And why? Guessing it was the from the first team you got into, but maybe not? What made that the “best” time to follow vs others?
The NASL indoor was before my time, but my experience with the MISL from 1982-1992 was the best. Second favorite was the CISL. Third favorite was the WISL (and I worked for the Utah Freezz in 2001). Then the PASL (2008-2014) MASL NPSL My least favorite was MISL 2 and MISL 3.
Not that today's players are bad, but the first MISL had the best talent of any of the indoor league's that came after it. It was also the most professionally run. It was easy to see that it was a major league. The others have all seemed to have a bit of a "minor league" feel to them.
What Kit said, but my Freshman year into the MISL was 1986-87, which was the Sidekicks run! HOOKED...
I voted in my own poll now. I’m sure there is a strong correlation in region + era one came of age in. If you’re in your 20s (especially in Baltimore or Philly), it’s probably the latter MISL 2 or 3. If you’re in your 30’s, it is probably (especially if you’re in Texas, California, Detroit, or DC) the CISL or (if in Cleveland, St. Louis, KC, or Harrisburg) NPSL. If you’re in your 40s or older (in any market), you probably prefer the original MISL. The first two listed were before my time, if I was to rank, I would go... 1. CISL. Major league owners. Great names/logos, great arenas, quality broadcasts, TSI Soccer, internationally capped players. 2. NPSL. A lot of the above, but reduced marks for MPS, lesser venues, and less of what major league ownership brings. 3. MSL. I came right at the end of this era, but thanks to YouTube broadcasts, I can give the nod to this over the MISL II/XSL era only due to the latter’s use of MPS and downgrade in venues (apart from Milwaukee, Detroit, and New Jersey).
CISL, as my Pittsburgh Stingers avatar suggests. The team had a very short lifespan, but it was long enough to imprint some great memories on a kid who was starved for options to consume the sport in the 90s. A local soccer team playing in a major league arena was a huge deal to me.