Honestly the only thing I can think of is that D3 teams get introduced a round earlier in the US Open Cup. (Not that it did the NASL any good this year!)
Really? Take a look at the stadiums, sponsorship monies, and players. How again is there not practical or VERY REAL difference between the two? Oh, and the markets involved as well.
It's similar to asking whether a football team is d2 or d3 in college. There is no pyramid, but everyone wants do be D1. Same thing here, there may be no pro/rel, but being D2 is a lot more marketable than D3 and a lot more appealing to players.
What they are trying to say is, to the actual fan, there is no difference between D2 and D3. The people showing up in droves to see Sacramento play, don't care they are in the USL and D3. More people are not going to show up if they moved to the NASL. The only higher level for USL teams is MLS. There is also no real difference in level of play. The NASL going 0-7 against USL clubs is an anomaly. But it still showed there is actually little difference between the two leagues in terms of talent and level of play. Despite all the talk from Bill Peterson about the advantages of having no wage restrictions, his league basically puts together similar rosters to USL clubs, since they pick from the same scrap heaps. So why does the USL badly want D2 if there is no tangible difference? That is another question and probably has to do with a much bigger picture. It is no secret that Bill Peterson has been looking for a league sponsor for the NASL. That is why he will talk to anyone that will have him. D2 doesn't mean anything now, but it might mean something in the future, and the USL wants that status when it does. And MLS could be interested in them getting it. Unlike with college football, which has over a hundred years of history, the lines between D2 and D3 haven't been as solidly drawn in pro soccer. Lower division soccer players do not pick leagues based on anything other than money and location. Nobody is getting rich here on meager wages. And no player thinks being in D2 or D3 gives them more status. It is all minor league soccer to them and the fan. Getting into MLS is just as easy from D3 as it is D2. Because there isn't any real difference in level of play. No MLS GM is saying, "player A did well in the NASL. Player B did well in the USL. So player A must be a better player since he proved himself at a higher level." Nope, it is all the same level to them. Over the next few decades, we will begin to see those lines become more solid. But right now it is MLS and the rest.
My main issue with his goal of expansion is that time must be taken to do it properly. MLS does it, even if it means teams have to delay their debuts (LAFC) because they want to do it right. Also, the long term viability of a market must be taken into consideration. Then, there's the fact that several of his markets are going to be replaced by or move to the MLS, and he will need to replace those markets.
*#&$ USSF If the NASL is serious about promotion/relegation in the north american market then they should give two cents (forgive my french) about the USSF and focus on creating a north american league. Invite Div3 &4 teams to a tourney with what USSF calls Div2 and make a cup more important (on an international level) then the US open (or whatever its called). A truly north american cup has more potential for TV rights then a(n) US open cup. for obvious reasons. NASL CANNOT compete with MLS on an american specific playing field, but it can become more relevant if it focuses on rivalries and hooliginism [sic] between the north american nations. 5k+attendance average club teams from the carribean and central america vs minor league teams in Mex/Usa/Can is viable instead of chasing the idea you will one day supplant MLS. End of the day: footy in NA needs brains not fists & cunts
What would MLS, NASL, USL look like under Pro/Rel in 2015? http://www.empireofsoccer.com/fantasy-futbol-prorel-42049/
I was originally smart enough to skim and forget that post. Since you quoted it I thought maybe I missed something and I should go ahead and read it. I want those 20 seconds back.
As crazy as it seems I think if the NASL actually wants to do what they say, they should ignore USSF standards and focus on a continental product. Even if the quality of product is inferior to MLS it would still have the potential to draw sponsorship and TV deals that could very well make it competitive with Div1 on some level. That continental product will eventually bring them immediate relevance and possible competitiveness for sponsorships and TV rights that they do not currently have. NASL's narrow vision on what the USSF mandates will be their downfall. NASL's potential exceeds what themselves realize. Europa League should be an example to follow.
Europa league? That competition is so popular that UEFA is trying to figure out how to either make it relevant or put it out of its misery.
Lots o' problems with this. Outside of the US/Mex/Canada, no economy on this continent is strong enough to provide any significant level of sponsorship or tv revenue, especially when better products are available. If NASL runs afoul of USSF mandates as you suggest, they will lose their sanctioning. No big deal? While i'm no FIFA rules expert, but I know if you are not sanctioned under the FIFA umbrella (which you would need from USSF), you have no shot of being relevant. Simply put, ignoring USSF standards is about the most foolish action NASL could take. Next crazy idea from the delusionals?
I have always said, Canada is the answer, become D1 under the CSA, American clubs would still need waivers from the USSF, but if they can't go MLS, then USSF may not block their chance to be D1.
Not just Canada, although I'm partial to that, but by having teams in other soccer federations and being sanctioned there helps the cause. The PR islanders were sanctioned by FIFA in PR under PRFF as div1 not by the USSF's div2 standards for the rest of the american teams. Both ottawa and Edmonton are sanctioned as div2 by the CSA in Canada not the USSF. Just as TFC, whitecaps and impact are sanctioned as div1 by the CSA. For MLS to maintain Div1 status under USSF standards the Canadian teams do not count, nor do they/will they for NASL. If the NASL becomes a north american league that has teams in several football federations that are sanctioned as Div1 in their respective countries; it can push for its soccer bowl to have a spot in CONCACAF champions league without having to worry about the USSF alone. It could also strengthen their case for being div1 within USSF too. As a league the NASL should not focus on the USSF alone, and focus on becoming north american.
They need sanctioning from one federation that is USSF right now, but FIFA would not allow what you describe above (shit they probably would not allow what I described in my post). But this is not about telling the USSF to f-off, CSA and USSF (and the PR fed) would have to all agree and work together.
I realize we've morphed the OP from pro/rel to partly the NASL lawsuit against USSF but reality is so far NASL has used only rhetoric to back up their claims of pro/rel. If they were honest and sincere in that subject they would have engaged groups like the NPSL more genuinely when they publicly appealed to them about creating a pyramid. NASL may truthfully want a pyramid but it seems plain that it would have to be a pyramid of their own control without interlopers like the NPSL and MLS. And that's clearly never going to work.
The only action NOT being talked about is the only action that the NASL itself is failing to do: Make itself something that not only warrants, but forces this conversation. Until that happens ...