USL Division One

Not to be confused with USL League One or USL First Division (2005–2010).

USL Division One is the tentative name for a proposed professional men's soccer league in the highest level of the United States league system, alongside Major League Soccer. Organized by the United Soccer League (USL), it would supersede the USL Championship as its premier league for men, and would employ a promotion and relegation system with the Championship.

USL Division One

Interim logo
Organizing body	United Soccer League
First season	2028 (proposed)
Country	United States
Confederation	CONCACAF
Number of clubs	12 (proposed)
Level on pyramid	1 (proposed)
Relegation to	USL Championship
Domestic cup(s)	U.S. Open Cup
League cup(s)	USL Cup
International cup(s)	CONCACAF Champions Cup

History

The USL announced its intent to establish a new Division I league via a press release published on February 13, 2025. USL clubs were informed of the decision the day prior.^[1][2][3] Before making their announcement, the USL waited for the outcome of N. Am. Soccer League, LLC v. U.S. Soccer Fed'n, Inc. in the United States District Court, E.D.N.Y., which ultimately ruled on February 3 that U.S. Soccer's league system was legal and did not break antitrust laws.^[4]

Format

USL Division One would play a spring-to-fall schedule, and would not employ a college draft à la the MLS SuperDraft.^[5] A system of promotion and relegation would be implemented, in which the worst-performing teams in Division One would be replaced by the best-performing teams in the USL Championship at the end of each season.^[6][7][8]

Teams

U.S. Soccer stipulates that a league must have a minimum of twelve teams to qualify for Division I sanctioning, and fourteen teams by its third season. The league must have teams situated in the Eastern, Central, and Pacific time zones, and at least three quarters of the teams must be based in metropolitan areas with a population of a million or more.^[2][9][10] All clubs must play in a venue with a capacity of 15,000 or more, and have an ownership group with a combined net worth of US$70 million. An individual owner with a net worth of US$40 million must also have a 35% or greater stake in the club.^[9][10] The USL Championship's Birmingham Legion, Miami FC, and Oakland Roots currently meet the stadium and market population requirements, with a lot more to be expected in the coming years with new stadiums.^[3] The USL are also open to applications from clubs from outside the USL system.^[5]