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The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a
North American North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Ca ...
professional indoor soccer league. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. MASL is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. MASL players generally earn salaries ranging from $15,000–45,000 per season, but former
USMNT The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT) represents the United States in men's international soccer competitions. The team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and is a member of FIFA and CONCACAF. The U.S. team ha ...
and
MLS 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 Canada ...
star Landon Donovan earned as much as $250,000 to play one year in 2019.


History

The league was organized as the Professional Arena Soccer League on May 18, 2008, as an offshoot of the
Premier Arena Soccer League The Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL) is an indoor soccer league with mostly semi-professional teams; along with a number of amateur teams across North America. The PASL was previously known as the Federation of Sports Arenas (FSA). The PASL logo ...
(PASL-Premier), the largest amateur league in the United States. The league was originally nicknamed "PASL-Pro" to distinguish it from PASL-Premier. The first league game was played on October 25, 2008, in front of a crowd of 3,239 at the
Stockton Arena Stockton Arena is an indoor arena in Stockton, California. It opened in December 2005 and seats a maximum of 12,000 fans. It is the home venue of the Stockton Kings of the NBA G League. Former tenants include the Stockton Heat of the American H ...
, in Stockton, California, with the
California Cougars The California Cougars were an indoor soccer team, founded in 2004. The team was a charter member of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro), the first division of arena (indoor) soccer in North America. They played their home matches a ...
defeating the
Colorado Lightning The Colorado Lightning was an American professional indoor soccer team, founded in 2008. The team was a charter member of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro), the Second division (at the time of play) of arena (indoor) soccer in No ...
10–5. In 2011, it was announced the professional league would officially be referred to as simply PASL, while the amateur league would still be referred to as the PASL-Premier. On March 17, 2014, one day after the 2013–2014 Major Indoor Soccer League Championship finale,
United Soccer Leagues United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
President Tim Holt announced "a number" of teams would not be returning to MISL the following year. In April 2014 it was officially announced that six teams (
Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with ...
,
Milwaukee Wave The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, m ...
,
Missouri Comets Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas to th ...
, Rochester Lancers, St. Louis Ambush, and
Syracuse Silver Knights Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' * Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York * Syracuse, Indiana *Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Mis ...
) joined PASL for the 2014–2015 season. The league announced a change in its name from the Professional Arena Soccer League to the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) on May 18, 2014.< This represents a merging of the MISL and PASL names. MASL fielded 23 teams for the 2014–15 season.


Split and re-merger into the MASL

In February 2016, the current owner of the
Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with ...
, Ed Hale, announced his intentions to leave the MASL and form a new league, the Indoor Professional League. Hale was later announced as the chairman of the league, and Sam Fantauzzo, former owner of the Rochester Lancers, was announced as the first commissioner of the league. The St. Louis Ambush, Baltimore Blast, and Harrisburg Heat announced plans to join, along with the expansion Florida Tropics SC. In July 2016, the MASL was reformed as a new not for profit entity 501(c)6, a new entity separate from the previous MASL, LLC. In August 2016, the new MASL announced that the Blast, Heat, and Ambush would return to the MASL while the Tropics would join the MASL as an expansion team. This effectively ended the IPL split with the MASL. In a repeat of the 2015-16 Newman Cup the Baltimore Blast would go on to once again defeat
Soles de Sonora The Soles de Sonora (English: "Sonora Suns") are a Mexican professional indoor soccer franchise based in Hermosillo, capital city of the northwestern state of Sonora. Founded in October 2014, the team made its debut in the Major Arena Soccer Lea ...
2–1.


Launch of M2

In October 2017 it was officially announced the
Major Arena Soccer League 2 The Major Arena Soccer League 2 is a North American indoor soccer league that serves as the developmental league of the Major Arena Soccer League. History M2 launched in 2017 to "provide an outlet for teams to either reorganize for a re-emergen ...
(M2) would launch in December 2017. The M2 serves as the developmental league for the MASL. The initial lineup of this league consisted of former MASL clubs Chicago Mustangs,
Waza Flo The Waza FC (also known as Detroit Waza) is an American professional indoor soccer, arena soccer team based in Metro Detroit competing as a charter member of the Major League Indoor Soccer (2022-present), Major League Indoor Soccer (MLIS). The te ...
, the reserve teams for the
Ontario Fury The Empire Strykers are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Ontario, California. Founded in 2013, the team made its debut in the Professional Arena Soccer League at the start of the 2013–14 season. The team plays its home gam ...
,
San Diego Sockers San Diego Sockers may refer to: *San Diego Sockers (1978–1996) The San Diego Sockers were a soccer and indoor soccer team based in San Diego, California. The team played in the indoor and outdoor editions of the North American Soccer League ( ...
, former PASL clubs, and new expansion teams.


High-profile players

In the 2018–19 season, the MASL saw an influx of players to the arena game with past
MLS 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 Canada ...
experience, headlined by the additions of Landon Donovan to the
San Diego Sockers San Diego Sockers may refer to: *San Diego Sockers (1978–1996) The San Diego Sockers were a soccer and indoor soccer team based in San Diego, California. The team played in the indoor and outdoor editions of the North American Soccer League ( ...
,
Jermaine Jones Jermaine Junior Jones (born November 3, 1981) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defensive midfielder. Born in Germany to an American father and German mother, he came up through the German club system and represe ...
to the
Ontario Fury The Empire Strykers are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Ontario, California. Founded in 2013, the team made its debut in the Professional Arena Soccer League at the start of the 2013–14 season. The team plays its home gam ...
, and
Dwayne De Rosario Dwayne Anthony De Rosario OOnt (born May 15, 1978) is a Canadian former professional soccer player, who played as a forward or as an attacking midfielder. De Rosario last played for the Mississauga MetroStars of the Major Arena Soccer League. ...
with the
Mississauga MetroStars Mississauga MetroStars (briefly known as MetroStars Canada in 2019) were a professional indoor soccer team which played its home games at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The team joined the Major Arena Soccer Leag ...
.


End of the 2019–20 season

Like many sports leagues, the MASL ended its regular 2019–20 season early because of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. In May, the league announced that it was looking at conducting its playoffs in a centralized location. However, this did not take place, and the remainder of the season was cancelled.


Formation of the Major Arena Soccer League 3

On July 20, 2020, the MASL launched a new semi-professional/amateur developmental league known as M3 (
Major Arena Soccer League 3 The Major Arena Soccer League 3 (MASL3) is a North American indoor soccer league that serves as the developmental league of the Major Arena Soccer League and MASL2. History Established in the summer of 2020, MASL3 is the third tier of indoor so ...
) set to kickoff in 2021. The anticipated conferences expected to play were to be in the North East, Mid-Atlantic, South East, Great Lakes, Central North, Central South, Heartland Conference, Mountain North, Mountain South, Southwest, Pacific North, and Pacific South regions. The Omaha Kings FC, Sunflower State FC, Grand Rapids Wanderers FC and Muskegon Risers SC were announced as the first members of the league. However, the Risers were dropped from M3 and replaced by the Springfield Demize and Wichita Wings 2. The league launched their new website on January 30, 2017.


Teams

;Notes: a – Suspended operations following the 2019–20 season due to COVID-19, and rejoined the league for the 2021–22 season.
b – Chihuahua joined the M2 for the 2019–20 season and then suspended operations following the season due to COVID-19. Originally planned to rejoin the M2 for the 2021–22 season, the MASL membership of the
Soles de Sonora The Soles de Sonora (English: "Sonora Suns") are a Mexican professional indoor soccer franchise based in Hermosillo, capital city of the northwestern state of Sonora. Founded in October 2014, the team made its debut in the Major Arena Soccer Lea ...
was transferred to the Savage instead.
c – Dallas suspended operations following the 2016–17 season; they rejoined the league for the 2018–19 season.
d – Mesquite suspended operations following the 2019–20 season due to COVID-19, they rejoined the league for the 2022–23 season.
e – Monterrey suspended operations following the 2014–15 season; they rejoined the league for the 2017–18 season. Monterrey suspended operations following the 2019–20 season due to COVID-19, they rejoined the league for the 2022–23 season.
f – Tacoma moved down to the PASL-Premier for the 2013–14 season, played in the WISL in the 2014–15 season and then rejoined the MASL near the end of the 2014–15 season (in 2015) replacing the
Seattle Impact Seattle Impact FC was an American professional indoor soccer team that began play as a member of the Major Arena Soccer League with its 2014-15 season. Based in Seattle, Washington, the Impact played its home games at the ShoWare Center in nearby ...
.


Champions


North American Finals


Ron Newman Cup


Attendance

;Notes: a – Does not include 28 games where attendance was not reported. The PASL 2008–09 regular season consisted of 86 games total.
b – Does not include 8 games where attendance was not reported. The PASL 2009–10 regular season consisted of 95 games total.
c – Does not include 10 games where attendance was not reported. The PASL 2010–11 regular season consisted of 94 games total.
d – Due to COVID-19 only 17 out of 41 games this season where attendance was recorded. In the Ron Newman Cup Playoffs only 5 out 14 games recorded attendance.
e – Does not include 2 regular season games where attendance was not reported; the MASL 2021–22 regular season consisted of 141 games total. Does not include 5 playoff games where attendance was not reported; the 2022 Ron Newman Cup Playoffs consisted of 18 games total.


Sponsorship

The official game ball was made by
Puma SE Puma SE, branded as Puma, is a German multinational corporation that designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel and accessories, which is headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. Puma is the third largest sportswea ...
through the 2016–17 season. Starting in the 2017–18 season,
Mitre The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in ...
became the official ball sponsor of both the MASL and M2.


Broadcast rights

Select 2018-2019 MASL matches were broadcast on
Eleven Sports Network Next Level Sports is an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television channel. The network also operates an online presence under the alternate brand For the Fans (FTF). History In March 2017, the U.S. international sports channel ...
in the United States. Some matches are also broadcast regionally throughout the United States. All matches since 2016–2017 season are archived o
MASLtv
the MASL's YouTube Channel


Staff


Commissioner

Keith Tozer Keith Tozer is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League, American Soccer League and American Indoor Soccer Association. He is currently the commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League. Play ...


Office of the Commissioner

Shep Messing Shep Norman Messing (born October 9, 1949) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper and current broadcaster who works as the lead analyst for New York Red Bulls matches on the MSG Network. In 2021 he took the position of chairman of the Major Arena ...
– ''Chairman''
JP Dellacamera John Paul "JP" Dellacamera (born January 11, 1952) is an American play-by-play sportscaster primarily for Major League Soccer with the Philadelphia Union, as well as major soccer tournaments and ice hockey. Commentary career Soccer In the 1 ...
– ''President of Communications/Media''
Lindsay Mogle – ''Director of Communications/Team Services''
Jon Ramin – ''Vice-President of Operations''
Werner Roth – ''Advisor''
Dennis Fry – ''Chief Financial Officer''
Ken Stanley – ''Content Director''
Ryan Cigich - ''Head of MASL Officials''
Jesse Meehan - ''Operations Manager''
Pete Richmire – ''League Statistician, Social Media''
Óscar Sánchez – ''Spanish Content Manager''
Phil Lavanco – ''Video Production Manager''


Executive committee

Lane Smith (Tacoma) – ''President''
Bernie Lilavois Bernie Lilavois (born August 31, 1970 in Far Rockaway, New York) is an American soccer forward who played two seasons in the American Professional Soccer League, one in the USISL, one in the USL A-League, four in the Continental Indoor Soccer ...
(Ontario) – ''Vice-President''
Shelly Clark (St. Louis) – ''Secretary''
Phil Salvagio (San Diego) – ''Treasurer''
Mike Zimmerman (Milwaukee) – ''Member-at-Large''


Former/defunct teams


References


External links

*
World Minifootball Federation
{{Top sport leagues in the United States Indoor soccer leagues in the United States Professional sports leagues in the United States Professional sports leagues in Mexico Multi-national professional sports leagues