Less than five years since its inception, Baltimore-based Ristozi FC has enjoyed a trophy-laden half decade. With four trophies in four years and securing direct qualification to the 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Ristozi FC’s early success has been defined by the vision of co-founders and brothers Anesti and Francis Shkurti and their belief in 20-year-old head coach Dylan Shepherd.
Born in Albania before moving to Greece at a young age, the Shkurti brothers developed in Super League Greece side Panathinaikos FC’s youth system before immigrating to the United States in 2003. After playing for several amateur clubs in the U.S. the brothers saw an opportunity.
“The ‘why’ really came from Francis,” Anesti said. “He played locally on a few teams and felt strongly that we could do a much better job than what existed at the time. We saw early on that soccer is going to continue to grow in the U.S.”
At the suggestion of the brothers’ grandfather, the Baltimore-based club’s identity stemmed from the Holy Resurrection Church in Korça, Albania—the brothers’ birthplace. Known as Kisha e Ristozit in Albanian, the centuries-old church is officially designated as a Cultural Monument in Albania and is one of the oldest churches in the Balkans.
Ristozi FC was designed in part to pay tribute to the significant role the church holds in Albanian culture, but also with a comparable and intentional focus on resiliency, fortitude and faith.
“The church has been standing for a very long time, and the tradition behind it is permanence,” Anesti said. “That’s what we want the club to be—a club that stays, that’s remembered. It represents Baltimore, but also our heritage. We want to be here for the long run.”
Like its connection to the historic church, Ristozi FC quickly evolved to encompass three core values: faith, professionalism and respect.
“Faithfulness to the mission is huge—faithful to the players, the coaches, and the club,” Anesti shared. “Professionalism is massive for us. We were one of the only teams in our NPSL season that didn’t receive a red card. Respect is just as important — respect for officials, opponents and the game. Those values guide everything we do.”
The club officially kicked off in 2022, playing in Maryland’s Super Soccer League, earning promotion to the amateur league’s top division after its inaugural season.
Following its inaugural campaign, Ristozi made a splash, appointing then-18-year-old and former player Dylan Shepherd as the club’s head coach in 2023. The full-time college student and midfielder at NCAA Division II’s Shepherd University made an immediate impact, helping Ristozi lift four trophies in four years.
“I started as an assistant and really enjoyed it,” Shepherd shared. “When the head coach opportunity came up, there was no way I could say no, even at a young age.
“I get looks from other coaches and referees all the time, but it doesn’t matter. It’s about how well we play, how we recruit and the system we build. It’s not about me—it’s about the team, results and giving players a pathway to higher-level soccer or better college opportunities.”
Now 20-years-old, Shepherd’s coaching philosophy is decidedly intentional, focusing on ball-dominance, physicality and accountability. Buy-in from players, coaches and staff is an expectation.
“As a club, we’ve built a system that maximizes players’ strengths and minimizes weaknesses,” Shepherd explained. “Culture is huge, training is strict, game-day operations are strict and accountability matters. If you’re late or not bought in, you’re gone. Everything is about the team, not personal goals.”
The Shkurti brothers’ roster-building philosophy and Shepherd’s tactical vision have clearly paid off. Ristozi qualified for the postseason in 2023, claimed the Maryland-District-Virginia (MDV) Cup and SSL regular season title in 2024 and did the Maryland double in 2025, again winning the MDV Cup and also lifting the Rowland Cup—Maryland’s oldest cup competition and open championship.
“I saw [Shepherd’s] leadership and coaching ability right away,” Anesti said. “Even though he was young, he understood the club’s mission and culture.
“As we grew, we needed clear roles—owners as owners, coaches as coaches. Dylan stepped up at the right time, and making him head coach at 18 was the right call. The results speak for themselves.”
In the summer of 2025, Ristozi made the leap to the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) and didn’t miss a beat. In its inaugural season in the national amateur league, the club finished second in the Mid-Atlantic Conference before reeling off four consecutive postseason victories to finish the season in the National Semifinals—losing by one goal to eventual NPSL champions, Hickory FC—and subsequently qualifying for the 2026 U.S. Open Cup.
Thanks to its top-four finish in the 2025 NPSL Playoffs, Ristozi directly qualified to the U.S. Open Cup for the first time in its young history. The club is Maryland’s lone representative in the 2026 edition of the tournament and will aim to add a new chapter to Baltimore’s rich Open Cup history, following in the footsteps of 1939-40 co-champions Baltimore SC, 1958 runners-up Baltimore Pompei, and more recently, Christos FC's run to the Round of 32 as the furthest-advancing lower-division club in 2017.
“It’s special,” Anesti said of the Open Cup. “It’s the one competition where amateurs and professionals truly meet.”
Ristozi FC’s first Open Cup clash will come in the form of a challenging road test, as the NPSL side heads south to face the third-division professionals of the Charlotte Independence. The Independence are helmed by 1983 MAC Hermann Trophy winner and former Major League Soccer head coach Mike Jeffries, but the 20-year-old Shepherd remains undaunted by the task at hand.
“It’s very cool; he’s done amazing things in the game,” Shepherd said of Jeffries. “But at the end of the day, we’re here to win. I’ll prepare for [Charlotte] properly, but I believe in our players, staff and club. We can compete with anyone.”
Ristozi FC will face USL League One’s Charlotte Independence in the First Round of the 2026 U.S. Open Cup on Thursday, March 19 at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex in Matthews, N.C. The match will kick off at 6:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on U.S. Soccer’s YouTube channel.
“It’s the oldest tournament in U.S. soccer, just qualifying is huge,” Shepherd said of the Open Cup. “But we don’t want to be one-and-done—we want to win multiple games and put the club on the biggest stage possible.”