NASL Receives Provisional Sanctioning As Division II League

There will be Division II soccer in the United States next season.

The NASL, as expected, received provisional sanctioning from the USSF to play as a Division 2 league next season. The league will consist of eight teams in 2011 and begin play on April 9 with a match between last year’s USSF D-2 finalists, the Carolina Railhawks and Puerto Rico Islanders.

The league will be rounded out by Miami FC, the Montreal Impact, NSC Minnesota Stars and FC Tampa Bay, who all played in USSF D-2 last season. FC Edmonton and the Atlanta Silverbacks will join the league as expansion teams. A San Antonio franchise is scheduled to join the league in 2012 and another expansion team is expected to be announced for the 2013 season.

“We are considering the addition of several expansion teams in the coming months,” NASL CEO Aaron Davidson said in a release. “Despite the excitement surrounding this announcement, we intend to carefully consider how, when and where to expand to ensure the stability of the NASL and to put the best possible product on the field for our fans.”