Jordan Rossiter’s football journey has come full circle in familiar company, with the former Rangers midfielder reuniting with Mark Warburton after completing a move to Sporting Club Jacksonville in the United States.
The 28-year-old has been confirmed as a new signing by the ambitious USL Championship outfit, the second tier of the American pyramid, as preparations ramp up for the 2026 campaign, which begins in March.
With no promotion or relegation in the USL system, Sporting are focused purely on building a squad capable of challenging for the title, and Rossiter’s arrival is viewed as another statement of intent.
Sporting Club Jacksonville’s structure will feel strikingly familiar to Rangers supporters. Former Ibrox manager Mark Warburton has been appointed as the club’s Sporting Director and Head of Soccer, while ex-Dundee boss Liam Fox has been handed the role of head coach, tasked with delivering success on the pitch.
Warburton, who signed Rossiter for Rangers in 2016, has wasted little time making his mark in Florida. Since taking up his post, he has targeted a number of former English-based prospects, with Rossiter the latest addition to a growing list of recognisable names.
Speaking to talkSPORT following the move, Rossiter made clear why the opportunity appealed. “The opportunity that Sporting presents excites me,” he said.
“This is a unique project to be part of, and with figures like Mark Warburton involved, I’m looking forward to lacing up for the club this season.”
For Rangers fans, the reunion is a reminder of what once promised to be a hugely significant Ibrox career. Rossiter arrived in Glasgow in the summer of 2016, joining Warburton’s side ahead of the club’s first season back in the Premiership after winning the Scottish Championship.
At the time, he was only 19 years old but already carried a glowing reputation. Having come through the Liverpool academy, Rossiter had featured in the NextGen Series at just 15 and was widely tipped as a future star, with some even branding him the “next Steven Gerrard” after his debut goal for the Reds against Middlesbrough at just 17.
Warburton’s connection to youth development was no coincidence. Alongside sports TV producer Justin Andrews, he had launched the NextGen Series through Cycad Sports Management, a competition designed to showcase elite U19 talent across Europe. Rossiter was one of its early standouts.
Unfortunately, injuries would come to define his spell at Rangers. Across four seasons, Rossiter managed just 16 appearances for the club, scoring once in a memorable 5-5 draw away to Hibernian in May 2018. Only six of those outings came under Warburton, during the early months of the 2016/17 campaign.
There was renewed optimism when Steven Gerrard took charge at Ibrox in the summer of 2018. As a former Liverpool teammate, Gerrard was seen as someone who could help revive Rossiter’s career.
But further injury setbacks, followed by a difficult final starting performance in a 1-1 draw away to Dundee in December 2018, saw him slip out of contention.
Loan spells at Bury and Fleetwood Town followed during the final 18 months of his Rangers deal, bringing an understated end to a period that never truly ignited.
Despite that, Gerrard spoke warmly of Rossiter during his time in charge. “Naturally, we have done that because we care about the player,” Gerrard said in September 2018.
“But to be fair to him, injured or not, he is upbeat and great about the place. He tries to help in a different way.
“I have been really impressed with him but the last couple of years have been very tough.”
Now, in Jacksonville, Rossiter has the chance for a fresh chapter- and once again under the guidance of the manager who first believed in him at senior level.