MLS Next Pro

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Not to be confused with MLS Next.

MLS Next Pro
File:MLS Next Pro logo.svg
Organizing bodyMajor League Soccer
FoundedJune 21, 2021; 5 years ago (2021-06-21)
First season2022
CountryUnited States
Other club fromCanada
ConfederationCONCACAF
Conferences2
Number of clubs29
Level on pyramid3
Domestic cupU.S. Open Cup
Current champion(s)New York Red Bulls II
(2025)
Current regular season titleSt. Louis City 2
(2025)
Broadcaster(s)MLS Season Pass
YouTube
Websitemlsnextpro.com
Current: 2025 MLS Next Pro season

MLS Next Pro (MLSNP) is a men's professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer (MLS). It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and now comprises 27 reserve sides of MLS clubs and two independent clubs (Carolina Core FC and Chattanooga FC). MLS Next Pro is classified as part of the third tier of the United States soccer league system.[1]

As of the 2025–26 season, 27 of the 30 MLS teams held affiliations with an MLS Next Pro team, with only the CF Montréal, D.C. United, and San Diego FC having no such franchise affiliation.

History

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Main article: MLS Reserve League

In the mid 2000's MLS teams began to form their own academies to begin the development of players. In 2005, MLS launched a reserve league with the then 12 teams that competed in MLS. This was an effort to allow games for the players amongst the academies for more meaningful competition.

MLS announced the dissolution of the Reserve League following the partnership formed with then-named USL. This allowed players to get loaned from teams in MLS to play minutes in teams in third division soccer. This was mandatory during the time of affiliation between MLS–USL clubs. During the partnership, teams in MLS began the foundings of their own B teams, or No. 2 teams. First teams among MLS to field B teams were: RSL, LA Galaxy, Toronto FC, and Portland Timbers.

Formation of the league

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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 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

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The league runs from spring to fall with the season kicking off in March. Each team plays 28 regular-season games, followed by a 16-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

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class=notpageimage|
Locations of announced teams in MLS Next Pro:
Team Location Stadium Capacity Founded Joined Head coach Affiliate
Eastern Conference
Northeast Division
Chicago Fire FC II Bridgeview, Illinois SeatGeek Stadium[a] 20,000[10] 2021 2022 Mike Matkovich Chicago Fire FC
Columbus Crew 2 Columbus, Ohio Historic Crew Stadium[a] 19,968[11] 2021 2022 Federico Higuaín Columbus Crew
FC Cincinnati 2 Highland Heights, Kentucky NKU Soccer Stadium[a] 1,000[12] 2021 2022 Tyrone Marshall FC Cincinnati
New England Revolution II Foxborough, Massachusetts Gillette Stadium[b] 20,000[13] 2019 2022 Pablo Moreira New England Revolution
New York City FC II New York City, New York Belson Stadium[a] 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[a] 5,000[15] 2015 2023 Michael Bradley New York Red Bulls
Philadelphia Union II Chester, Pennsylvania Subaru Park[a] 18,500[16] 2015 2022 Ryan Richter Philadelphia Union
Toronto FC II Toronto, Ontario York Lions Stadium[b] 4,000[17] 2014 2022 Gianni Cimini Toronto FC
Southeast Division
Atlanta United 2 Kennesaw, Georgia Fifth Third Stadium[b] 8,318 2017 2023 Steve Cooke Atlanta United FC
Carolina Core FC High Point, North Carolina Truist Point[c] 4,500[18] 2022 2024 Donovan Ricketts Independent
Chattanooga FC Chattanooga, Tennessee Finley Stadium[b] 20,412 2009 2024 Chris Nugent Independent
Crown Legacy FC Matthews, North Carolina Sportsplex at Matthews[a] 5,000[19] 2022 2023 José Tavares Charlotte FC
Huntsville City FC Huntsville, Alabama Joe W. Davis Stadium[c] 6,000[20] 2022 2023 Chris O'Neal Nashville SC
Inter Miami CF II Fort Lauderdale, Florida Chase Stadium[a] 21,550[21] 2019 2022 Cristian Ledesma Inter Miami CF
Orlando City B Kissimmee, Florida Osceola County Stadium[c] 5,300[22] 2015 2022 Manuel Goldberg Orlando City SC
Western Conference
Frontier Division
Austin FC II Austin, Texas Parmer Field[a] 1,000 2022 2023 Brett Uttley Austin FC
Colorado Rapids 2 Denver, Colorado Dick's Sporting Goods Park[a] (Commerce City)
University of Denver Soccer Stadium[a] 		18,061
2,000 		2021 2022 Erik Bushey Colorado Rapids
Houston Dynamo 2 Houston, Texas SaberCats Stadium[d] 3,200[23] 2021 2022 Marcelo Santos Houston Dynamo FC
Sporting Kansas City II Kansas City, Missouri Swope Soccer Village[a] 3,500[24] 2015 2022 István Urbányi Sporting Kansas City
Minnesota United FC 2 Saint Paul, Minnesota Allianz Field[a]
National Sports Center[b] (Blaine) 		19,400[25]
5,500[26] 		2021 2022 Jeremy Hall Minnesota United FC
North Texas SC Arlington, Texas Choctaw Stadium[c] 48,114[27] 2018 2022 John Gall FC Dallas
St. Louis City 2 St. Louis, Missouri Energizer Park[a] 22,423 2021 2022 David Critchley St. Louis City SC
Pacific Division
Los Angeles FC 2 Fullerton, California Titan Stadium[a] 10,000[28] 2023 2023 Junior Gonzalez Los Angeles FC
Portland Timbers 2 Portland, Oregon Providence Park[a][29] 25,218[30] 2014 2022 Serge Dinkota Portland Timbers
Real Monarchs Herriman, Utah Zions Bank Stadium[a] 5,000[31] 2014 2022 Mark Lowry Real Salt Lake
The Town FC Moraga, California Saint Mary's Stadium[a] 5,500[32] 2021 2022 Dan DeGeer San Jose Earthquakes
Tacoma Defiance Tukwila, Washington Starfire Sports Complex[b] 4,500[33] 2014 2022 Michael Morris[e] Seattle Sounders FC
Ventura County FC Thousand Oaks, California William Rolland Stadium[b] 2,000[34] 2014 2023 Matt Taylor LA Galaxy
Whitecaps FC 2 Burnaby, British Columbia Swangard Stadium[b] 5,228[35] 2021 2022 Ricardo Clark Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Future teams

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Team[36] Location Stadium Capacity Founded Joining Affiliate
Connecticut United FC Bridgeport, Connecticut New Waterfront Stadium[a] 10,000 2024 2026[37] Independent
Jacksonville Armada FC Jacksonville, Florida New Eastside Stadium[a] 8,000 2013 2027
Cleveland Pro Soccer Cleveland, Ohio South Gateway Stadium[a] 10,000 2022 2027[38]
AC Grand Rapids Grand Rapids, Michigan Amway Stadium[a] 8,500 2024 2027
Golden City FC San Francisco, California Kezar Stadium[b] 10,000 2025 2027[39]
The Island F.C. Long Island, New York New Stadium at Mitchel Athletic Complex 2,500 2025 2027

Former teams

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Club City Stadium Capacity Founded Joined Last season Affiliate
Rochester New York FC Brighton, New York John L. DiMarco Field[a] 1,500[40] 1996 2022 2022 Independent
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w Soccer-specific stadium
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Multi-purpose stadium
  3. ^ a b c d Baseball park
  4. ^ Rugby Union
  5. ^ Interim

Timeline

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League member Former member Future member Other leagues

<timeline> DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:22 Period = from:2020 till:2028 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:100 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 #> to display a count on left side of graph, use "left:20" to suppress the count, use "left:20"<# Colors = id:barcolor 

id:line value:blue
id:bg   value:white
         id:Full value:rgb(0.742,0.727,0.852) # Use this color to denote a team that is a current league member
         id:Former value:rgb(0.4,0.80,0.67) # Use this color to denote a team that is a former league member
         id:Future value:rgb(0.5,0.7,0.95)
         id:Other value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote when team that has moved in from a different league was active in the prior league(s)

PlotData= 

width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s

bar:1  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Chicago Fire FC II (2022–present)

bar:2  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Colorado Rapids 2 (2022–present)

bar:3  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Columbus Crew 2 (2022–present)

bar:4  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:FC Cincinnati 2 (2022–present)

bar:5  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Houston Dynamo 2 (2022–present)

bar:6  color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL League One
bar:6  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Inter Miami CF II (2022–present)

bar:7  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Minnesota United FC 2 (2022–present)

bar:8  color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL League One
bar:8  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:New England Revolution II (2022–present)

bar:9  color:Full from:2022 till:end text:New York City FC II (2022–present)

bar:10 color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL League One
bar:10 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:North Texas SC (2022–present)

bar:11 color:Other from:2020 till:2021 text:USL League One
bar:11 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Orlando City B (2022–present)

bar:12 color:Other from:2020 till:2021 text:USL Championship
bar:12 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Philadelphia Union II (2022–present)

bar:13 color:Other from:2020 till:2021 text:USL Championship
bar:13 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Portland Timbers 2 (2022–present)

bar:14 color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL Championship
bar:14 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Real Monarchs (2022–present)

bar:15 color:Former from:2022 till:2023 text:Rochester New York FC (2022)

bar:16 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:St. Louis City 2 (2022–present)

bar:17 color:Full from:2022 till:2024 text:San Jose Earthquakes II (2022–23)
bar:17 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:The Town FC (2024–present)

bar:18 color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL Championship
bar:18 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Sporting Kansas City II (2022–present)

bar:19 color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL Championship
bar:19 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Tacoma Defiance (2022–present)

bar:20 color:Other from:2020 till:2022 text:USL League One
bar:20 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Toronto FC II (2022–present)

bar:21 color:Full from:2022 till:end text:Whitecaps FC 2 (2022–present)

bar:22 color:Other from:2020 till:2023 text:USL Championship
bar:22 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:Atlanta United 2 (2023–present)

bar:23 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:Austin FC II (2023–present)

bar:24 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:Crown Legacy FC (2023–present)

bar:25 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:Huntsville City FC (2023–present)

bar:26 color:Other from:2020 till:2023 text:USL Championship
bar:26 color:Full from:2023 till:2024 text:LA Galaxy II (2022–23)
bar:26 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:Ventura County FC (2024–present)

bar:27 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:Los Angeles FC 2 (2023–present)

bar:28 color:Other from:2020 till:2023 text:USL Championship
bar:28 color:Full from:2023 till:end text:New York Red Bulls II (2023–present)

bar:29 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:Carolina Core FC (2024–present)

bar:30 color: Other from:2020 till:2024 text:NISA
bar:30 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:Chattanooga FC (2024–present)

bar:31 color:Future from:2026 till:end text:CT United FC

bar:32 color:Future from:2027 till:end text:Jacksonville Armada FC

bar:33 color:Future from:2027 till:end text:AC Grand Rapids

bar:34 color:Future from:2027 till:end text:Cleveland

bar:35 color:Future from:2027 till:end text:Golden City FC


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</timeline>

Champions

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Season Playoff champions Regular season champions
2022 Columbus Crew 2 Columbus Crew 2
2023 Austin FC II Colorado Rapids 2
2024 North Texas SC North Texas SC
2025 New York Red Bulls II St. Louis City 2

Finals

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Year Winner Score Runner-up Venue MVP Attendance Ref.
2022 Columbus Crew 2 4–1 St. Louis City 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]
2024 North Texas SC 3–2 Philadelphia Union II Toyota Stadium Herbert Endeley (NTX) 7,692 [43]
2025 New York Red Bulls II 3–3
(3–1 p) 		Colorado Rapids 2 Sports Illustrated Stadium Rafael Mosquera (NYR) 9,095 [44]

Individual game highest attendance

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Regular season

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Home team Score Away team Attendance Stadium Date Ref
1 St. Louis City 2 3–1 Houston Dynamo 2 12,263 Energizer Park May 4, 2025 [45]
2 St. Louis City 2 5–0 Tacoma Defiance 12,022 CityPark October 6, 2024 [46]
3 St. Louis City 2 2–0 Sporting Kansas City II 10,671 CityPark June 23, 2024 [47]
4 St. Louis City 2 4–1 LA Galaxy II 9,626 CityPark September 17, 2023 [48]
5 St. Louis City 2 4–0 Real Monarchs 9,489 CityPark August 6, 2023 [49]
6 The Town FC 0–0
(4–2 p)		 Austin FC II 5,500 PayPal Park April 20, 2024 [50]

MLS Next Pro Cup playoffs

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Home team Score Away team Attendance Stadium Date Ref
1 New York Red Bulls II 3–3
(3–1 p)		 Colorado Rapids 2 9,095 Sports Illustrated Stadium November 8, 2025 [51]
2 North Texas SC 3–2 Philadelphia Union II 7,692 Toyota Stadium November 9, 2024 [52]
3 Columbus Crew 2 1–3 Austin FC II 7,500 Lower.com Field October 22, 2023
4 Columbus Crew 2 4–1 St. Louis City 2 7,446 Lower.com Field October 8, 2022 [53]
5 St. Louis City 2 0–2 San Jose Earthquakes II 5,227 CityPark October 1, 2023 [54]
6 Philadelphia Union II 4–0 Columbus Crew 2 4,727 Subaru Park November 2, 2024 [55]
Key
MLS Next Pro Cup
Conference Final
Conference Semifinal
Otherwise, it is a previous knockout round

See also

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References

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