The NPSL Founders Cup has had some turmoil already. California United Strikers bailed out back in March and was replaced by Napa Valley 1839 FC. This week there are reports that Cal FC will also pull out. We'll see what happens between now and the scheduled start in August.
Congrats to Paul Dalglish with another NPSL championship for Miami FC! Ain't no way there were over 5,200 in attendance (on Long Island, NY) , but it definitely was an entertaining match: .https://www.npsl.com/12773/
The 2019 NPSL Members Cup (formerly Founders Cup) is set to start despite some defections. This is the attempt by a few NPSL teams to get a full-season pro league going. It is not sanctioned by the USSF as a pro league and they don't intend to ask. All six teams in the initial short-season competition get going in the first three weeks. There may be streaming available for their games. Home team first, times are CT. Saturday, August 10 Milwaukee Torrent v. Napa Valley 1839 7:00 pm Chattanooga FC v. New York Cosmos 7:30 pm Saturday, August 17 New York Cosmos v. Milwaukee Torrent 6:00 pm Detroit City v. Chattanooga FC 6:30 pm Saturday, August 24 Napa Valley 1839 v. Detroit City 9:00 pm Chattanooga FC v. Michigan Stars 7:30 pm The Members Cup season ends on October 26. They may have some sort of playoffs.
2020 Roundup: 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 goes into its second season. No expansion teams have been announced. The season will probably start in late April again. USL Championship (35 teams): USA D2 EAST Atlanta United 2 (Atlanta United) Birmingham Legion Charleston Battery Charlotte Independence Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven (Chicago Fire) Loudoun United (DC United) Louisville City Memphis 901 Miami FC New York Red Bulls II (NY Red Bulls) North Carolina FC Philadelphia Union II (Philadelphia Union) Pittsburgh Riverhounds Saint Louis Sporting Kansas City II (Sporting Kansas City) Tampa Bay Rowdies WEST Austin Bold Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Colorado Rapids) El Paso Locomotive 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) San Diego Loyal Tacoma Defiance (Seattle Sounders) FC Tulsa New teams New names The season starts on March 6. Teams will play 34 games entirely within each conference. The top 10 teams in each conference make the playoffs. USL League One (12 teams): USA D3 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC FC Tucson (Phoenix Rising) Forward Madison FC (Minnesota United) Greenville Triumph SC Inter Miami USL (Inter Miami FC) New England Revolution II (New England Revolution) North Texas SC (FC Dallas) Orlando City B (Orlando City) Richmond Kickers South Georgia Tormenta FC Toronto FC II (Toronto FC) Union Omaha New teams The second season of this league starts on March 27. Teams will play 28 games in the regular season. 6 teams will make the playoffs in October. National Independent Soccer Association (8 teams): USA D3 California United Strikers FC Chattanooga FC Detroit City FC Los Angeles Force Michigan Stars FC Oakland Roots SC San Diego 1904 FC Stumptown Athletic This league had a short season in the fall of 2019. They will have another short season in the spring of 2020 and then start a Fall-Spring schedule in late 2020. Some more teams, including the NY Cosmos, are set to join in the Fall. USL League Two (72 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 Houston FC Mississippi Brilla Texas United (Grand Prairie, TX) The season starts in May. Teams play about 14 games mostly within their division. The number of teams may change. NPSL (96 teams) Again just the local division. South Region Lone Star Conference Austin United FC Dallas City FC Denton Diablos Fort Worth Vaqueros Katy 1895 Laredo Heat Midland-Odessa FC Tyler FC The season starts in May. Teams will play about 14 games. NPSL Founders Cup This competition was held in the Fall of 2019 but now appears to be defunct. Texas Premier Soccer League (5 teams) Armadillos FC (Houston, TX) Athletic Katy FC Celtic FC America (Houston, TX) Pachuca Tuzos (Houston, TX) West Houston Aquilas The TPSL is now a U23 league. Their season starts in June.
NPSL announced Coyotes FC has joined the league as an expansion team. The Temple, Texas club will begin competition in the South Region’s Lone Star Conference in 2020. https://www.frontrowsoccer.com/2020/03/04/new-team-coyotes-fc-joins-npsl/
Good news for central Texas footy fans then! I played against some Temple dudes and they were all quality. From that article, the team appears to be Colombian at it's core, which is a culture that does know their football! I found this interesting: “We believe the NPSL has participated in many successful club stories and beginnings,” Gonzalez said. “We also believe that this platform will give our local players a wonderful opportunity to expand their talents in a higher level and may even open other doors for them.” Home matches for Coyotes FC will be played at Holy Trinity Catholic High School in Temple, Texas. “Our team will bring good competition and experienced players to the conference,” Gonzalez said. “We will also bring the community of Central Texas that supports local soccer.”
2021 Roundup: Canadian Premier League (8 teams): Canada D1 Atletico Ottawa 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 actually went up to 8 teams last year with Atletico Ottawa joining and participating in the league. Their season is set to start on May 22. USL Championship (31 teams): USA D2 EAST Atlanta United 2 (Atlanta United) Birmingham Legion Charleston Battery Charlotte Independence Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven Loudoun United (DC United) Louisville City Memphis 901 Miami FC New York Red Bulls II (NY Red Bulls) Oklahoma City Energy Pittsburgh Riverhounds Sporting Kansas City II (Sporting Kansas City) Tampa Bay Rowdies FC Tulsa WEST Austin Bold Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Colorado Rapids) El Paso Locomotive LA Galaxy II (LA Galaxy) Las Vegas Lights (LAFC) New Mexico United Oakland Roots Orange County SC Phoenix Rising Real Monarchs SLC Rio Grande Valley (Houston Dynamo) Sacramento Republic San Antonio (NYCFC) San Diego Loyal Tacoma Defiance (Seattle Sounders) USL Championship has had some teams fold or drop down a level. There are only 9 owned or affiliated teams left at this level. The season starts on about May 1. Teams will play 32 games mostly within conference divisions. Playoff structure is TBA. USL League One (12 teams): USA D3 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC Fort Lauderdale CF (Inter Miami) FC Tucson (Phoenix Rising) Forward Madison FC (Chicago Fire) Greenville Triumph SC New England Revolution II (New England Revolution) North Carolina FC North Texas SC (FC Dallas) Richmond Kickers South Georgia Tormenta FC Toronto FC II (Toronto FC) Union Omaha The third season of this league starts on April 10. Full schedule and playoffs are TBA. National Independent Soccer Association (9-12 teams): USA D3 California United Strikers FC Chattanooga FC Detroit City FC Los Angeles Force Maryland Bobcats Michigan Stars FC New Amsterdam FC San Diego 1904 FC Stumptown Athletic NY Cosmos - on hiatus Chicago House AC - joining Fall of 2021 New Jersey Teamsterz - joining Fall of 2021 This league will have a tournament running April 13-25 at Chattanooga. The spring season will then start on May 1 with playoffs in July. The fall season will follow that. USL League Two (83 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 Houston FC Little Rock Rangers Mississippi Brilla Round Rock SC Texas United (Grand Prairie, TX) The season starts on May 12. Teams play 14 games within their division. NPSL (96 teams) Again just the local division. South Region Lone Star Conference Coyotes FC (Temple, TX) Denton Diablos FC Brownsville Fort Worth Vaqueros Irving FC Katy 1895 Laredo Heat Midland-Odessa FC The season starts on May 8. Teams will play 10 games. I'm not sure what is going with the UPSL around here.
The Canadian Premier League will start 2021 with all 8 teams in a bubble in Winnipeg from June 24 to July 24. They will then finish the season with games in their home markets. The schedule is set for 28 total games for each team. The CPL played a short season in 2020 entirely on Prince Edward Island.
Forge beat Halifax 2-0 in the championship final: https://canpl.ca/matchcentre/5mrmbr6tngz69e9qmsn1b845w/highlights
not much in here: https://markets.businessinsider.com...quires-upsl-football-club-fc-manni-1030651995 Chris was a contributing press analyst for Houston Dynamo. Prior to acquiring FC MANNI, he was a member of the Fontana Football Club in the UPSL for three years
The Dynamo Academy? It looks like the game is December 18 at 6 pm CST in San Antonio. https://premier.upsl.com/teams/houston-dynamo-academy
2022 Roundup: Canadian Premier League (8 teams): Canada D1 Atletico Ottawa Cavalry FC (Calgary, AB) FC Edmonton Forge FC (Hamilton, ON) HFX Wanderers (Halifax, NS) Pacific FC (Langford, BC) Valour FC (Winnipeg, MB) York United FC (Toronto, ON suburbs) The CPL is sticking with 8 teams this year. Their season starts on April 7 and runs to the end of October. USL Championship (27 teams): USA D2 EAST Atlanta United 2 (Atlanta United) Birmingham Legion Charleston Battery Detroit City (moved from NISA) Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven Loudoun United (DC United) Louisville City Memphis 901 Miami FC New York Red Bulls II (NY Red Bulls) Pittsburgh Riverhounds Tampa Bay Rowdies FC Tulsa WEST Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Colorado Rapids) El Paso Locomotive LA Galaxy II (LA Galaxy) Las Vegas Lights (LAFC) Monterey Bay FC (new) New Mexico United Oakland Roots Orange County SC Phoenix Rising Rio Grande Valley Sacramento Republic San Antonio San Diego Loyal USL Championship has had some movement but still 27 teams. The season runs March 12 to October. Teams will play 34 games mostly within conference divisions. Top 7 in each conference make the playoffs. USL League One (11 teams): USA D3 Central Valley FC (Fresno) (new) Charlotte Independence (moved from USL-C) Chattanooga Red Wolves SC FC Tucson (Phoenix Rising) Forward Madison FC (Chicago Fire) Greenville Triumph SC North Carolina FC Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC Richmond Kickers South Georgia Tormenta FC Union Omaha The fourth season of this league starts on April 2 and runs to October. They have had some new teams added this year but also had some defect to MLS Next Pro. National Independent Soccer Association (10 teams): USA D3 East AC Syracuse Pulse Chattanooga FC Flower City Union (Rochester, NY) Maryland Bobcats Michigan Stars FC West Albion San Diego Bay Cities FC (Redwood, CA) California United Strikers FC Los Angeles Force Valley United FC (Phoenix) The league has had a lot of changes. Their season this year will run April to October with playoffs after that. MLS Next Pro (21 teams): USA D3 Eastern Conference Northeast Divison New York City FC II Philadelphia Union II Rochester New York FC New England Revolution II Toronto FC II Central Division Chicago Fire II Columbus Crew 2 FC Cincinnati 2 Inter Miami CF II Orlando City B Western Conference Frontier Division Colorado Rapids 2 Houston Dynamo 2 Minnesota United FC 2 North Texas SC Sporting Kansas City II St. Louis City 2 Pacific Division Portland Timbers 2 Real Monarchs San Jose Earthquakes II Tacoma Defiance Whitecaps FC 2 This league starts off with 21 teams with the season running March 25 to September 25. Playoffs will follow. Teams play 24 games mostly within their division. USL League Two (111 teams) I'm not going to list them all but here is the local division Southern Conference Lone Star Division AC Houston Sur AHFC Royals Brazos Valley Cavalry Corpus Christi FC Houston FC Round Rock SC The league continues to grow with about 30 new teams. The season starts on May 1. Teams play 14 games within their division. NPSL (76 teams) Again just the local division. South Region Lone Star Conference Coyotes FC (Temple, TX) Denton Diablos FC Brownsville Fort Worth Vaqueros Irving FC Katy 1895 Laredo Heat Midland-Odessa Sockers FC This league has some teams sitting out the summer season. The season starts on May 1. Teams will play 10 games. There are other lower level leagues across the country. I'm sure there are other Texas teams in some of those leagues.
NewTex....Thanks for the excellent run down. Appreciate the time consuming work you put in on your informative posts...Do you have a day job?
When talking about the United States and Canada having over 100 professional soccer teams in play here in 2022, I like to think on just how far the sport has come in the time since the NASL first began in the late 60's, to Pele's arrival in the 70's and the NASL in its hay day, which got so many of us American boys and girls to start playing soccer at the grass roots level. Then unfortunately the very lean years for the sport in the mid and late 80's. Then USA1994 and MLS launching after the World Cup success and wave of enthusiasm for a pro soccer league to return at a Division-1 level. Again, Pele having a hand in pushing for us to get the '94 World Cup when so many others around the world did not want a nation with zero pro teams receiving the honor of hosting the sport if it can't even love the sport enough to have a top flight league. Now look at our soccer landscape! What a run it has been!!!
@CeltTexan - I did a personal calendar of the Dynamo, Dynamo2, and Dash for 2022 and the amount of games are overwhelming without yet including the USOC and the Dash regular season schedule. Never thought H-town would get this far in 17 years. Imagine how the local landscape will look in year 50 (2055).
Well done! Please share with all of us when possible. For sure....I just hope society is still here. Sigh.
ha! in a good way or bad way? im crazy for football and for H-town, so it would follow that im crazy for H-town Football.