MLS Next Pro
MLS Next Pro is a men's professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer. It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and will expand to 28 in 2023. The league comprises 27 reserve sides for MLS clubs and the independent Rochester New York FC. MLS Next Pro is classified as part of the third tier of the United States soccer league system. History 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. 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. All MLS clubs with reserve t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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CONCACAF
The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football,, ; french: Confédération de football d'Amérique du Nord, d'Amérique centrale et des Caraïbes, . Dutch uses the English name. abbreviated as CONCACAF ( ; typeset for branding purposes since 2018 as Concacaf), is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, due to geopolitical reasons, three nations from the Guianas subregion of South America— Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana (an overseas region of France). The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments. The CONCACAF was founded in its current form on 18 September 1961 in Mexico City, Mexico, with the merger of the NAFC and the CCCF, which made it one of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Foxborough, Massachusetts
Foxborough is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, about southwest of Boston, northeast of Providence, Rhode Island and about northwest of Cape Cod. Foxborough is part of the Greater Boston area. The population was 18,618 at the 2020 census. "Foxborough" is the official spelling of the town name per local government, but the abbreviated spelling "Foxboro" is common and is used by the United States Postal Service. Foxborough is best known as the site of Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) and the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer (MLS). History Settled in 1704 and incorporated in 1778, the town of Foxborough was named for Charles James Fox, a Whig member of Parliament and a staunch supporter of the Colonies in the years leading up to the American Revolution. The town was once home to the world's largest straw hat factory. Founded by local businessman E.P. Carpenter, the Union Straw Works b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Philadelphia Union
The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 2010 as an expansion team. The club's home stadium is Subaru Park, a soccer-specific stadium located in Chester, Pennsylvania on the banks of the Delaware River. The Union are currently owned by Keystone Sports & Entertainment, with Jay Sugarman serving as majority owner and chairman of the club. Professional basketball player Kevin Durant also serves as a minority owner. The club's current head coach is Jim Curtin. Curtin has been coaching the Union since 2014. The Union finished as runners-up in the 2014, 2015 and 2018 U.S. Open Cup tournaments. The club lost to Seattle Sounders FC 3–1 in extra time in 2014, and to Sporting Kansas City 6–7 on penalties after a 1–1 draw in the 2015 edition. They lost 3–0 to the Houston Dynamo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Marlon LeBlanc
Marlon LeBlanc (born October 6, 1976) is an American soccer coach who is currently head coach of Philadelphia Union II. Career Raised in East Windsor, New Jersey, LeBlanc played prep soccer at Hightstown High School before playing for the Penn State Nittany Lions men's soccer team/ He was formerly the head men's soccer coach at West Virginia University. He was named the 2006 Soccer America Coach of the Year, leading the team to a 15-3-3 record. LeBlanc led the Mountaineers to six NCAA tournament appearances, including a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2007, 1 BIG EAST Championship and 2 MAC Championships. He previously served as an assistant coach at Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ... from 2001 to 2005, leading the program as interim head coach f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Subaru Park
Subaru Park (formerly known as PPL Park and Talen Energy Stadium) is a soccer-specific stadium located in Chester, Pennsylvania, located next to the Commodore Barry Bridge on the waterfront along the Delaware River. The venue is home to the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer. Subaru Park was designed as an initial step for economic development on the waterfront, with additional plans calling for a riverwalk amidst other entertainment, retail, and residential projects. The stadium was constructed by T.N. Ward Company, which is based in Ardmore. The project is the result of combined commitments of $30 million from Delaware County and $47 million from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Subaru of America is the stadium's naming rights sponsor. Construction Major League Soccer (MLS) had been interested in entering the Philadelphia market for several years, with many promises of a team by Commissioner Don Garber, as evidenced by his statement, "It's not a matter of i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chester, Pennsylvania
Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is the oldest city in Pennsylvania and is located on the western bank of the Delaware River between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware. It was the location of William Penn's first arrival in the Province of Pennsylvania and the county seat for Chester County from 1682 to 1788 and Delaware County from 1789 to 1851. Chester evolved over the centuries from a small town with wooden shipbuilding and textile factories into an industrial powerhouse producing steel ships for two World Wars and a myriad of consumer goods. Since the mid-twentieth century, it has lost its manufacturing base and over half of its residents and devolved into a post-industrial city struggling with pollution, poverty, and crime. History Early history Th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Philadelphia Union II
Philadelphia Union II is an American professional soccer team based in Chester, Pennsylvania competing in MLS Next Pro. Founded in 2015 as Bethlehem Steel FC, the team is the official affiliate of the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer. The team competed for five seasons in the USL Championship (the first three as Bethlehem Steel FC) before going on hiatus from competition during the 2021 season. The club's current colors are navy blue and gold. History Since the formalized partnership between United Soccer League and Major League Soccer in 2013, MLS teams had begun to form and field their own teams on the then third tier. This endeavor was largely driven to fill in the missing piece of player development between high school/college players and professional soccer players. In June 2015, the Philadelphia Union sent out a survey to fans gauging interest in fielding their own USL team. The survey input and directives from the Union front office eventually led to the creatio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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New York City FC
New York City Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in New York City that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), the highest level of American soccer, as a member of the league's Eastern Conference. The club is co-owned by City Football Group, which also owns the English soccer club Manchester City, and Yankee Global Enterprises, owners of the New York Yankees. New York City played its first league game in the 2015 MLS season, as the twentieth expansion team of the league; it is the first franchise based in the city, and the second in the New York metropolitan area, after the New York Red Bulls, with whom they contest the Hudson River Derby. Since 2015, the club have primarily played their home games at Yankee Stadium (shared with baseball's New York Yankees) in the Bronx, Citi Field in Queens, and Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey and have been known to train on Pier 5 fields in Brooklyn. Jason Kreis was the club's first coach, before being repl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Matt Pilkington
Matt Pilkington is an English football manager, who is currently head coach for New York City FC II in MLS Next Pro. Playing career Born in England, Pilkington was part of the academy of Rochdale F.C. as a child. Pilkington studied in the US, featuring for the collegiate teams for George Washington University. After graduation he signed for the Richmond Kickers, then competing in the second tier of the A-League but shortly to transfer to the United Soccer League. Managerial career Before beginning his playing career Matt Pilkington began his transition to coaching, receiving an English FA coaching licence in 1998. In 2005, Matt Pilkington joined the DC United academy set-up, remaining as part of the coaching staff until 2008. Several years later he would return to coaching, joining Bethesda-Olney in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. In 2014 he transferred to local New York youth team Downtown United SC, for whom he would act as academy technical director across age gr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Belson Stadium
Belson Stadium is a 2,168-seat soccer-specific stadium located at Utopia Parkway and Union Turnpike in Queens, New York City, on the campus of St. John's University. It is the home of the St. John's Red Storm men's and women's soccer teams. The stadium is unique in that it is built on top of a parking garage to save space in the dense urban environment of Queens. The stadium is named in honor of Maxine and Jerome Belson. Mr. Belson was a graduate of St. John's law school, a member of the university's Board of Trustees and a past benefactor to the university. The Belsons donated $6 million for the construction of the stadium and an additional $5 million was raised for the parking garage and landscaping. From 2013 to 2018, the stadium was the home field of F.A. Euro New York of USL League Two (USL2). On November 13, 2016, the stadium hosted the Soccer Bowl, the championship game of the North American Soccer League (NASL), between the New York Cosmos and the Indy Eleven. The Co ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the List of United States cities by population density, most densely populated major city in the United States, and is more than twice as populous as second-place Los Angeles. New York City lies at the southern tip of New York (state), New York State, and constitutes the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass. With over 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York is one of the world's most populous Megacity, megacities, and over 58 million people live within of the city. New York City is a global city, global Culture of New ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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New York City FC II
New York City FC II is an American professional soccer team based in New York City. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of New York City FC, and plays in MLS Next Pro, the third tier of the United States soccer league system. History When NYCFC entered MLS in 2015, the league had no reserve competition. For their first few seasons NYCFC affiliated first with Wilmington Hammerheads FC and then with San Antonio FC but these partnerships were little used and the club continued with no minor league affiliate for several seasons afterwards. MLS Next Pro On December 6, 2021 Major League Soccer announced the formation of a new league, MLS Next Pro, which would be a combination of a development league and a competitive tournament sitting on the third tier of the United States soccer league system The United States soccer league system is a series of professional and amateur soccer leagues based, in whole or in part, in the United States. Sometimes called the Ameri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |