There are several people who update these Wiki pages and while they may be used to help the casual fan keep up I think they are great for quick fixes as to what is going on scoreline wise.
Regarding the Wiki page . . . Are the MLS B teams not participating this season? I thought I read that the Galaxy USL side would be playing in 2014.
Still waiting on official announcements from the league but I have heard from three unofficial spots that FC Dallas and LA Galaxy will start USL PRO teams in 2014
Yeah this is minor league soccer folks. It's not NOT happening until you get to about 2 weeks before the seasons starts.
The page will fill in as news reports come out. After the USL AGM meetings 12-15 Dec. I don't now who updated the USL Pro main wiki page with Portland as the Sacramento Republics partner but I am trying to hold off updating the 2014 page until we have the games announced and partnership/new teams announced (and failed teams).
Well it's a foregone conclusion that Sac is the Timbers partner. They're already loaning players out to the Republic
Guess the official news on Tampa Bay VSI should come out next week, their website is gone though : http://www.vsi-fc.com/cgi-sys/suspendedpage.cgi Maybe official news on Antigua, Phoenix, and LA as well.
yep the Board of Govenors and the AGM start in Florida Friday and goes through Sunday. That said I wouldn't expect too much of an announcement in regards to teams not returning, they will likely just NOT be mentioned in a press release
Didn't we already get confirmation over a month ago that Antigua was folding and VSI? I mean it's not like USL is going to run an in memoriam section in any press release detailing who is gone. Phoenix and LA news however will be what to watch for. LA has been a threat to die every year but seems to keep coming back somehow (gluttony for punishment is the only thing I can figure at this point).
We have a high degree of confidence. That's not confirmation. Nope. You usually find out when they announce who's in for the following year. They may mention - as they did with FCNY - that they "will not compete" in the upcoming season. The unique mixture of hubris and wealth has sustained LA. Supposedly there's somebody (some of the original owners and some new, but I don't know who, exactly) going to prop up Phoenix for another year, but if they're even less-capitalized (or not significantly more capitalized) in 2014 than they were in 2013, it will be hard for them to be anything but a disaster. You can't do this without money. You just can't. And even some people with money can't do it.
Sacramento's stadium delayed just a teensy bit: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/12/11/5993067/cal-expo-soccer-stadium-delayed.html#storylink=cpy From that: Ambitious, but, hey, you gotta have goals. Only one team has ever done that well in Division III, and that's Orlando this past season. They also want to be in MLS in 2016. Okay, then, twice.
Not 2014 related, but looking ahead slightly to 2015, it looks like the Red Bulls are planning to field their own team. http://www.empireofsoccer.com/training-possible-division/
Phoenix is in. http://uslpro.uslsoccer.com/scripts/runisa.dll?M2:gp::72013+L3/Display+E+NDX+NDX+775919
He was part of the old ownership group. Hopefully, he wasn't making the decisions last season. They made Tim Thomas (who filed a lawsuit against the team) the scapegoat, but who really knows what was going on behind the scenes.
Supposedly the former minority owners are gone and the rest of the cast remains. But I won't believe anything until ODFCNews.com says it.
I was wrong. Donald was not part of the previous ownership group. He took over as President after they fired Thomas. Odeen suggests (and I've heard whispers that) Rui Filipe Bento, one of the former owners, will still be involved. http://odfcnews.com/2013/12/16/phoenix-fc-usl-pro-announce-ownership-group/
So are we going to guess 13 for 2014, then? Charleston Battery Charlotte Eagles Dayton Dutch Lions Harrisburg City Islanders Los Angeles Blues Oklahoma City Energy Orlando City Phoenix FC Wolves Pittsburgh Riverhounds Richmond Kickers Rochester Rhinos Sacramento Republic Wilmington Hammerheads That would be seven established, long-term teams (Charleston, Charlotte, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Richmond, Rochester and Wilmington), two brand-new teams (Oklahoma City, Sacramento), one still-new team (Phoenix), two fairly-new teams (Dayton and LA) and one team with one foot out the door (Orlando). If the rumored Dallas reserve team does happen, that's 14, and if a Galaxy team supplants the Blues (the Blues are acting as if it's business as usual), it's still 14, but if they add the Galaxy team in addition to the Blues, that's 15. And Tulsa and Colorado Springs are in for 2015, when they lose Orlando. Meaning they could have 16+ in 2015. D3 hasn't had that many teams since 2002.
There is still the rumor of Orlando's USL franchise moving to Louisville with a minority owner. Not sure if they would be planning a move to MLS and moving their existing club north at the same time? How well can they walk and chew gum at the same time?