NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOCCER CITY, USA (March 1, 2014) –– A new website, Relegate US, has launched for the 2014 season in United States soccer to provide fans with a hypothetical system for promotion and relegation for all clubs in MLS, NASL, and USL.
But more than relegation, it's primary mission is promotion of all professional soccer clubs in the United States by placing them together in one system and on equal footing.
Throughout the season, Relegate US will keep the standings for a two-division soccer system in the United States and show which teams would be in the running for promotion and relegation.
Relegate US has taken all 51 clubs –– which includes existing clubs and those that have been announced as confirmed future expansion clubs –– and divided them into two divisions with each division split into a western and eastern subdivision.
The first division, dubbed MLS 1, contains 26 clubs divided evenly into 13 teams in the west subdivision and 13 teams in the east.
The second division, dubbed MLS 2, contains 25 clubs with 13 in the western half and 12 in the eastern half.
The teams were placed in the first or second division based on average attendance for the 2013 season. The last team to make it into MLS 1 was the Carolina RailHawks with an average attendance of 4,708.
Just missing out on MLS 1 and instead going to MLS 2 was the Atlanta Silverbacks with an average attendance of 4,677.
In addition to the Carolina RailHawks, other non-MLS teams to be placed in the first division include the San Antonio Scorpions, New York Cosmos, Orlando City, and Rochester Rhinos.
Expansion teams New York City FC, starting in 2015, and Miami, tentatively scheduled to debut in 2016, were placed in the first division based on assumed attendance.
Future MLS expansion teams will also automatically be initially placed in the first division based on scope of the franchise. Future NASL and USL expansion teams will start in the second division initially.
The idea for this site is to show what divisions would be like if the United States had a promotion and relegation system, so NYC FC, Miami, and other expansion teams from all three leagues will be included in the standings prior to fielding teams even though they will not accumulate points and will be exempt from relegation for this example.
Only professional teams with a full roster of paid players are eligible for entrance into the Relegate US standings. Clubs in the fourth tier and below of U.S. soccer –– USL PDL, NPSL, and NSSL –– will not be included.
In this hypothetical model, teams in the west division of MLS 1 will play each other twice during the season and play each team from the east side once, for example. That makes for a total of 37 games per season, which is consistent with the international standard.
The top four teams from the west and top four teams from the east in MLS 1 will make the playoffs at the end of the season. MLS 2 will have the identical system.
Unlike the English Premier League and other European leagues, only one team will be relegated and only one team promoted per season in this model.
This keeps the excitement of relegation but minimizes the risk and harshness of relegation in a country where the sport is not established well enough to support full relegation.
The last-place team in the east and west of MLS 1 will battle it out in a playoff to determine who gets relegated to MLS 2 for the following year.
The MLS 1 and MLS 2 standings will reflect and adjusted point total for clubs in NASL and USL with an attempt to accurately reflect where they would be versus the MLS teams.
As a bonus, games in the CONCACAF Champions League and U.S. Open Cup will count in the standings to reward clubs playing and succeeding in extra games.
So visit the website at www.Relegation.US all season long as foremost experiment in American promotion and relegation begins.
Friday, February 28, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
2013-2014 attendance rankings
for MLS, NASL, and USL teams
To form the top two divisions of a promotion/relegation system for the United States, the teams were split based solely on attendance, a good barometer of public interest and quality of club. To make the first division, teams had to average more than 4,700 per game. Sorry, Atlanta, better luck filling the football dome. Attendance and divisions are below.
First Division
1) Seattle
Sounders – 44,038
2) LA
Galaxy – 22,152
3) Portland
Timbers – 20,674
4) Montreal
Impact – 20,603
5) Vancouver
Whitecaps – 20,038
6) Houston
Dynamo – 19,923
7) Sporting
Kansas City – 19,709
8) New
York Red Bulls – 19,461
9) Real
Salt Lake – 19,218
10) Toronto
FC – 18,131
11) Philadelphia
Union – 17,867
12) Columbus
Crew – 16,080
13) Colorado
Rapids – 15,440
14) FC
Dallas – 15,373
15) Chicago
Fire – 15,228
16) New
England Revolution – 14,844
17) D.C.
United – 13,645
18) San
Jose Earthquakes – 12,765
19) Chivas
USA – 8,366
20) Orlando
City – 8,056
21) San
Antonio Scorpions – 6,937
22) New
York Cosmos – 6,849
Second Division
23) Rochester Rhinos – 5,898
25) Atlanta Silverbacks – 4,677
26) Minnesota
United – 4,445
27) Fort
Lauderdale Strikers – 4,265
28) Tampa
Bay Rowdies – 4,044
29) Charleston
Battery – 3,554
30) Pittsburgh
Riverhounds – 3,273
31) Wilmington
Hammerheads – 3,162
32) Richmond
Kickers – 2,527
33) FC
Edmonton – 2,437
34) Phoenix
FC – 1,532
35) Harrisburg
City Islanders – 1,456
36) Charlotte
Eagles – 807
37) Dayton
Dutch Lions – 753
38) OC
Blues – 718
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