MLS Next Pro

Not to be confused with MLS Next.

MLS Next Pro (MLSNP) is a men's professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer. 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 the United States soccer league system.^[1]

MLS Next Pro

Founded	June 21, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-06-21)
First season	2022
Country	United States
Other club(s) from	Canada
Confederation	CONCACAF
Number of teams	29
Level on pyramid	3
Domestic cup(s)	U.S. Open Cup
Current champions	Austin FC II (2023)
Current regular season title	North Texas SC (2024)
TV partners	MLS Season Pass YouTube
Website	mlsnextpro.com
Current: 2024 MLS Next Pro season

History

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 the United States Soccer Federation for the league to be sanctioned as a Division III professional league, the same level currently occupied by USL League One and the National Independent Soccer Association and one level below the USL Championship.^[2] MLS announced that Next Pro would start with at least 20 teams, many of them owned by Major League Soccer and development teams between their first-teams and their youth academies.^[2] All MLS clubs with reserve teams in the USL Championship or USL League One initially planned to move those sides to MLS Next Pro by 2023. D.C. United's formerly owned-and-operated reserve team was sold to independent buyers.^[2]

The inaugural match of MLS Next Pro was played on March 25, 2022, at Hermann Stadium in St. Louis. St. Louis City SC 2 defeated Rochester 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 by penalty 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 curb gamesmanship 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]

Competition format

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] An MLS Next Pro club's active roster contains up to 35 players, all of whom are eligible for selection to each official match roster during the MLS Next Pro season.^[9]

Teams

Atlanta

Austin

Carolina

Chattanooga

Connecticut

Charlotte

Chicago

Cincinnati

Cleveland

Colorado

Columbus

Houston

Huntsville

Miami

Jacksonville

LAFC2

Minnesota

New England

NYCFC II

Red Bulls

North Texas

Orlando

Philadelphia

Portland

Salt Lake City

The Town

Kansas City

St. Louis

Tacoma

Toronto

Ventura County

Whitecaps

Locations of announced teams in MLS Next Pro:

• Eastern Conference - Northeast Division
• Eastern Conference - Southeast Division
  
• Western Conference - Frontier Division
• Western Conference - Pacific Division
  
• future teams

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	Ludovic Taillandier	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 Mark A. Ouellette Stadium (Hooksett, NH)	20,000[13] 1,500	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	Marlon LeBlanc	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 Bank 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	18,000[21]	2019	2022	Federico Higuaín	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 2,000	2021	2022	Erik Bushey	Colorado Rapids
Houston Dynamo 2	Houston, Texas	SaberCats Stadium	3,200[23]	2021	2022	Kenny Bundy	Houston Dynamo FC
Sporting Kansas City II	Lawrence, Kansas	Rock Chalk Park Swope Soccer Village (Kansas City, MO)	2,500[24] 1,500[25]	2015	2022	Benny Feilhaber	Sporting Kansas City
Minnesota United FC 2	Saint Paul, Minnesota	Allianz Field National Sports Center (Blaine)	19,400[26] 5,500[27]	2021	2022	Jeremy Hall	Minnesota United FC
North Texas SC	Arlington, Texas	Choctaw Stadium	48,114[28]	2018	2022	Michel	FC Dallas
St. Louis City SC 2	St. Louis, Missouri	CityPark	22,423	2021	2022	Bobby Murphy	St. Louis City SC
Pacific Division
Los Angeles FC 2	Fullerton, California	Titan Stadium	10,000[29]	2023	2023	Junior Gonzalez	Los Angeles FC
Portland Timbers 2	Portland, Oregon	Providence Park[30]	25,218[31]	2014	2022	Serge Dinkota	Portland Timbers
Real Monarchs	Herriman, Utah	Zions Bank Stadium	5,000[32]	2014	2022	Mark Lowry	Real Salt Lake
The Town FC	Moraga, California	Saint Mary's Stadium	5,500[33]	2021	2022	Dan DeGeer	San Jose Earthquakes
Tacoma Defiance	Tukwila, Washington	Starfire Sports Complex	4,500[34]	2014	2022	Hervé Diese	Seattle Sounders FC
Ventura County FC	Thousand Oaks, California	William Rolland Stadium	2,000[35]	2014	2023	Matt Taylor	LA Galaxy
Whitecaps FC 2	Burnaby, British Columbia	Swangard Stadium	5,228[36]	2021	2022	Ricardo Clark	Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Future teams

Team[37]	Location	Stadium	Capacity	Founded	Joining	Affiliate
Connecticut United FC	Bridgeport, Connecticut	New Waterfront Stadium	10,000	2024	2026[38]	Independent
Jacksonville Armada FC	Jacksonville, Florida	Hodges Stadium	12,000	2013	2025
Cleveland Pro Soccer	Cleveland, Ohio	TBD		2022	2026[39]

Former teams

Club	City	Stadium	Capacity	Founded	Joined	Last season	Affiliate
Rochester New York FC	Brighton, New York	John L. DiMarco Field	1,500[40]	1996	2022	2022	Independent

Timeline

League member Former member Future member Other leagues

Champions

Season	Playoff champions	Regular season champions
2022	Columbus Crew 2	Columbus Crew 2
2023	Austin FC II	Colorado Rapids 2
2024	TBD	North Texas SC

Finals

Year	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Venue	MVP	Attendance	Ref.
2022	Columbus Crew 2	4–1	St. Louis City SC 2	Lower.com Field	Marco Micaletto (CC2)	7,446	[41]
2023	Austin FC II	3–1	Columbus Crew 2	Lower.com Field	Valentin Noël (AU2)	7,500	[42]

See also

• MLS Next
• MLS Reserve League (2005–2014)

References

1. Straus, Brian (December 6, 2021). "MLS Next Pro Adds Another Element to U.S. Soccer's Ever-Evolving Lower Club Tier". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
2. Bonagura, Kyle (June 21, 2021). "Major League Soccer to launch development league in 2022". ESPN. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
3. Schneider, Jacob (March 24, 2022). "St Louis CITY2 hosts RNY FC in Inaugural MLS NEXT Pro Match". mlsnextpro.com. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
4. "Match Report: stlvsroc 03-25-2022". mlsnextpro.com. March 25, 2022. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
5. 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. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
6. "MLS NEXT PRO IMPLEMENTING TWO NEW COMPETITION RULES FOR SECOND HALF OF INAUGURAL SEASON". MLS Next Pro. July 6, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
7. "MLS NEXT Pro unveils 21 clubs for inaugural season starting March 2022". mlssoccer. December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
8. Rueter, Jeff (January 14, 2022). "MLS Next Pro to have no salary cap, other key differences from MLS structure, sources say". The Athletic. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
9. "2022 MLS NEXT PRO Roster Guidelines". MLS Next Pro. January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
10. "Fun Within Reach". Toyota Park. Archived from the original on December 30, 2018. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
11. "Historic Crew Stadium". www.ColumbusSports.org. Greater Columbus Sports Commission. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
12. "NKU Soccer Stadium". Northern Kentucky University Athletics. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
13. "Gillette Stadium Overview". revolutionsoccer.net. March 8, 2012. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
14. "BELSON STADIUM". www.RedStormSports.com. St. John's University. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
15. "MSU Soccer Park". www.MontclairAthletics.com. Montclar State University. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
16. "About Talen Energy Stadium". philadelphiaunion.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
17. "York Lions Stadium Conversion". www.YorkU.CA. York University. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
18. "Ball Park A-Z". High Point Rockers. 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
19. "Mecklenburg County Sportsplex at Matthews". www.MatthewsNC.gov. Town of Matthews, NC. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
20. Brazelton, Dave (May 19, 2023). "Huntsville businesses benefit from new Joe Davis Stadium". WAAY 31 ABC. Huntsville, AL. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
21. "Inter Miami increases DRV PNK Stadium capacity for Lionel Messi's debut". as.com. MLS Digital. Archived from the original on July 13, 2023. Retrieved July 17, 2023. Alt URL
22. "Osceola County Stadium". www.OHPark.com. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
23. "Sabercats Stadium". www.HoustonSabercats.com. Houston Sabercats. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
24. "Rock Chalk Park". www.TravelKS.com. Kansas Tourism. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
25. "Swope Soccer Village". KCParks.org. Kansas City Parks & Recreation. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
26. "Stadium Facts". www.MNUFC.com. Minnesota United. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
27. "NSC Stadium".
28. Sullivan, T. R. (October 30, 2012). "Rangers Resume Fan-Focused Park Renovations". Major League Baseball Advanced Media. Archived from the original on May 10, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
29. "Titan Stadium". Retrieved October 8, 2018.
30. Timbers2, Portland. "Portland Timbers2". Portland Timbers2. Retrieved August 30, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
31. "Providence Park Stadium". www.Portland.gov. City of Portland. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
32. Meyer, Taran (April 25, 2018). "Zions Bank Stadium Provides Unique Soccer Experience". www.RSL.com. Real Salt Lake. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
33. "Facilities". Saint Mary's Athletics. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
34. "Outdoor Fields". www.StarFireSports.com. Star Fire Sports. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
35. "William Rolland Stadium". Retrieved March 16, 2024.
36. "Swangard Stadium – Home of your Whitecaps". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Archived from the original on April 11, 2009. Retrieved October 16, 2009.
37. "Seven MLS Affiliated Clubs To Join MLS Next Pro In 2023". mlsnextpro. August 4, 2022. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
38. "CONNECTICUT AWARDED MLS NEXT PRO EXPANSION TEAM". CTUnited.com. Connecticut United. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
39. "Cleveland's MLS NEXT Pro Team". Cleveland Pro Soccer. 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
40. Reuter, Jeff (March 10, 2023). "Jamie Vardy's U.S. club Rochester New York FC ceases operations". The Athletic. San Francisco, California. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
41. Tellitud, Jesus (October 8, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2 hoist MLS NEXT Pro Cup with 4-1 win over St Louis CITY2". MLS Next Pro. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
42. "Austin FC II Defeats Defending Champion Columbus Crew 2 To Win 2023 MLS NEXT Pro Cup". MLS Next Pro. October 22, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.

External links

• Official website