportunity to get back in the swing of things. I got in contact with the club and was able to get a quick interview done with Communications Director Evan Raimist. Without further ado, here is your Maryland Bobcats.

What exactly led to the rebrand?

The name change comes at a time when there are some big changes in the club, including joining the NPSL, and the ownership wanted to complete this before fans got too entrenched. This helps our future project and helps us start to achieve our goal of representing the whole state and maybe one day bringing a pro team to Maryland. We don't want to be seen as one location, but representatives of the whole state to come together and get behind one project.

How long had this been in the process?

This process has been about a year in the making with it really heating up the last 4-6 months. It isn't a quick process and we wanted to make sure that the transition went as smoothly as possible and that we had everything we needed in place before we announced it.

Why did you choose Bobcats as the mascot?

The new team colors are a tribute to the school where most of the owners met (University of Maryland, Baltimore County or UMBC). By giving the team the gold and black color scheme is their way of paying respect to the school that made them where they are now. The ownership group goes by "The Bobcat Group" so incorporating that into the team identify is important. They had a dream together and have started this project together, so it’s only fitting that the team name incorporate the group that had a dream together and wanted to build something bigger than one individual person.

As a fan, I’m always on the lookout for unique kits and team gear, so this will be a two parter. First, what kit supplier are you guys going with? And will there be gear that fans can potentially buy?

We are working on finishing up designs, but we will have new kits for both our NPSL and UPSL teams next season. Again, we are working through the final details, but it looks like we will be going with Icarus for our kits. We love the work they've been doing and they have been great to work through the designs with. The jerseys will obviously include the new team colors and will be available for purchase. We also are working on getting new scarves that will be available for purchase. As we get closer to the seasons in 2020, we will be adding more gear to our online shop at our new website.

Are there future aspirations of possibly jumping to a pro league?

I think that that is ultimately the goal, yes. We all know the state of professional soccer in the US right now and that it's a bit segregated and disjointed. For now, we are focusing on where we are at. Joining the NPSL is the next big step for us and we are focused on building a competitive squad to kick off in 2020. We always have high aspirating for ourselves, so years down the line becoming a fully professional club is not out of the questions.

Lastly, what can we expect from the team after the rebrand?

You can expect the same high standards that we hold ourselves to as well as continued work in our community. We hope to unite the state of Maryland behind one team and be a club, team, and organization that the community can be proud of. We have already taken a big step with a new website that will be a one-stop shop for all things Maryland Bobcats FC. We are still the same team, same players, and same people behind the scenes with big ambitions, we just have a new name. We're looking forward to finishing this Fall season strong and hoping to have a successful 2020.

I have to thank Evan for the opportunity to cover the rebrand and I look forward to seeing what the club can do in the upcoming NPSL and UPSL seasons.

- Shawn Laird