Rhode Island FC Headed to Bermuda

Rhode Island FC has announced a preseason training camp with the Bermuda Senior Men’s National Team

Photo Courtesy of Rhode Island FC

Rhode Island FC has announced a preseason training camp with the Bermuda Senior Men’s National Team as part of their preparations for the club’s inaugural 2024 season. The Bermuda Football Association will host Rhode Island FC from February 23 to 28, 2024. As part of the camp, the two teams will play a pair of practice games on February 24th and 27th.

Bermuda currently sits 172nd in the most recent FIFA World Rankings. The team’s most recent roster for the November 2023 match window includes two current college players, several players playing in the English football pyramid, a few unattached players, and one player with strong connections to Massachusetts and USL Championship experience in Zeiko Lewis. 

Lewis – a forward – spent 2023 with Sacramento Republic in the USL Championship. He was originally drafted in 2017 by the New York Red Bulls in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft after spending four years with Boston College. Lewis was a three-year captain for the Eagles and attended high school at Berkshire Academy in Massachusetts, where he still holds several records.

The connections go both ways as RIFC head coach Khano Smith scored 10 goals as a member of the Bermuda National Team across 33 appearances. Smith’s first cap for Bermuda came back in 2003 against Barbados and he featured in 13 World Cup qualification matches.

“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to bring the Rhode Island FC team to a place that shaped me into the person and professional I am today. Rhode Island and Bermuda are both places that care deeply about the community and have a shared love for the beautiful game,” said Smith. “I know that training in Bermuda as well as participating in two practice matches while we’re there will support our players in feeling prepared and excited for our first match of the season in March of 2024.”

The training camp in Bermuda is part of eight weeks of preseason preparation for RIFC this winter. The trip to Bermuda will follow after two weeks at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida in February.

The training camp and practice games in Bermuda will be an important opportunity for Smith to implement his playing style and bring a new group of players and staff together for the club’s first-ever season, which gets underway in March.