Ridiculousness. with MLS soon to be at 25 and USL at 33 (+ any NASL survivors) you can be looking at 60 teams in the 1st and 2nd division of the pyramid. that's enough teams to field MLS, MLS 2, and MLS 3. heck, even if MLS hates the idea of pro/reg you can experiment with it on a MLS 2 and 3 level. it's not like there's any ad or tv drop-off when dealing with current USL markets.
Yes, they could do that. But they aren't going to. MLS is headed for 30ish teams with East and West conferences covering the country. Why relegate any of them? The USL is heading for as many teams as they can get. They are split into East and West that have virtually no interaction now. Once they get to 36 teams they have already said they are going to three conferences that will be pretty much the same. That will likely happen next year with 3 more expansion teams already in the pipeline plus some more MLS2 teams coming on line. And they are starting USL3 in 2019 that will do the same thing. Start with a regional league (it looks like in the Southeast) and then grow from there. Why would they split things vertically when they can do it horizontally?
Here is an interview with the USL president published today. Mostly things that I said but with a bit more about growth and structure. https://www.fourfourtwo.com/us/feat...ion-relegation-division-3-us-soccer-president As far as Promotion/Relegation, they say they are looking at it as an eventual possibility between DII and DIII but with lots of development first.
stop right there tho... they'll consider rule changes and jumped on VAR but won't consider pro-reg. that's part of my issue. fans/owners/USSF can fathom and accept VAR but can't conceive pro/reg on a limited basis.
Why should I stop? I could be wrong but it looks pretty clear to me that MLS and USL see regional division as a better approach than promotion/relegation. Just because people are open to change of one sort doesn't imply that they are open to all sorts of change. Or that they will decide to do it? Who says that MLS or USL "can't conceive" of it? Obviously they can conceive of it but have chosen not to do it. If I chose to have tacos tonight for dinner that doesn't mean that I didn't conceive of having steak. I just chose differently. Do you have evidence from things that MLS or USL have said that would lead you to think they are going to change on this subject? Why do you keep saying "pro/reg"? Relegation seems to be more reasonably abbreviated "rel" rather than "reg".
Hey! Toyota Park, Toyota Stadium, and Toyota Field were bad enough. http://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/885247?referrer_id=2349190 “UAB is proud to partner with Legion FC and the USL in support of this important addition to Birmingham’s growing sports and entertainment landscape,” said UAB President Ray L. Watts. “We look forward to welcoming Blazer and Legion soccer fans to BBVA Compass Field where they will enjoy the facility expansion and enhancements now approved by the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees.” Birmingham Legion is joining USL next year and they will be playing at BBVA Compass Field at UAB. BBVA Compass Park can't be far behind.
Compass Bank was based in Birmingham, was the first large Bank BBVA bought in the US. If you are a BBVA customer, depending upon what products you have from them, a lot of back office functions in Alabama
I think pro rel here is silly for the stability and fiscal sanity reasons he mentioned, and I also am bemused by the attempts to mimick Europe and other bigger leagues at a time when they are constraining spending with financial fair play, imposing regulations about what infrastructure and finances a promoted team needs to have, and otherwise not using a merit system with no spending caps, either. They are converging our direction on stadia, spending, and even regulating pro/rel where if you don't have the right stadium or ownership teams in France and Scotland have earned it but not been allowed. But one other thing not being considered here is practical reality. USL1 is now littered with MLS minor league sides and affiliates. Not even Germany or Spain lets the II teams promote up all the way. And conversely does MLS want its II teams getting demoted, altering the level at which development players are tested? Unlike Germany or Spain, I think we are more interested in keeping the level of play consistent rather than having a pure competition. Not unlike how you can win AA baseball leagues, and you're AA next season. Not because it reflects on team quality, or is a fair expression of merit, but because they want a AAA team, a AA team, etc. It's a progression setup and they want a AA team for players to prove they can play AA ball, before they are transferred up to a distinct team they own at the next level. The players get promoted or relegated, not the team. I mean, people can sell this NASL free market dream -- at the same time that league circles the drain -- but the present process in practical terms is moving towards a MLS of 20-30 teams paired with a second division USL of similar size where pretty much everyone is an affiliate. There is a big financial and attendance gap up to MLS, and those teams want stability. And then USL is increasingly being set up in significant part to befit MLS' development concepts, with primary affiliates in one division and PDL U-23 types in another. That's what the Dynamo has done and that's where this is headed. Short of an antitrust verdict I don't think it matters what NASL thinks FIFA meant or what pro/rel advocates theorize. It's trending towards a Xerox of MLB and MiLB, with the structure dictated by what MLS wants, with each team having affiliates at each level, and with the players progressing up or down as opposed to the teams. Now, there may be some independents, particularly as the divisions descend. But as a general matter this is headed towards the primary bulk of each division being MLS affiliates, and the structure being done to suit MLS' idea of where to slot the development progression into the available pyramid levels. MLS or any other major league in the USA would not want it where one year you're playing minor league pros to hone your skills, but the next season if the team sucks you're in a U-23 laden division with basically semipros and college players. That's not saying the right PDL team couldn't run with a USL side. That's saying whether they could may be besides the point to the bigger structuring concept.
Chattanooga FCVerified account @ChattanoogaFC Feb 14 ANNOUNCEMENT: We are proud to host the First Annual American Soccer Summit on March 10. Invitation-only, extremely limited space, but lots of soccer... Read more + request an invitation here: http://www.chattanoogafc.com/american-soccer-summit/ …pic.twitter.com/fE09oitZ2P
Every other country is laughing at us.... can't even get lower level soccer right. How will ever develop a top league?
NASL was a muddled concept. You can't run a "no limits" minor league, it makes no economic sense. To the extent they tapped into the Eurosnob, pro-rel, no cap, etc., the niche for that was spend at our level or more and challenge the MLS socialized model of managed competition. Then you might make the money to justify and repay transfer fees, big salaries, etc. They instead were trying to compete with USL without normal minor league restraints. They sold themselves as liberated and paid some salaries and some six figure transfer fees. Problem is teams afford that by putting tens of thousands in the stands at $25 or more a pop. That's how you can pay for players. What they were doing, while superficially appealing to the snob element, had no basis in sustainable economic reality. You're competing with USL with smaller crowds paying more for players. The sales pitch of "no limits" is less effective when the players you're willing to buy mostly wouldn't make MLS teams. Who's going to pay very much to watch that? How long can that last? USSF and MLS gave them a push with the vertical integration to USL and the whole D2 saga. We'll see if either ends up paying anyone in court for that. MLS has had antitrust issues before. But NASL is dead and depending how the case goes, it will just go to someone's bank account. Hell, I'd be curious who's even paying the lawyers. How much personal cash do they want to burn to make their dead league's point. It may just die that way. I think this is not great optics but there's a whole USL structure built up that is not having much of a team turnover problem. I think they even nominally have their reserve team issues sorted, ie, how to get playing time to MLS reserves and prospects. The real issue I see is what I pointed out on the academy page, that at least for us, there is barely a trickle in the pipeline. I don't know what's true of the rest but we're spending something on an academy that barely produces anyone.
Austin has confirmed that they are going ahead with joining USL in 2019 despite the Columbus to Austin MLS possibility. They will be playing in a soccer stadium at the Circuit of the Americas racetrack. http://www.statesman.com/sports/soc...occer-league-for-2019/mcTHfbFmheJCxKdkpczl4L/ Today El Paso was also confirmed as joining USL in 2019. They will be owned by the group that owns the El Paso Chihuahuas minor league baseball team. They also hold a minority interest in the FC Juarez soccer team in Liga Ascenso just across the border. http://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/891979?referrer_id=2333971
COTA needs programming between races to keep cash coming in, and may even be in trouble if they don't keep getting state special event funding and F1 races. To call it a soccer stadium is probably indulgent as I assume it will be a big rectangle of grass with cheap stands around it, very basic, and the first event is going to be the development football short league. It could hold football, rugby, etc., and also soccer. It will be minimal and in another town because Austin (city) doesn't want to pay for stadium-anything not involving UT. Then you have to convince Austinites to drive further than House to watch soccer. The USL Aztex drew less than 4k a game for 2 seasons before being moved to Orlando (now City in MLS), so the idea a 4k stadium would be expanded for USL crowds is amusingly hyperbolic. I think it's all leverage games. Austin would have been no one's first expansion choice. It may be an explicit "out" in the Columbus ownership deal but that may be because Austin is such "unspoiled" soccer territory there is no existing stadium or second division team to compete with ambitions. If you tried this game with San Antonio, they just look at you funny and say we have a stadium and a team, and you can buy that if you want to try MLS. Anyhow, I think COTA needs regular business so they'll roll the dice Precourt is just holding Columbus hostage and that a deal gets worked out to stay. Worst case they slap together some half baked stadium and get an expansion rugby team or something.
El Paso deserves a team though if it plays in the baseball stadium it was just an excuse to sell tickets on non-baseball nights.
USL news for 2019. Hartford Athletic was announced today as another new team starting play in 2019. https://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/933307 That means that Austin, Birmingham, El Paso, Hartford, Memphis, and New Mexico will all be joining in 2019. Austin may change depending on what happens with Columbus but for now they are in. I don't think we will hear about any more new USL teams for next year. Oakland and Chicago are supposedly starting in 2021. Remember that Cincinnati is moving up to MLS in 2019 and Nashville in 2020 although they may still run MLS2 teams in USL. USL is also starting their new D3 league next year. The announced teams so far for that are: South Georgia Tormenta FC Tucson Greenville, SC Madison, WI Toronto FC II (dropping down from USL) Orlando City B (currently on hiatus from USL) Several more announcements are expected this month for D3. They say they will start with 12-14 teams divided into two conferences. It will be interesting to see if any more current USL teams drop down into this league.
FC Dallas is starting a developmental team in USL-1 (D3) in 2019. https://www.fcdallas.com/post/2018/...unced-team-name-fc-dallas-usl-league-one-club It has been named North Texas Soccer Club. It will play mostly at Toyota Stadium but also at some other locations in the Metroplex. I'll do a round-up of all the lower divisions for 2019 soon.
2019 Roundup: NASL Dead. The remaining teams are apparently going to be involved with the NPSL again this year. Canadian Premier League (7 teams): Canada D1 Cavalry FC (Calgary, AB) FC Edmonton Forge FC (Hamilton, ON) HFX Wanderers (Halifax, NS) Pacific FC (Langford, BC) Valour FC (Winnipeg, MB) York 9 FC (Toronto, ON suburbs) The CPL will run its inaugural season starting in April. More information later. These teams are all expected to take part in the 2019 Canadian Championship. USL Championship (36 teams): USA D2 EAST Atlanta United 2 (Atlanta United) Bethlehem Steel (Philadelphia Union) Birmingham Legion Charleston Battery Charlotte Independence Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven Loudoun United (DC United) Louisville City Memphis 901 Nashville SC New York Red Bulls II (NY Red Bulls) North Carolina FC Ottawa Fury (Montreal Impact) Pittsburgh Riverhounds Saint Louis Swope Park Rangers (Sporting Kansas City) Tampa Bay Rowdies WEST Austin Bold Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Colorado Rapids) El Paso Locomotive Fresno FC (Vancouver Whitecaps) LA Galaxy II (LA Galaxy) Las Vegas Lights New Mexico United Oklahoma City Energy Orange County Blues (LAFC) Phoenix Rising Portland Timbers 2 (Portland Timbers) Real Monarchs SLC Reno 1868 (San Jose Earthquakes) Rio Grande Valley (Houston Dynamo) Sacramento Republic San Antonio (NYCFC) Seattle Sounders FC 2 (Seattle Sounders) Tulsa Roughnecks (Chicago Fire) The season starts on March 9. Teams will play 34 games entirely within each conference. The top 10 teams in each conference make the playoffs. USL League One (10 teams): USA D3 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC FC Tucson Forward Madison FC Greenville Triumph SC Lansing Ignite FC North Texas SC (FC Dallas) Orlando City B (Orlando City) Richmond Kickers South Georgia Tormenta FC Toronto FC II (Toronto FC) The inaugural season of this league starts on March 29. Teams will play 28 games in the regular season. 4 teams will make the playoffs in October. USL League Two (formerly PDL) (74 teams) I'm not going to list them all but here is the local division Southern Conference Mid South Division AHFC Royals (Houston, TX) Brazos Valley Cavalry (Bryan, TX) (Houston Dynamo) Corpus Christi FC FC Cleburne Houston FC Oklahoma City Energy U23 Texas United (Grand Prairie, TX) The season starts in May. Teams play about 14 games mostly within their division. NPSL (92 teams) Again just the local division. South Region Lone Star Conference FC Brownsville Fort Worth Vaqueros Houston Dutch Lions Houston Regals Katy 1895 Laredo Heat Midland-Odessa FC Shreveport Rafters Tyler FC Denton Diablos The season starts in May. Teams will play about 12 games. NPSL Founders Cup (11 teams) EAST Chattanooga FC Detroit City FC Miami FC Miami United FC Milwaukee Torrent New York Cosmos WEST ASC San Diego Cal FC (Thousand Oaks, CA) California United Strikers FC (Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) FC Arizona (Mesa, AZ) Oakland Roots This new competition is the prelude to a full season professional league starting in 2020. Some of these teams will participate in the NPSL/UPSL regular season and then have a league/tournament from August through November of 2019. Texas Premier Soccer League (6 teams) Celtic FC America (Houston, TX) Austin Real Cuauhtemoc Bay Area Hurricanes (Houston, TX) Houston Regals Twin Cities FC (Eagle Pass, TX) Houston Fury The TPSL is apparently now a U23 league. Their championship game is January 26, 2019 between Hurricanes FC and Pachuca FC. I don't see Pachuca FC on their team list either. If anyone has current information on this league that would be appreciated.
I didn't know this exists: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_Arena_Soccer_League And a couple MLS retirees are joining it: https://sbisoccer.com/2019/01/report-landon-donovan-to-come-out-of-retirement-join-masl
The Seattle Sounders 2 USL-C team is rebranding to Tacoma Defiance. https://www.soundersfc.com/post/201...w-brand-identity-and-jersey-front-partnership The team will continue to be operated by the Tacoma Rainiers baseball team front office on the operations side with the Sounders providing the coaches and players. This is similar to the Dynamo/RGV deal although, since the Sounders practice facility is located in Tukwilla roughly halfway between Seattle and Tacoma, they will likely continue to train as a single unit. The Tacoma Defiance will now have their own shirt sponsor, Tacoma-based MultiCare Health System. The team started paying at the Rainiers' stadium in Tacoma last year and will stay there until the new soccer stadium is completely next door. The NWSL Seattle Reign are also moving to Tacoma to play at the same stadium and will be known as Reign FC.
An addition to the lower league list. I'll add them to the next update once they have more teams/information. http://midfieldpress.com/2019/02/16/breaking-nisa-sanctioned-by-ussf-to-start-in-august/ NISA needs 8 teams to be fully sanctioned. Right now they have Atlanta, Charlotte, New England and Philadelphia. San Diego 1904 which was a one-time NASL expansion team is expected to join. According to this article Rhode Island, Daytona Beach and Los Angeles will also have teams.
The inaugural 2019 Canadian Premier League schedule is out: http://canpl.ca/schedule They are going to do two seasons running April 27 to July 2 and then July 5 to October 19. Teams will play 10 games in the Spring Season and then 18 games in the Fall. The points leader for each half will meet in a championship final in late October. If the same team wins both seasons then the team with the next highest aggregate point total will play in the Final.
2019 start dates for the non-MLS leagues: March 8 USL-Championship (2nd Division) March 29 USL-League One (3rd Division) April 13 NWSL (Womens 1st Division) April 27 Canadian Premier League . May 3 USL-League Two (former PDL) May 5 NPSL- South Region August 10 NPSL Founders Cup August ?? NISA (3rd Division)
The Canadian Premier League kicks off this weekend. Home team first, times are CT. I don't know if there is any way to watch these games in the U.S. Saturday, April 27 Forge FC (Hamilton) v. York 9 FC (Toronto) 12:00 pm Sunday, April 28 Pacific FC (Langford, BC) v. HFX Wanderers FC (Halifax, NS) 6:00 pm Valour FC (Winnipeg), Cavalry FC (Calgary), and FC Edmonton will start in week 2. The spring CPL season runs until July 1. The Fall season runs July 6 to October 19. The two season winners will meet in a Final game in late October.