USL is making moves for an improved structure of soccer
Tampa, FL- The United Soccer Leagues, who are the lower division professional and national league below Major League Soccer, has announced they have named their new First Division League as USL Premier, and laid out their plans for a new USL Pyramid and enhancing that pyramid to add promotion/relegation within their professional leagues. They plan to begin this new setup in the 2028 season.
The structure of the USL Pyramid
The USL will have its professional pyramid ready to go as they will be looking for clubs from within USL Championship and or USL League One to make their intentions known to move toward the new first division league. The aim is to have twenty clubs in the first division when they begin in 2028.
“USL Premier is a defining piece of our long-term vision for the men’s game,” said Alec Papadakis, CEO of the United Soccer League. “We’ve built a multi-tier professional system that is both scalable and rooted in communities. By establishing a clear structure, we’re creating a strong foundation for clubs, players, and fans, and unlocking meaningful opportunities for stakeholders and investors as we continue to grow the game and prepare to introduce promotion and relegation.”
The USL Championship will remain as their second division league, and the aim is to have twenty clubs as well, and both
Premier and Championship Leagues will have a national table for each side. USL League One will remain as a third division league, but will remain as a regional league. To keep current rivalries within a local market or not too far away.
Possible clubs making the move
There have been rumblings or discussions that clubs like Rhode Island FC, Louisville City, Pittsburgh Riverhounds, and Sacramento Republic are looking to make this move to join the new First Division League by adding more seats to their current stadiums. While Louisville’s Lynn Family Stadium looks to have the proper capacity, The Republic is building a brand new downtown stadium.
The Riverhounds are planning an expansion of Highmark Stadium, Rhode Island FC has said they can expand Centerville Bank Stadium, and Detroit City has started the demolition of a former hospital to create their brand new stadium on the west side near the former location of Tigers Stadium, called Aluminifi Field.
Current issues facing USL
At this point, the USL has two issues that they need to explore or to finish the job of a certain agreement with their players. While they have big plans and big ideas, the current Collective Bargaining Agreement with the USL Players Union hasn’t been ratified, and they have already passed the due date toward the end of the 2025 calendar. When the announcements of both PRo/Rel and the new First Division league were announced, it threw theplayers and their union off guard. That’s why, during the start of the USL Championship title game between FC Tulsa and Pittsburgh, you saw the players wear those shirts about their CBA issues.
The second issue is that the USL must change its competition calendar from winter to fall, to the international calendar. Major League Soccer has already announced the move after the 2026 season, with a short season in early 2027, then a break for the summer until the new 27-28 season begins in late July/early August. If USL doesn’t make that change as well, then what good does Pro/Rel have, and what could it mean if the U.S. Open Cup is unbalanced with their schedules.
Personal thoughts
While it’s fantastic to see USL going towards the front foot and bringing in Pro/Rel into their Leagues, the problem still lies that this won’t involve USL League Two, and Pro/Rel will be inside a closed league. No one else will be involved. Not MLS, not NISA (National Independent Soccer association, not the NPSL (National Premier Soccer League), and they just played one season, The League For Clubs.
U.S. Soccer continues to allow all leagues to do their own thing and not govern the game the proper way. Continued in-fighting does this game and everyone in the American Soccer Community no favors. If we are to have Promotion and Relegation with all leagues, adopting the International Calendar and building more stadiums for the game, we can all achieve greatness, and it will make sense to help everyone and construct a true pyramid for all of us.
USL Championship News:
- U.S. Open Cup Announces Schedule for the First Round Proper
- NYCFC Falls in Stoppage Time to the Riverhounds
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