View source for USL Division One

{{Short description|Proposed men's soccer league in the United States}}
{{Distinguish|text=[[USL League One]] or [[USL First Division|USL First Division (2005–2010)]]}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox football league
| American             = yes
| logo                 = USL Division One.svg
| caption              = Interim logo
| organiser            = [[United Soccer League]]
| first                = 2028 (proposed)
| country              = United States
| confed               = [[CONCACAF]]
| teams                = 12 (proposed)
| levels               = [[United States soccer league system#Men's leagues|1]] (proposed)
| relegation           = [[USL Championship]]
| domest_cup           = [[U.S. Open Cup]]
| league_cup           = [[USL Cup]]
| confed_cup           = [[CONCACAF Champions Cup|CONCACAF<br />Champions Cup]] <!-- <br /> for infobox width -->
| champions            = 
| season               = 
| most successful club = 
| website              = 
| current              = 
}}

'''USL Division One''' is the tentative name for a proposed professional men's [[Association football|soccer]] league in the highest level of the [[United States soccer league system#Men's leagues|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.

== 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.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Becherano |first1=Lizzy |title=USL announces plans to start new league that would rival MLS |url=https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/43827636/usl-announces-plans-new-league-rival-mls |website=[[ESPN]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250213185636/https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/43827636/usl-announces-plans-new-league-rival-mls |archive-date=February 13, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="goal.com-1">{{cite web |last1=Schneider |first1=Jacob |title=USL intends to launch rival Division 1 men's soccer league in 2027-28 to challenge MLS |url=https://www.goal.com/en/lists/usl-launch-rival-division-1-men-s-soccer-league-in-2027-28-to-rival-mls/bltc15ef2244232b6a0 |website=[[Goal.com]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250217192021/https://www.goal.com/en/lists/usl-launch-rival-division-1-men-s-soccer-league-in-2027-28-to-rival-mls/bltc15ef2244232b6a0#csc21edbad39c02c30 |archive-date=February 17, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="cbs sports-1">{{cite web |last1=Cattry |first1=Pardeep |title=USL to launch first division men's league: Here's everything to know about potential MLS rival |url=https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/usl-to-launch-first-division-mens-league-heres-everything-to-know-about-potential-mls-rival/ |website=[[CBS Sports]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250217185617/https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/usl-to-launch-first-division-mens-league-heres-everything-to-know-about-potential-mls-rival/ |archive-date=February 17, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref> 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 for the Eastern District of New York|United States District Court, E.D.N.Y.]], which ultimately ruled on February 3 that [[United States Soccer Federation|U.S. Soccer]]'s [[United States soccer league system|league system]] was legal and did not break [[Competition law|antitrust laws]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Tenorino |first1=Paul |title=Move over, Major League Soccer. A rival top flight men's league is coming to the U.S. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6129972/2025/02/13/usl-launch-division-1-league-us-soccer-mls/ |website=[[The Athletic]] |access-date=February 20, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250213161317/https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6129972/2025/02/13/usl-launch-division-1-league-us-soccer-mls/ |archive-date=February 13, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |quote=McDonough said the USL waited for the trial to conclude before moving forward with its plans. |url-status=live |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

== Format ==

USL Division One would play a spring-to-fall schedule, and would not employ a [[Draft (sports)|college draft]] à la the [[MLS SuperDraft]].<ref name="ap-1">{{cite web |last1=Peterson |first1=Anne M. |title=New top-tier men's soccer league coming to the United States |url=https://apnews.com/article/usl-mls-soccer-82689ccc5f31635b65031e3acf1b6172 |website=[[Associated Press]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250217191141/https://apnews.com/article/usl-mls-soccer-82689ccc5f31635b65031e3acf1b6172 |archive-date=February 17, 2025 |date=February 14, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web |title=USL votes to adopt pro-rel in 2027 when Division One launches |url=https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/44315033/usl-votes-adopt-pro-rel-2027-division-one-launches |website=[[ESPN]] |access-date=March 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250319144102/https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/44315033/usl-votes-adopt-pro-rel-2027-division-one-launches |archive-date=March 19, 2025 |date=March 19, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Steiner |first1=Ben |title=Promotion-Relegation Coming to American Professional Soccer, per Report |url=https://www.si.com/soccer/promotion-relegation-coming-to-american-professional-soccer-per-report |magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]] |access-date=March 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250319025004/https://www.si.com/soccer/promotion-relegation-coming-to-american-professional-soccer-per-report |archive-date=March 19, 2025 |date=March 19, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Thompson |first1=Andrew |title=USL makes history after official adoption of promotion-relegation system |url=https://onefootball.com/fr/news/usl-makes-history-after-official-adoption-of-promotion-relegation-system-40857481 |website=[[OneFootball]] |access-date=March 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250325194241/https://onefootball.com/fr/news/usl-makes-history-after-official-adoption-of-promotion-relegation-system-40857481 |archive-date=March 25, 2025 |date=March 19, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Teams ==

[[United States Soccer Federation|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 Time Zone|Eastern]], [[Central Time Zone|Central]], and [[Pacific Time Zone|Pacific]] time zones, and at least three quarters of the teams must be based in [[Metropolitan statistical area|metropolitan areas]] with a population of a million or more.<ref name="goal.com-1"/><ref name="the guardian-1">{{cite web |last1=Abnos |first1=Alexander |title=USL announces intention to start new league at same tier as MLS |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/feb/13/usl-division-i-league-mls-paul-mcdonough |website=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250217191838/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/feb/13/usl-division-i-league-mls-paul-mcdonough |archive-date=February 17, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sbj-1">{{cite web |title=USL plans to launch Division I men's league, take on MLS |url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2025/02/13/usl-plans-to-launch-division-i-mens-league-take-on-mls/ |website=[[List of Advance subsidiaries#Leaders Group|Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal]] |access-date=February 17, 2025 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250217193049/https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2025/02/13/usl-plans-to-launch-division-i-mens-league-take-on-mls/ |archive-date=February 17, 2025 |date=February 13, 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref> 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 [[United States dollar|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.<ref name="the guardian-1"/><ref name="sbj-1"/> The USL Championship's [[Birmingham Legion]], [[Miami FC]], and [[Oakland Roots]] currently meet the stadium and market population requirements.<ref name="cbs sports-1"/> The USL are also open to applications from clubs from outside the USL system.<ref name="ap-1"/>

== References ==

{{Reflist}}

== External links ==

* [https://www.uslsoccer.com/division-one USL Division One] at the [[United Soccer League]]

{{United Soccer League}}
{{Soccer in the United States}}
{{CONCACAF leagues}}
{{Professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada}}
{{USSF D1 soccer seasons}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:2025 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Professional soccer leagues in the United States]]
[[Category:Proposed association football leagues]]
[[Category:Sports leagues established in 2025]]
[[Category:Summer association football leagues]]
[[Category:Top-level association football leagues in North America]]
[[Category:United Soccer League]]