In 2020, Major Soccer League stepped in when U.S. Soccer ended its Boys Development Academy and launched MLS Next, a national youth league comprised of its clubs’ academy teams plus more than 100 amateur clubs. MLS’s expansion into the American soccer landscape increases further in 2022 with the launch of MLS Next Pro, a Division III league that in its first season will feature 20 MLS-affiliate teams (including St. Louis, which enters MLS in 2023) and one independent team, Rochester.

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Soccer America Executive Editor Mike Woitalla has written freelance articles about soccer for more than 30 media outlets in nine nations. The winner of eight United Soccer Coaches Writing Contest awards,...