We are excited to announce the USL is launching a Division One men’s professional league! This new league will bring top-tier soccer to more communities, elevate the game and create more opportunities for players, clubs and fans. Read more http://bit.ly/4hBS17Q
USL to launch a first division with PRO/REL. They will be a competing alternative to MLS. MLS better wake the hell up. USL brining in a proper system is EXACTLY the type of pressure MLS needs to make actual changes. Not slow changes to maximize billionaire profits.
A new rival for MLS? 🤔@tombogert, @Nicocantor1, @CharlieDavies9 and @TMeola1 discuss what a reported new Division 1 league from USL would mean for the domestic game ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/nEVqIG5pqk— Golazo America (@GolazoAmerica) February 13, 2025 A new rival for MLS? @tombogert ,@Nicocantor1 ,@CharlieDavies9 and @TMeola1 discuss what a reported new Division 1 league from USL would mean for the domestic game
That's a ridiculous map. New Mexico, Colorado Springs, Tampa Bay, Lexington, Las Vegas, and Pittsburgh cannot get to the 15k stadium requirement by 2027 in their current situations and a few others are extremely long shots.
And lasted 7 years with only 2 teams playing every season. 4 announced teams literally never played at all. The USSF was also probably much more desperate to help aid the development of 2nd and 3rd tier pro soccer 10-15 years ago. The stability of MLS, NWSL, and USL might work against trying to get waivers for a bunch of teams. The USL Super League got one waiver for this inaugural season, for Ft. Lauderdale to play in a smaller stadium, but I believe the additional stands are approved and already being built.
Interview (12 minutes) with USL president Paul McDonough (and former Inter Miami sporting director. It’s pretty insightful: 1) Calendar change not being considered at all 2) Pro/rel discussions naturally led to first division formation. Nothing has been solidified/approved on pro/rel, but this would be the first big step towards that. 3) He evaded the franchise/expansion fee question. No parachute payment because they don’t have a big TV deal. 4) I felt the “American player” part was most interesting. McDonough said USL will not be competing with MLS for expensive foreign brand-name players like Messi, Griezmann, De Bruyne. Reading between the lines, he’s basically saying there’s an opportunity to lure American players from MLS to USL as they are underpaid. It wouldn’t be the top American MLS players like Diego Luna or Jordan Morris… but decent players like Justen Glad or Bennie Kikanovic who are good but not getting paid top dollar. It will be interesting what MLS is thinking about. The cash transfer rule is already helping. There have been some discussion about a pro/rel setup for Next Pro. But USL has escalated the conversation and it’s clear they will be targeting underpaid American MLS players to increase quality.
The American player part really is interesting. We've already seen some interesting signings by USL teams in recent years and maybe that starts picking up if this first division league really does happen? Just last Friday Brent Kallman signed with Omaha in League One after 8 years in MLS. Obviously he's an older guy at the end of his career, but snagging those starters/rotation players that are underpaid relative to their role could really increase the level of play.
USL Division One: which clubs could be in, and can it succeed? On the USL's bold plan to compete with MLS at the D1 level John Morrissey Feb 13, 2025 In the report, seven teams were posited by The Athletic as potential founding members of a D1 USL competition. Those include Louisville City, Indy Eleven, the Sacramento Republic, Phoenix Rising, New Mexico United, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks, and the Las Vegas Lights. It’s a strong base to build upon, but what would it take to start a rules-compliant Division One league? The US Soccer Federation lays out a few requirements in its Pro League Standards: 12 member clubs at launch; 14 by the third year of operation 75% of clubs located in a metro area with a population exceeding 1,000,000 The capacity of each club’s stadium must exceed 15,000 Actively operating in at least three time zones The first two pre-conditions won’t trouble the USL, but the stadium requirements – and even the population requirements, league composition notwithstanding – are thornier. https://www.usltactics.com/p/usl-division-one-mls-pro-rel
I don't think D1 is over ambitious. Compare to EFL League Two. What can you do with average attendances of 6,000? Average payroll (players) $4 million Average attendance 6,000 Average ticket price (gameday) $28 Average season ticket price $350 8 out of 24 League Two clubs have capacity over 15,000. A US club would probably need to set aside $1 million extra a year for travel expenses. USL Championship (guesstimates) Average payroll $1 million ($40k per player) Average attendance 6,100 Average ticket price (gameday) $30 (guess) Average season ticket price $250 (guess)
Excuse me for asking and I'm sure it has been discussed and explained but I haven't had time to sift through the threads… I am curious to know when the USL goes to D1, if newer, deep pocketed investors are going to come in and either invest in the existing franchises or will they buy the teams outright from the current owners? If so, are there any names being floated yet?
I'm cackling at the suggestion that Miami FC (1,075 attended their home matches in 2024) would be considered Division 1 just because. Money flushed down the drain.
That's 1,075 tickets distributed, the actual number in the stadium is probably far lower. But if Riccardo Silva is willing to run them at a loss so be it. There are several teams in the Portuguese Primeira with attendances around 2,000.
Portugal's population: 10.6 million Miami metro population: 6.1 million (Not to mention that their next door competitor averages triple or quadruple amount of people) I'm sure if USL wants that lucrative media deal and other sponsors to join in, well good luck.
I missed any announcement about wanting a lucrative media deal. They're appear to be looking for a tier that operates slightly above USL-C.
After looking at the 1st and 4th posts here plus this video: Why does every D1 map include Colorado Springs? The metro area is well under 1 million and the Switchbacks stadium is 8k so half of 15k? Btw here is the USL map they are using:
The Colorado Springs media market is even smaller at about 400k. The standards do say that 75% of the league's teams must be based in markets with one million population but you don't want to start off at the minimum if you're going to introduce pro-rel. From https://www.usltactics.com/p/usl-division-one-mls-pro-rel
Detroit City FC reported losses of $1.23 million in 2021; $2.91 million in 2022; and $2.27 million in 2023. Same article says Oakland Roots lost $10.12 million in 2023 on about $4.19 million in revenue and other income, and $14.31 million in expenses.
More importantly, there's nothing about the stadium in Colorado Springs having been built with expansion in mind. Others, like San Antonio and Pittsburgh, were built with the possibility of being expanded over 15k.