Going in, the recent USL regular-season contest between the Portland Timbers 2 and Swope Park Rangers was seen as a litmus test for whether Boise, Idaho could become a permanent home to a USL club.

After a strong turnout that impressed both local and USL officials on hand, Idaho Youth Soccer Association President Bill Taylor believes the city is that much closer to making it a reality.

“We will have serious talks starting in July [with government people and potential investors],” Taylor told the Idaho Business Review in a story published Thursday. “The energy is legitimized. There is a return on investment now. Now you can go to people who are not necessarily soccer people. Now we just have to go to the next level with our government people.”

A sellout crowd saw T2 take a 2-1 victory against the Rangers, as they played host to the game at Brighton Stadium, and Portland General Manager Gavin Wilkinson was pleased with the reception the side received in what is considered part of the Timbers’ territory in Major League Soccer. 

With an eye on potentially establishing a second USL team within the organization’s structure, Wilkinson reiterated the club’s interest in that team being in Boise to the Business Review.

“It’s an area we want to be invested in and showcased in,” Wilkinson told the Business Review. “We want [Idaho soccer] players to look at the Timbers as their home team.”

From a league perspective, there remains work to do, with the right combination of local investment, and in particular a strong stadium plan a major key to the establishment of a team from a league’s perspective. After having attended the game between T2 and the Rangers earlier this month, USL President Jake Edwards definitely came away impressed by a market that could be a strong addition to the league in the future.

“We think [Boise] can sustain it,” Edwards told the Business Review. “It can be an independent organization or affiliated with Portland. The Timbers organization would like to be part of it.”