OAKLAND — With a raucous and devoted fanbase, a professional soccer team known as the Roots has emerged as a new sports phenomenon in Oakland and a rare source of pride in a city that could be on the brink of losing its last major sports franchise.
Now, amid the afterglow of what’s being called the World Cup’s greatest final, the team is looking to put down more solid roots in Oakland.
Just two years after forming, Oakland Roots SC — short for Soccer Club — have been selling out their games at Laney College’s 5,500-seat football stadium. A companion women’s team, the Oakland Soul, is set to debut next