So USL Division One would basically be a direct competitor to the MLS?
Interesting. but then the US football (soccer) pyramid has always been a bit different.
I guess some those sizeable cities like Las Vegas, Detroit, Phoenix, San Antonio Indianapolis, Fort Worth, Jackonsville, Oklahoma, City, El Paso, Louisville, Memphis, Baltimore that don't have a MLS club, will be able to raise the funds to form clubs that yeah could rival their MLS counterparts. Google tells me those cities are all above 500K. Another potential new quality pro pathway for young Kiwi footballers.
Interesting. but then the US football (soccer) pyramid has always been a bit different.
I guess some those sizeable cities like Las Vegas, Detroit, Phoenix, San Antonio Indianapolis, Fort Worth, Jackonsville, Oklahoma, City, El Paso, Louisville, Memphis, Baltimore that don't have a MLS club, will be able to raise the funds to form clubs that yeah could rival their MLS counterparts. Google tells me those cities are all above 500K. Another potential new quality pro pathway for young Kiwi footballers.
Yep, once ratified it would be right up alongside the MLS, but crucially they would have beaten the MLS to the implementation of promotion/relegation system - a cornerstone of football pyramids from around the world. Something I think the mega-rich MLS owners would probably prefer to gatekeep given the vast difference in licensing expenses between the two.
San Diego FC paid $500 million ($850 million NZD) to buy an MLS licence going into this season. By comparison the USL is a more modest $20 million and about $5-10 million a tier further down.
The growth of the game in North America over the past few years, and looking ahead to the next 5-10 years, growth in the game is going to explode.
Sorry for going slightly off topic btw. 😅