After Guillermo Barros Schelotto was relieved of his duties late last year, Chris Klein and Dennis te Klose held a press conference to address the team's failures for the last 3-4 years since Bruce Arena left on his ill-fated mission to try and help the U.S. National Team qualify for World Cup 2018. One of the things Chris Klein stated in that press conference was that Los Dos would remain in the USL Championship because it was a good level for the kids. Fast forward to June 21st, it was announced that the MLS Reserve League is back. Major League Soccer Launches New Professional League Major League Soccer to launch development league in 2022 Will Los Dos remain in the USL Championship or join this Reserve League? I have a feeling that this new Reserve League will be like the old one, which seemed to be an exercise in futility. For that reason alone, I'd like to see Los Dos stay in the USL Championship.
I hope we stay in the USL too. Some of our Los Dos players are a year or two away from being with the main team (or this year in an emergency) and it would be good if they had experience playing against grown men.
If the new league is a developmental league, maybe a notch below USL Championship, could we field a team there too. Los Tres?
Think about European leagues, many have development "youth" leagues, which are separate from lower divisions.
Corner of the Galaxy reports that it's unlikely LosDos will leave right away, but they end up doing it eventually as the league develops. Galaxy are happy with the level of competition in USL Championship. They don't want to see that go away or drop. And they are very happy with the development they've gotten out of G2 over last 2 years. #LAGalaxy #MLS— Corner Of The Galaxy (@GalaxyPodcast) June 22, 2021 But IMO, they seem to be embracing the idea that MLS Next is ambitious and could pay off down the road. Wait and See for the time being. #LAGalaxy #MLS— Corner Of The Galaxy (@GalaxyPodcast) June 22, 2021
Yeah, I'm curious about how this one will shake out. I actually like the USL model since it's an actual league with fans and stakes and some veteran pros. The youth leagues in Europe are a pretty unremarkable level (for example, Haji Wright demolished at Schalke's youth team). But logistically it'll end up being a no-brainer for most clubs, I think. The contracting between USL / MLS (two separately leagues) makes the whole loaning b/w clubs situation a hassle that "MLS Next" won't really have to deal with (and of course, many MLS teams only have affiliates; they don't actually own the USL squad like we do, complicating matters). It'll allow 2nd teams to function more like "true" reserve teams.
I'd like to add to the discussion by stating that the USL has gradually become a regional league, which Los Dos will benefit from greatly. Our squad faces these teams in the Pacific Division: Oakland Phoenix Las Vegas San Diego Orange County Sacramento (who likely aren't making the jump to MLS) That's six opponents within a relatively close distance; Oakland and Sacramento are an hour away by plane and the others are driving distance by bus. Not a lot of wear and tear on our players. I left out the Tacoma Defiance because sources indicate that they'll join the Reserve League.
An update: From The Athletic: USL wants to switch to a Fall-Spring calendar. Also mentioned: An unnamed source said that Los Dos will not play in USL-C beyond 2022. Hopefully, roster rules will be established that allows every person on the 2023 Los Dos squad to be eligible for selection if our first choice starters aren't available to play.
The schedule switch would better explain why MLS wants to restart a reserve league of its own. The whole situation didn’t make much sense to me until now.