Fin de la A-League, l'Impact en Division 1

[Bxl Boy]

United Soccer Leagues announced Wednesday that the organization and its member professional teams have restructured the two professional leagues, A-League and Pro Soccer League, under the USL umbrella to form a new two-tiered professional division.

The two tiers of USL’s professional division will be officially referred to as the USL First Division and USL Second Division, eliminating the A-League name adopted by the then independent American Professional Soccer League in 1995.

“This is the culmination of an effort we have been working on over the past two years to increase the overall connectivity between our two professional leagues,” said USL Vice President Tim Holt. “Although the name change may be the most visible component, the new organizational and financial standards policies instituted as part of this restructuring will be far more significant for all of our professional teams and for prospective franchisees. The move away from the A-League name, in a way, is symbolic of the shift in the operation and unification of the USL professional leagues.”

Among the significant changes in place are the adoption of a single table by the USL First Division, the official capping of the USL First Division to 16 teams and the introduction of a 28-game primarily balanced schedule in which all teams will play each other home and away once in the USL First Division supplemented with an equal number of additional rivalry games. To further emphasize regular season excellence, the regular season champion will be awarded the Commissioner’s Cup, which was utilized by the APSL prior to the league’s merger with USL before to the 1997 season.

“I know my return came with expectations from outsiders that the revolutionary ideas of shootouts and blue cards would come back, but those experiments stemmed from the open mind I have always had to new concepts,” said USL President Francisco Marcos. “The format of the standings table and the schedule is something the teams and USL have been aiming for and has been a part of the strategic planning with the expected restructuring coming. I guess you could now say we are being revolutionary by moving toward the traditional.”

“Although we have recognized all of our regular season champions at our AOM in the past, the new USL First Division schedule is the most balanced it has been in years and gives us the opportunity to honor a true season champion in addition to the traditional playoff champion,” added Marcos. “Using the Commissioner’s Cup will be a tip of the hat to the outstanding history of the A-League.”

“The cap of 16 teams was instituted for both economic and competitive reasons,” added Holt. “We feel it will not only add to the value of the current franchises, but will spur growth in the second tier of the professional division as a point of entry for new franchises with significant ambitions.”

The professional division of United Soccer Leagues will consist of 21 teams in 2005 with 12 in the USL First Division and nine in the USL Second Division.

The top flight will be comprised of the Atlanta Silverbacks, Charleston Battery, Minnesota Thunder, Portland Timbers, Puerto Rico Islanders, Richmond Kickers, Rochester Raging Rhinos, Seattle Sounders, Toronto Lynx, Vancouver Whitecaps, Virginia Beach Mariners and the defending champion Montreal Impact.

“On behalf of the owners, we feel that the changes being made are a step in the right direction and are excited about what the future holds,” said Montreal Impact President Joey Saputo, chairman of the USL Strategic Planning Committee. “We have a wonderful history, but are anxious for a new beginning under this unified vision for the future.”

The USL Second Division will be eastern-based in 2005 with the 2004 finalist Charlotte Eagles, Harrisburg City Islanders, Long Island Rough Riders, New Hampshire Phantoms, Northern Virginia Royals, Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Western Mass Pioneers and Wilmington Hammerheads all returning with the addition of a new franchise in Cincinnati.

The PSL’s California Gold and San Diego Gauchos have moved to the Premier Development League. The PDL alignment will be announced Thursday, November 11. The Milwaukee Wave United of the A-League and Utah Blitzz of the PSL will not be competing in USL in 2005.

Playoffs
The restructuring of the USL professional division has initially set the USL First Division Championship Playoffs to consist of eight teams if there are greater than 14 teams in the league and six if there are fewer than 14, which is the case with 12 in 2005. The two-leg, aggregate score series will continue to be used with the top two seeds receiving byes to the second round if it is a six-team field. The single-game championship with the host determined by a bid process between the two participants will continue to be used.

The USL Second Division will also utilize the same schedule format for 2005 for a 20-game season with the playoffs consisting of four teams. The top four teams will advance to the postseason with the two-leg, aggregate score series format being utilized for the semifinals. The single-game championship with the host determined by a bid process between the two participants will also be used.

Overtime
USL also announced that overtime has been eliminated for both tiers of the professional division for the regular season. Overtime, two 15-minute periods, will be utilized in the postseason for knock-out games and will be played in its entirety as per FIFA regulation with no golden goal.

[François]

[penz]

Ça augmente les déplacements ça... J'espère que la ligue ne se tire pas dans le pied.

[François]

Ça augmente les déplacements ça... J'espère que la ligue ne se tire pas dans le pied.

Oui et non car on jouera probablement les 3 matchs dans l'Ouest (Vancouver, Portland et Seattle) dans le même voyage, ce qui coupe les dépenses. On allait déjà à Puerto Rico, Charleston et Atlanta lors du même déplacement...Oui, il y a quelques coûts supplémentaires mais les clubs vont certainement regrouper leurs voyages à l'étranger...

[Vicenç]

Enfin un calendrier balance, avec un classement generale credible. Est-ce que l'Impact a deja affronte le Minnesota a Montreal?
Et puis la disparition des 30 minutes de sur-temps.
Legere prolongation de la saison de 2 semaines, il y aura peut-etre moins de marathon de match en 24h.
La prochaine etape sera l'elimination des matchs en moins de 24h et le nombre de changement permis par, 3 et non 5 comme c'est encore le cas aujourd'hui.

[Daniel]

La prochaine etape sera l'elimination des matchs en moins de 24h et le nombre de changement permis par, 3 et non 5 comme c'est encore le cas aujourd'hui.

L'un est en relation avec l'autre.

[Bxl Boy]

USL shuffling could lead to Euro-style league
By Beau Dure, USATODAY.com

The reorganization of United Soccer Leagues' professional ranks could prove to be another step toward a lower-division league structure along the lines of what is commonly seen in European leagues.
The USL announced Wednesday that it would eliminate the name "A-League" and re-brand its two professional leagues as the USL First Division and USL Second Division. The First Division will have no geographic split, with all teams from Puerto Rico to Seattle playing in a single table. The regular-season champion will be given a trophy called the Commissioner's Cup, though the league will continue to use playoffs to name a final champion.

But the changes also open the door to more possibilities down the road, including a promotion/relegation scheme and the participation of Major League Soccer reserve teams.

The First Division will begin play with 12 teams next year and will be limited to 16 teams. So what happens if 17 owners are interested?

"Once the league reaches 16 teams, if a team is selected for promotion, the committee would also be responsible for relegating a USL First Division club based on the same criteria," said USL vice president Tim Holt in an e-mail interview. "Specific standards for promotion and relegation will be further developed in the months ahead."

Holt said the rebranded Second Division will be an ideal place for owners to test the professional soccer waters, which will ultimately ensure a more stable First Division. The former A-League has dwindled in numbers over recent years, most recently losing teams in Syracuse, Edmonton, Calgary and Milwaukee.

Holt also sees a promotion/relegation scheme boosting fan interest in the future.

"This feature will not only appeal to the traditional soccer fan but also to the masses by offering a characteristic that no American or Canadian professional league can offer, thus helping to differentiate our product from other leagues," Holt said.

Left unresolved at the moment is the league's relationship with Major League Soccer. A couple of MLS clubs have loose affiliations with teams in the USL's amateur league, the Premier Development League, under the names Chicago Fire Reserves and Boulder Rapids Reserves. These are not "reserve teams" as seen in other world leagues, where players who aren't currently in their club's starting lineup play other teams' reserves to keep fit and catch coaches' eyes.

But with MLS preparing to create actual reserve teams, Holt left open the possibility that those teams could compete in the USL ranks.

"We have repeatedly expressed to both MLS and USSF (U.S. Soccer Federation) our desire to discuss how wecould incorporate MLS reserve teams into the USL structure," Holt said. "It seems to usadding MLS reserve teams to the USL Second Division and/or the USL PDL wouldbe a natural and economically sensible fit for both organizations."

The restructuring is not without controversy. The Richmond Times-Dispatch this week ran a news story that led with the assertion that the move to a single-table First Division will "more than likely, result in additional shrinkage" of the league. Richmond Kickers president Tom Depcrynski told the paper that the new international setup would add roughly $40,000 to the team's travel costs.

Holt declined to address the paper's specific comments but said the league had a more optimistic view of its finances.

"Our analysis shows the impact on the travel expenses will be minimal for most of our teams and is likely to be offset by a boost in ticket sales and sponsorship revenue related to the wider variety of opponents from all geographic regions of the league," Holt said. "Regardless, the vast majority of our owners feel any short-term investment in bringing these league structure changes to fruition will be realized in the long-term through the added credibility for the league in the eyes of its fans."

The lineup for the 2005 First Division: Atlanta Silverbacks, Charleston Battery, Minnesota Thunder, Portland Timbers, Puerto Rico Islanders, Richmond Kickers, Rochester Raging Rhinos, Seattle Sounders, Toronto Lynx, Vancouver Whitecaps, Virginia Beach Mariners and the defending A-League champion Montreal Impact.

The Second Division will have limited travel costs because all the teams are in the East — 2004 Pro Select League finalist Charlotte Eagles, Harrisburg (Pa.) City Islanders, Long Island Rough Riders, New Hampshire Phantoms, Northern Virginia Royals, Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Western Mass Pioneers, Wilmington (N.C.) Hammerheads and a new franchise in Cincinnati. Two of the three PSL's West-based teams, the San Diego Gauchos and California Gold, will compete in the PDL this season. The Utah Blitzz, which won the 2004 PSL championship, will not compete this season — MLS has expanded to the area with a new team, Real Salt Lake.

[Y]

USL shuffling could lead to Euro-style league
By Beau Dure, USATODAY.com

C'est un nom ça ???

[PUMPKIN16]

J'ai lu sur le site internet de RDS qu'il y aurait des reléguations et des promotions entre les 2 divisions de l'USL. Quelqu'un sait le nombre de relégué qu'il y aura ???

[Daniel]

J'ai lu sur le site internet de RDS qu'il y aurait des reléguations et des promotions entre les 2 divisions de l'USL. Quelqu'un sait le nombre de relégué qu'il y aura ???

...Éventuellement.

La USL1 va se rendre à 16 équipes avant qu'on commence à en parler.