The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

from 2005 to 2010. During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system behind

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...

. It was operated by

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

s (USL) and was known as the

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competit ...

, from 1997 until 2004. Several teams left the league in 2009 to form the new North American Soccer League, with the intent of running their own second-tier league. Following a brief legal dispute, the two leagues operated in tandem under

United States Soccer Federation The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, the federation is ...

(USSF) mediation as the USSF Division 2 Professional League in 2010 before the split became final. The teams that remained in the First Division were merged with the USL Second Division in 2011 to form USL Pro.

History

When the A-League became the USL First Division in 2005, the league comprised 12 teams:

Atlanta Silverbacks The Atlanta Silverbacks FC were an American professional soccer club based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1998 as Atlanta Ruckus, the club played in many leagues over the years before folding after the 2015 season. The team played its home gam ...

, Charleston Battery,

Minnesota Thunder Minnesota Thunder was an American professional soccer team based in Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1990, the team played in the USL First Division (USL-1), the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2009. The team played its h ...

, Montreal Impact,

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at ...

Puerto Rico Islanders Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

, Richmond Kickers, Rochester Raging Rhinos, Seattle Sounders, Toronto Lynx, Vancouver Whitecaps, and Virginia Beach Mariners. The Calgary Mustangs, Edmonton Aviators, and

Syracuse Salty Dogs The Syracuse Salty Dogs (formally Syracuse Football Club) were a professional men's soccer team based in Syracuse, New York. The name of the club originates from "Salty Dog" which is nautical slang for an experienced sailor who has spent much o ...

, all of whom competed in the final A-League season in 2004, folded during the offseason, and did not take up their places in the new league. The Seattle Sounders won the inaugural USL1 championship, beating Richard on penalty kicks in the championship game after a 1–1 tie in regulation time. The Vancouver Whitecaps won the first of their two USL1 titles in 2006 by beating the Rochester Raging Rhinos 3–0 in the championship game, while Seattle won their second title in 2007 by overcoming the

in a one-sided 4–0 final. Vancouver won their second USL1 championship in 2008 by beating the

2–1 in the first USL1 final to feature no American teams; the championship went north of the border again in 2009 when Montreal Impact won their first USL1 title, beating Vancouver 6–3 on aggregate over two legs in the first all-Canadian affair. On August 27, 2009, Nike agreed to sell its stake in the United Soccer Leagues (USL) to Rob Hoskins and Alec Papadakis of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

-based NuRock Soccer Holdings, instead of to the USL Team Owner's Association (TOA), a group comprising the owners of several USL First Division clubs. In the months that followed, several prominent TOA members began to voice their concerns about the state of the league in general, its management structure and ownership model, the leadership of USL president Francisco Marcos, and about the sale of the league to NuRock, which the TOA felt was counter-productive and detrimental to the development of the league. Within several weeks, a number of TOA member clubs threatened to break away from USL and start their own league; this break away became official on November 10, 2009, when the majority of USL-1 clubs, as well as one of the expected 2010 expansion franchises, applied to the

, the Canadian Soccer Association, and FIFA for approval to create a new North American Soccer League, reducing the league's membership to just three teams. After lawsuits were filed and heated press statements exchanged, the

(USSF) declared they would sanction neither the NASL nor the USL First Division in 2010, and ordered both "camps" to work together on a plan to temporarily allow their teams to play a 2010 season. The interim solution was announced on January 7, 2010, with the USSF running the new USSF D2 Pro League comprising clubs from both USL-1 and NASL. All 12 teams from the USL First Division and the NASL competed in the USSF D2 Pro League in 2010, which was won by the

. On September 8, 2010, the USL announced the formation of USL Pro which would merge the USL First Division and USL Second Division to begin play in 2011. The merger is meant to consolidate USL's position within the American professional soccer landscape and focus on commercial growth and professional development of soccer in 4 main regions throughout the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean. The First Division was formally dissolved following the completion of the temporary season to make way for USL Pro.

Expansion and contraction

Prior to 2010, the league had a steady rate of expansion and contraction. Richmond was voluntarily relegated to the USL Second Division in 2006 to cut costs, Toronto was voluntarily relegated to the USL Premier Development League in 2007 because of MLS expansion, and on March 30, 2007, the Virginia Beach Mariners folded just prior to the start of the 2007 season due to an ownership dispute which left the team without financing. These teams were replaced by two new teams: the Carolina RailHawks from the

Triangle A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, any three points, when non- colli ...

region of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

, playing out of Cary, and

California Victory The California Victory was a USL First Division professional soccer team based in San Francisco, California. It was an expansion team for the 2007 season, but ceased operation in September of that year after parent club Deportivo Alavés withd ...

, a team in Northern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

under the ownership of Dmitry Piterman (chairman of Spanish team

Deportivo Alavés Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D. (; ''Sporting Alavés''), usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Founded on 1 July 1920 as Sport Friends Club, it ...

) which folded after the end of the 2007 season, having played only one season. In November 2008, the

announced that they would sit out the 2009 season to "reassess the landscape," and would possibly return at a future date. Similarly, the Seattle Sounders left prior to the 2009 season due to the imminent entrance of

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...

into

. Their spot in the league was taken by the Cleveland City Stars, who won the USL Second Division title in 2008, and voluntarily moved up to USL-1 for the 2009 season, folded at the end of the year. On December 2, 2009, Inside Minnesota Soccer reported that the USL had asked the City Stars to terminate the contracts of all the players, as the franchise was to be dissolved. Posting an email addressed to all players under contract with the Cleveland City Stars and written by team president Jonathan Ortlip and executive director Aaron Tredway, the club executives went on to accept the decision to terminate the franchise. On June 19, 2008, an announcement was made that an expansion slot had been awarded to a Tampa Bay, Florida-based franchise led by main investors

Andrew Nestor Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derive ...

(CEO) and Hinds Howard (chairman) of Citrus Ventures. The plan was for the club to join the league in 2010 and be named the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tier ...

Expansion rumors

Possible cities mentioned for future campaigns included

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

and Syracuse, New York. Syracuse had had a highly attended team in the A-League from 2002 to 2004, but it folded due to stadium issues, having ground-shared with the local baseball team. Fort Lauderdale also had a history of teams from the NASL, American Soccer League, and USL First Division. There was also discussion that Argentinian team River Plate is interested in putting a second USL team in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, as well as discussion that recent start-up team, the San Diego Flash may also join either the USL or NASL. Prior to the 2009 NASL split several other cities had been mentioned as being locations where future USL-1 franchises might launch, including St. Louis, Missouri (led by the current USL Premier Development League (PDL) franchise St. Louis Lions); Orlando, Florida (with Mexican side

Pachuca Pachuca (; ote, Nju̱nthe), formally known as Pachuca de Soto, is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Hidalgo. It is located in the south-central part of the state. Pachuca de Soto is also the name of the municipality of whi ...

being rumored as connected to it);

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

;

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

;

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of ...

;

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

; and

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. On September 1, 2009, a group from Ottawa formally applied for USL-1 team, contingent on the approval of updates to Lansdowne Park. The team would share a field with the Ottawa Redblacks football team. The Ottawa group subsequently committed to the NASL.

Structure

Unlike most other nations, there is no system of merit-based

promotion and relegation In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open league ...

in the American and Canadian pyramids, meaning that the champions of USL-1 could not move up to

and, similarly, the worst teams in MLS were not in danger of being demoted to USL-1. However, some USL-1 teams had in the past chosen to take voluntary relegation to a lower level of the USL system, often to reduce operating costs, while teams had also decided to move up to USL-1 after finding success at the lower levels.

Playoff format

The top seven teams advanced to the playoff tournament, with the Commissioner's Cup winner (regular season champion) receiving a bye into the semi-finals. Each round consisted of two legs, the lower seeded team hosting the first leg, and the higher seed hosting the second. Prior to 2009, the final was played as a single leg at the higher seed's stadium. After the first legs were completed, the lowest remaining seed played the Commissioner's Cup winner, and the higher seeds played each other. The highest remaining seed hosted the penultimate game of the Finals. The playoffs started the week after the completion of the regular season, and typically ended in mid-October.

Teams

(2005–08) * Austin Aztex (2008–09) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League) *

(2007) * Carolina RailHawks (2007–09) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League for NASL Conference) * Charleston Battery (2005–09) * Cleveland City Stars (2009) * FC Tampa Bay (2010) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League) * Miami FC (2006–09) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League for NASL Conference) *

(2005–09) * Montreal Impact (2005–09) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League for NASL Conference) *

(2005–10) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League) *

(2005–10) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League) * Richmond Kickers (2005) * Rochester Rhinos (2005–10) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League) * Seattle Sounders (2005–08) * Toronto Lynx (2005–06) * Vancouver Whitecaps (2005–09) (2010 season played in USSF D2 Pro League for NASL Conference) * Virginia Beach Mariners (2005–06) DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Define $now = 09/01/2014 ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:22 Period = from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2014 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:20 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 value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:lightline value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5) id:bg value:white id:Full value:rgb(0.742,0.727,0.852) # Use this color to denote a current club id:Former value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote a former club id:USSFD2 value:rgb(0.000,0.996,0.996) # Use this color to denote a USSF D2 season id:MLS value:rgb(0.996,0.598,0.996) # Use this color to denote a club that moved on to MLS id:NASL value:rgb(0.398,0.699,0.996) # Use this color to denote a club that went to NASL id:USL value:rgb(0.551,0.824,0.777) # Use this color to denote a club that went to USL league id:PDL-D2 value:rgb(0.897,0.698,0.698) # Use this color to denote a club that went to PDL id:Hiatus value:rgb(0.996,0.797,0.598) # Use this color to denote a club that was on hiatus for a period but returned PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2008 text:

(2005–08) bar:1 color:Hiatus from:01/01/2009 till:12/31/2010 bar:1 color:NASL from:01/01/2011 till:end text: NASL (2011-2015) bar:2 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text: Charleston Battery (2005–2009) bar:2 color:PDL-D2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text: USL 2nd Div bar:2 color:USL from:01/01/2011 till:end text: USL Pro (2011-present) bar:3 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text:

(2005–2009) bar:4 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text: Montreal Impact (2005–2009) bar:4 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:

USSF D2 The USSF Division 2 Professional League (D2 Pro League) was a temporary professional soccer league created by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) for the 2010 season. The twelve-team league was formed as a compromise between the feuding ...

bar:4 color:NASL from:01/01/2011 till:12/31/2012 text:NASL (2011) bar:4 color:MLS from:01/01/2012 till:end text: Montreal Impact in MLS (2012-present) bar:5 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text:

(2005–2009) bar:5 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:5 color:MLS from:01/01/2011 till:end text:

in MLS (2011-present) bar:15 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text:

(2005–2009) bar:15 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:15 color:NASL from:01/01/2011 till:12/31/2012 text:NASL (2011-2012) bar:6 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2005 text: Richmond Kickers (2005) bar:6 color:PDL-D2 from:01/01/2006 till:12/31/2010 shift:(50,-5) text: USL Second Division (2006-2010) bar:6 color:USL from:01/01/2011 till:end text:USL Pro (2011-present) bar:7 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text: Rochester Rhinos (2005–2009) bar:7 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:7 color:USL from:01/01/2011 till:end text:USL Pro (2011-present) bar:8 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2008 text: Seattle Sounders (2005–2008) bar:8 color:MLS from:01/01/2009 till:end text: Seattle Sounders in MLS (2009-present) bar:9 color:Former from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2006 text: Toronto Lynx (2005–2006) bar:9 color:PDL-D2 from:01/01/2007 till:12/31/2014 text: USL PDL (2008-2014) bar:10 color:Full from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2009 text: Vancouver Whitecaps (2005–2009) bar:10 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:10 color:MLS from:01/01/2011 till:end text: Vancouver Whitecaps in MLS (2011-present) bar:11 color:Former from:01/01/2005 till:12/31/2006 text: Virginia Beach Mariners (2005–2006) bar:12 color:Full from:01/01/2006 till:12/31/2009 text: Miami FC (2006–2009) bar:12 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:12 color:NASL from:01/01/2011 till:end text: Fort Lauderdale Strikers in NASL (2011-present) bar:13 color:Former from:01/01/2007 till:12/31/2007 text:

(2007) bar:14 color:Full from:01/01/2007 till:12/31/2009 text: Carolina RailHawks (2007–2009) bar:14 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:14 color:NASL from:01/01/2011 till:end text:NASL (2011-2017); USL (2018–) bar:20 color:Full from:01/01/2008 till:12/31/2009 text: Austin Aztex (2008–09) bar:20 color:USSFD2 from:01/01/2010 till:12/31/2010 text:USSF D2 bar:20 color:Hiatus from:01/01/2011 till:12/31/2011 bar:20 color:PDL-D2 from:01/01/2012 till:12/31/2014 text:USL PDL (2012-14)† bar:20 color:USL from:01/01/2014 till:end text:USL Pro (2015-) bar:21 color:Former from:01/01/2009 till:12/31/2009 text: Cleveland City Stars (2009) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/2005 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightline unit:month increment:6 start:01/01/2005 TextData = fontsize:L textcolor:black pos:(0,30) tabs:(400-center) text: #> If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by selecting the appropriate fields from the following six options (use only the colors that are used in the graphic.) Leave a blank line after the end of the timeline, then add a line with the selected values from the list, separated by a space. <# †The Austin Aztex have been awarded a USL Pro franchise and will begin play in 2015 in that league. * ''See also

League champions / top goal scorer

Regular season champions (Commissioner’s Cup winners)

Most successful clubs

League average attendance

All-time USL leaders

*Note: includes stats from the old A-League

Notes

* (*) Puerto Rico can qualify for the

CFU Club Championship The Caribbean Club Championship, also known as the CFU Club Championship or CFU Club Champions' Cup, was an annual international football competition held amongst association football clubs that are members of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU). ...

via a domestic cup competition.

References

External links

Official site
(archived)
Unofficial fan site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Usl First Division

Fir Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family (biology), family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North America, North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The ...

Defunct soccer leagues in the United States Defunct soccer leagues in Canada