USL’s Strategic Investment and the Road to Promotion and Relegation USL’s announcement of a second strategic investment, adding Weatherford Capital alongside earlier partner BellTower Partners, is best understood as a structur

USL announced a second private equity investment into the league yesterday. We look at how the money might be used and what it means for the future of the league midfieldpress.com/2026/02/26/u...

The Case for a USL Return: Lehigh Valley This is the first article in a series taking a second look at former USL markets and weighing their future potential. Expansion teams ultimately go where invest

The first in a series on markets we think USL should take a second chance on, we take a look at why the Lehigh Valley, former home of Bethlehem Steel FC, would be a great fit for USL League One midfieldpress.com/2026/02/21/t...

Any fan of a club that has gone dark feels for Tormenta fans, players and staff today. These things are part of the reality of American soccer and have been for a long time midfieldpress.com/2026/02/22/w...

Is MLS Next Pro A Path To MLS Proper For Independent Clubs? Fans in emerging markets often ask a straightforward question: if my club joins MLS Next Pro, does that make it more likely to eventually receive an MLS (D1) fr

As a follow up to our why new pro clubs choose USL or MLS Next Pro article, we highlight one reason that shouldn't factor into an ownership group's decision: the notion that MLS Next Pro membership makes an MLS proper bid more likely to succeed midfieldpress.com/2026/02/13/i...

USL or MLS Next Pro: Why New Pro Clubs Choose One or the Other Fans often frame the USL versus MLS Next Pro debate in ideological terms. Championship leagues versus development leagues. Independent clubs versus reserve team

For fans of USL teams, it may be a bit of a head scratcher when an independent expansion group chooses MLS Next Pro over USL, but they have their reasons midfieldpress.com/2026/02/14/u...

Which current USL Championship teams are the best fits for the USL Premier launch in 2028? We put them into tiers based PLS-readiness. After 2028, pro-rel should sort it out from there midfieldpress.com/2026/02/15/u...

NISA’s Legacy May Look Like That of a Nineteenth Century Political Party There is a familiar argument in American politics about the need for a viable third party. The United States is structurally designed around two major parties -

A post-mortem on NISA and its legacy, even if they aren't quite dead yet midfieldpress.com/2026/02/03/n...

USL Premier Expansion: Evaluating the Most Viable Markets The USL recently announced that its forthcoming men's Division I pro league, USL Premier, is set to launch in 2028. In its reporting on the matter, The Athletic

Following the USL Premier news, @theathletic.com reported that 8 USL Championship teams will move up & expansion teams may fill out the new tier's other first 12-14 teams.

We look at which Top 10 TV markets might fit, helping USL's TV/Streaming deal value midfieldpress.com/2026/02/08/u...

The Cosmos return, humbler The New York Cosmos return to the field in 2026, for the first time since a half season in NISA way back in 2020. The club is under new ownership, but a key pie

The New York Cosmos are back on the field next month. But it seems the storied club will be built different this time. More community focus. No Marcos Senna, no Raul, let alone Pele or Beckenbauer. But perhaps the 3rd time will be more sustainable for it? midfieldpress.com/2026/02/04/t...

The Cosmos return, humbler The New York Cosmos return to the field in 2026, for the first time since a half season in NISA way back in 2020. The club is under new ownership, but a key pie

The New York Cosmos are back on the field next month. But it seems the storied club will be built different this time. More community focus. No Marcos Senna, no Raul, let alone Pele or Beckenbauer. But perhaps the 3rd time will be more sustainable for it? midfieldpress.com/2026/02/04/t...

Should USL Compete With MLS? The question of whether USL should compete with MLS comes up more and more, usually framed as a choice. As if USL could decide to stay in its lane and avoid a f

Should USL compete with head-on with MLS? midfieldpress.com/2026/02/07/s...

We have relaunched the site with some new articles midfieldpress.com