Professional soccer league in the United States and Canada
Football league
MLS Next Pro (MLSNP ) is a men's professionalsoccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated withMajor League Soccer (MLS). It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and now comprises 27 reserve sides of MLS clubs and 2 independent clubs. MLS Next Pro is classified as part of the third tier of theUnited States soccer league system .[ 1]
On June 21, 2021,Major League Soccer announced the creation of a new professional league which would begin play in 2022. MLS has applied to theUnited States Soccer Federation for the league to be sanctioned as a Division III professional league, the same level currently occupied byUSL League One and theNational Independent Soccer Association and one level below theUSL Championship .[ 2] [ 2] USL Championship orUSL League One initially planned to move those sides to MLS Next Pro by 2023.D.C. United 's formerly owned-and-operatedreserve team was sold to independent buyers.[ 2]
The inaugural match of MLS Next Pro was played on March 25, 2022, atHermann Stadium in St. Louis.St. Louis City 2 defeatedRochester New York FC 2–0.Wan Kuzain scored the first ever goal in the 20th minute.[ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
The league makes use of unique rules such as all regular season draws being decided bypenalty shootouts and the addition of concussion substitutions. On July 6, 2022, new rules for the league were introduced in the middle of the season. This included an off-field treatment rule meant to curbgamesmanship and timewasting and a new rule for red card suspensions: The suspension a player gets for getting a red card or two yellow cards in the same game will be served by the player when next playing against the same opponent.[ 6]
The league runs from spring to fall with the season kicking off in March. Each team plays 28 regular-season games, followed by an 14-team playoff tournament. The league is divided into Eastern and Western Conferences.[ 7]
Unlike Major League Soccer, MLS Next Pro does not feature a salary cap and player contracts are held by the teams, not the league. Team rosters can have up to 24 professional players (not including amateur academy players) with a maximum of seven international players.[ 8] [ 9]
Team Location Stadium Capacity Founded Joined Head coach Affiliate Eastern Conference Northeast Division Chicago Fire FC II Bridgeview, Illinois SeatGeek Stadium 20,000[ 10] 2021 2022 Mike Matkovich Chicago Fire FC Columbus Crew 2 Columbus, Ohio Historic Crew Stadium 19,968[ 11] 2021 2022 Kelvin Jones Columbus Crew FC Cincinnati 2 Highland Heights, Kentucky NKU Soccer Stadium 1,000[ 12] 2021 2022 Tyrone Marshall FC Cincinnati New England Revolution II Foxborough, Massachusetts Gillette Stadium 20,000[ 13] 2019 2022 Richie Williams New England Revolution New York City FC II New York City, New York Belson Stadium 2,168[ 14] 2021 2022 Matt Pilkington New York City FC New York Red Bulls II Montclair, New Jersey MSU Soccer Park at Pittser Field 5,000[ 15] 2015 2023 Ibrahim Sekagya New York Red Bulls Philadelphia Union II Chester, Pennsylvania Subaru Park 18,500[ 16] 2015 2022 Ryan Richter Philadelphia Union Toronto FC II Toronto, Ontario York Lions Stadium 4,000[ 17] 2014 2022 Gianni Cimini Toronto FC Southeast Division Atlanta United 2 Kennesaw, Georgia Fifth Third Stadium 8,318 2017 2023 Steve Cooke Atlanta United FC Carolina Core FC High Point, North Carolina Truist Point 4,500[ 18] 2022 2024 Donovan Ricketts Independent Chattanooga FC Chattanooga, Tennessee Finley Stadium 20,412 2009 2024 Chris Nugent Independent Crown Legacy FC Matthews, North Carolina Sportsplex at Matthews 5,000[ 19] 2022 2023 José Tavares Charlotte FC Huntsville City FC Huntsville, Alabama Joe W. Davis Stadium 6,000[ 20] 2022 2023 Chris O'Neal Nashville SC Inter Miami CF II Fort Lauderdale, Florida Chase Stadium 21,550[ 21] 2019 2022 Cristian Ledesma Inter Miami CF Orlando City B Kissimmee, Florida Osceola County Stadium 5,300[ 22] 2015 2022 Manuel Goldberg Orlando City SC Western Conference Frontier Division Austin FC II Austin, Texas Parmer Field 1,000 2022 2023 Brett Uttley Austin FC Colorado Rapids 2 Denver, Colorado Dick's Sporting Goods Park (Commerce City ) Denver Soccer Stadium 18,061 2021 2022 Erik Bushey Colorado Rapids Houston Dynamo 2 Houston, Texas SaberCats Stadium 3,200[ 23] 2021 2022 Marcelo Santos Houston Dynamo FC Sporting Kansas City II Kansas City, Missouri Swope Soccer Village 3,500[ 24] 2015 2022 István Urbányi Sporting Kansas City Minnesota United FC 2 Saint Paul, Minnesota Allianz Field National Sports Center (Blaine ) 19,400[ 25] [ 26] 2021 2022 Jeremy Hall Minnesota United FC North Texas SC Arlington, Texas Choctaw Stadium 48,114[ 27] 2018 2022 John Gall FC Dallas St. Louis City 2 St. Louis, Missouri Energizer Park 22,423 2021 2022 David Critchley St. Louis City SC Pacific Division Los Angeles FC 2 Fullerton, California Titan Stadium 10,000[ 28] 2023 2023 Junior Gonzalez Los Angeles FC Portland Timbers 2 Portland, Oregon Providence Park [ 29] 25,218[ 30] 2014 2022 Serge Dinkota Portland Timbers Real Monarchs Herriman, Utah Zions Bank Stadium 5,000[ 31] 2014 2022 Mark Lowry Real Salt Lake The Town FC Moraga, California Saint Mary's Stadium 5,500[ 32] 2021 2022 Dan DeGeer San Jose Earthquakes Tacoma Defiance Tukwila, Washington Starfire Sports Complex 4,500[ 33] 2014 2022 Hervé Diese Seattle Sounders FC Ventura County FC Thousand Oaks, California William Rolland Stadium 2,000[ 34] 2014 2023 Matt Taylor LA Galaxy Whitecaps FC 2 Burnaby, British Columbia Swangard Stadium 5,228[ 35] 2021 2022 Ricardo Clark Vancouver Whitecaps FC
League member Former member Future member Other leagues
Individual game highest attendance [ edit ] Home team Score Away team Attendance Stadium Date Ref 1 St. Louis City 2 5–0 Tacoma Defiance 12,022 CityPark October 6, 2024 [ 43] 2 St. Louis City 2 2–0 Sporting Kansas City II 10,671 CityPark June 23, 2024 [ 44] 3 St. Louis City 2 4–1 LA Galaxy II 9,626 CityPark September 17, 2023 [ 45] 4 St. Louis City 2 4–0 Real Monarchs 9,489 CityPark August 6, 2023 [ 46] 5 The Town FC 0–0 Austin FC II 5,500 PayPal Park April 20, 2024 [ 47]
MLS Next Pro Cup Playoffs [ edit ] Home team Score Away team Attendance Stadium Date Ref 1 North Texas SC 3–2 Philadelphia Union II 7,700 Toyota Stadium Nov 9, 2024 [ 48] 2 Columbus Crew 2 1–3 Austin FC II 7,500 Lower.com Field October 22, 2023 3 Columbus Crew 2 4–1 St. Louis City 2 7,446 Lower.com Field October 8, 2022 [ 49] 4 St. Louis City 2 0–2 San Jose Earthquakes II 5,227 CityPark October 1, 2023 [ 50] 5 Philadelphia Union II 4–0 Columbus Crew 2 4,727 Subaru Park November 2, 2024 [ 51]
Key MLS Next Pro Cup Conference Final Conference Semifinal Otherwise, it is a previous knockout round
^ Straus, Brian (December 6, 2021)."MLS Next Pro Adds Another Element to U.S. Soccer's Ever-Evolving Lower Club Tier" .Sports Illustrated . RetrievedDecember 6, 2021 . ^a b c Bonagura, Kyle (June 21, 2021)."Major League Soccer to launch development league in 2022" .ESPN . RetrievedJune 21, 2021 . ^ Schneider, Jacob (March 24, 2022)."St Louis CITY2 hosts RNY FC in Inaugural MLS NEXT Pro Match" .mlsnextpro.com . RetrievedMarch 25, 2022 . ^ "Match Report: stlvsroc 03-25-2022" .mlsnextpro.com . March 25, 2022. RetrievedMarch 25, 2022 .^ Schneider, Jacob (March 25, 2022)."Historic Day in St. Louis as CITY2 beats RNY FC to begin the inaugural MLS NEXT Pro campaign" .mlsnextpro.com . RetrievedMarch 25, 2022 . ^ "MLS NEXT PRO IMPLEMENTING TWO NEW COMPETITION RULES FOR SECOND HALF OF INAUGURAL SEASON" .MLS Next Pro . July 6, 2022. RetrievedJuly 7, 2022 .^ "MLS NEXT Pro unveils 21 clubs for inaugural season starting March 2022" .mlssoccer . December 6, 2021. RetrievedDecember 7, 2021 .^ Rueter, Jeff (January 14, 2022)."MLS Next Pro to have no salary cap, other key differences from MLS structure, sources say" .The Athletic . RetrievedJanuary 16, 2022 . ^ "2022 MLS NEXT PRO Roster Guidelines" .MLS Next Pro . January 31, 2022. RetrievedFebruary 1, 2022 .^ "Fun Within Reach" . Toyota Park. Archived fromthe original on December 30, 2018. RetrievedSeptember 10, 2023 .^ "Historic Crew Stadium" .www.ColumbusSports.org . Greater Columbus Sports Commission. RetrievedSeptember 10, 2023 .^ "NKU Soccer Stadium" .Northern Kentucky University Athletics . RetrievedSeptember 10, 2023 .^ "Gillette Stadium Overview" .revolutionsoccer.net . March 8, 2012. Archived fromthe original on October 5, 2013. RetrievedOctober 20, 2013 .^ "BELSON STADIUM" .www.RedStormSports.com . St. John's University. RetrievedSeptember 13, 2023 .^ "MSU Soccer Park" .www.MontclairAthletics.com . Montclar State University. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ "About Talen Energy Stadium" .philadelphiaunion.com .Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. RetrievedJune 15, 2011 .^ "York Lions Stadium Conversion" .www.YorkU.CA . York University. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ "Ball Park A-Z" .High Point Rockers . 2019. RetrievedSeptember 25, 2019 .^ "Mecklenburg County Sportsplex at Matthews" .www.MatthewsNC.gov . Town of Matthews, NC. RetrievedSeptember 10, 2023 .^ Brazelton, Dave (May 19, 2023)."Huntsville businesses benefit from new Joe Davis Stadium" .WAAY 31 ABC . Huntsville, AL. RetrievedSeptember 13, 2023 . ^ "Inter Miami CF Announces Increased Stadium Capacity Ahead of 2024 Season Due to Unprecedented Demand" (Press release). Inter Miami CF. January 31, 2024. RetrievedJanuary 31, 2024 .^ "Osceola County Stadium" .www.OHPark.com . RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ "Sabercats Stadium" .www.HoustonSabercats.com . Houston Sabercats. RetrievedSeptember 13, 2023 .^ "Swope Soccer Village" .KCParks.org . Kansas City Parks & Recreation. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ "Stadium Facts" .www.MNUFC.com . Minnesota United. RetrievedSeptember 13, 2023 .^ "NSC Stadium" .^ Sullivan, T. R. (October 30, 2012)."Rangers Resume Fan-Focused Park Renovations" .Major League Baseball Advanced Media . Archived fromthe original on May 10, 2013. RetrievedMarch 7, 2013 . ^ "Titan Stadium" . RetrievedOctober 8, 2018 .^ Timbers2, Portland."Portland Timbers2" .Portland Timbers2 . RetrievedAugust 30, 2023 . {{cite web }}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link )^ "Providence Park Stadium" .www.Portland.gov . City of Portland. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ Meyer, Taran (April 25, 2018)."Zions Bank Stadium Provides Unique Soccer Experience" .www.RSL.com . Real Salt Lake. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 . ^ "Facilities" .Saint Mary's Athletics . RetrievedMarch 11, 2024 .^ "Outdoor Fields" .www.StarFireSports.com . Star Fire Sports. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2023 .^ "William Rolland Stadium" . RetrievedMarch 16, 2024 .^ "Swangard Stadium – Home of your Whitecaps" .Vancouver Whitecaps FC . Archived fromthe original on April 11, 2009. RetrievedOctober 16, 2009 .^ "Seven MLS Affiliated Clubs To Join MLS Next Pro In 2023" .mlsnextpro . August 4, 2022. RetrievedAugust 6, 2022 .^ "CONNECTICUT AWARDED MLS NEXT PRO EXPANSION TEAM" .CTUnited.com . Connecticut United. RetrievedJanuary 9, 2024 .^ "Cleveland's MLS NEXT Pro Team" .Cleveland Pro Soccer . 2023. RetrievedDecember 20, 2023 .^ Reuter, Jeff (March 10, 2023)."Jamie Vardy's U.S. club Rochester New York FC ceases operations" .The Athletic . RetrievedSeptember 26, 2023 . ^ Tellitud, Jesus (October 8, 2022)."Columbus Crew 2 hoist MLS NEXT Pro Cup with 4-1 win over St Louis CITY2" . MLS Next Pro. RetrievedOctober 8, 2022 . ^ "Austin FC II Defeats Defending Champion Columbus Crew 2 To Win 2023 MLS NEXT Pro Cup" . MLS Next Pro. October 22, 2022. RetrievedOctober 22, 2022 .^ Snipes, Tyler (November 9, 2022)."New champs! North Texas SC win 2024 MLS NEXT Pro Cup" . MLS Next Pro. RetrievedNovember 9, 2022 . ^ Rolstad, Skylar (October 7, 2024)."Decision Day: The Best of MLS NEXT Pro's Wild Final Day!" .mlsnextpro.com . RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 . ^ "Decision Day: The Best of MLS NEXT Pro's Wild Final Day!" .stlcitysc.com . June 23, 2024. RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 .^ "CITY2 locked up their playoff spot in front of a record-breaking 9,626-person crowd" .stlcitysc.com . September 17, 2023. RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 .^ "Match Recap St Louis CITY2 Dominates in Front of Record-Breaking Crowd" .stlcitysc.com . August 6, 2023. RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 .^ "A Letter to Quakes season ticket holders" .thetownfc.com . April 16, 2024. RetrievedNovember 29, 2024 .^ "North Texas SC's Matt Denny Named 2024 MLS NEXT Pro Executive of the Year" .mlsnextpro.com . November 21, 2024. RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 .^ Johnson, Bailey (October 8, 2022)."Columbus Crew 2 wins inaugural MLS Next Pro Cup with dominant 4-1 victory" .dispatch.com . RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 . ^ Timmermann, Tom (October 1, 2023)."City2's season ends with 2-0 loss to San Jose in MLS Next Pro playoffs" .stltoday.com . RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 . ^ Jones, Tim (November 2, 2024)."Playoff match report: Philadelphia Union II 4 -0 Columbus Crew 2" .phillysoccerpage.net . RetrievedNovember 28, 2024 .
Eastern Conference Western Conference Future teams Former teams Seasons Miscellaneous
Men's
National teams Outdoor leagues
Professional Amateur Defunct
Indoor leagues
Futsal leagues Cup competitions
Women's
National teams Outdoor leagues
Indoor leagues Futsal leagues International competitions Club competitions Defunct leagues
Youth
By city Other topics
Men's national teams Women's national teams Men's outdoor leagues
Tier 1 Tier 3 Below tier 3 Non-FIFA
Women's outdoor leagues
Indoor and futsal competitions Cup competitions
Other competitions College and university soccer Defunct Canadian leagues Defunct American leagues Related American leagues Defunct cup competitions Other Associations
Eastern Conference - Northeast Division
Eastern Conference - Southeast Division
Western Conference - Frontier Division
Western Conference - Pacific Division
future teams
