It has a different name and home on the Web, but the author is still the same.

For those of you who remember Off The Ball, an Atlanta-oriented soccer blog I began while at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, I’ve started my own independently written and managed site on the same topic.

After taking a recent buyout from the AJC, one of my primary ambitions was to serve the vast, vibrant Atlanta soccer scene in another way. Atlanta Soccer News is my attempt to pull together that community, from the pro and college levels to youth, adult recreational and international concerns.

(Here’s a selected archive of the Off The Ball.)

What you see is a barebones start for Atlanta Soccer News, but this site will evolve and grow as I go along. It looks a little plain right now, but the writing will always be lively and compelling. I do appreciate your patience and your feedback as I go along.

And what a time to start a new Atlanta soccer site! The Mexico-Venezuela match at the Georgia Dome on June 24 will be the first international soccer match at that venue, which has made the cut for the next round of the U.S. Soccer Federation’s bidding process for the World Cup in 2018 and 2022. And on July 22, AC Milan and Club América will meet in the Dome.

In addition to those developments, I will track the seasons of the Atlanta Blackhawks and FC Atlanta as well as the Silverbacks women’s team. The Women’s Professional Soccer league will be fielding a team in Atlanta next season, and the franchise is getting busy this summer in preparation.

Plus there is the run-up to the Atlanta Cup youth tournament over the Labor Day holiday and countless other youth and amateur leagues, tournaments and events going on in the metro Atlanta region.

And on the sidebar on this site I will include links from the world of soccer that I find interesting and that I hope you do too.

Please feel free to contact me at atlantasoccernews@gmail.com with questions, concerns, tips and story ideas.

And welcome again to Atlanta Soccer News!