As the United Soccer League closed the the book Sunday night on 2016, USL president Jake Edwards promised an announcement in the coming days that two “strong teams” will add to Reno 1868 FC’s entry next year.
Edwards stated his claim at halftime of the USL Cup Final, a 5-1 New York Red Bulls II victory over the Swope Park Rangers at Red Bull Arena.
It marked the first USL title for a Major League Soccer owned or operated side. And while Louisville City FC doesn’t often lost playoff games, New York made it two years running that the club fell to the eventual USL champion. After in 2015 defeated in the Eastern Conference Final, LouCity saw the Rochester Rhinos claim the crown.
Following this year’s postseason defeat, coach James O’Connor promised his return along with the core of Louisville’s roster. He pledged that LouCity will need go “go all the way” in 2017, though presumably, there will be even more competition than the 29 teams that played this year in the USL.
Thanks to the launch of FC Cincinnati, the league reported a nearly 33 percent increase in attendance this year. For the start of next season, USL Productions, which promises higher quality broadcasts across the board, will go live. By 2020, the USL aims to be U.S. Soccer’s second division league with each of its members in soccer-specific stadiums.
Alec Papadakis, the USL’s CEO, recently told Forbes, “The USL is the most sophisticated, best operated and most competitive league under MLS. We are well positioned across the largest markets in the [United States of America] and our investments in operational excellence has guaranteed all teams are provided the highest level of professional services and support.
“Our first-class ownership group has been a key element to USL’s success over the past six years and is outmatched only by MLS. These efforts have been rewarded with ever-increasing franchise valuations, new revenue generation opportunities and ticket sales.”