Major League Soccer (MLS) revealed the identity of the 21 clubs that will be in the inaugural MLS NEXT Pro campaign in 2022 on Monday, but CF Montreal is not affiliated with any of them.
The Montreal organization is also not in the plans for the expansion scheduled for the following season, in 2023.
This new league will act as the North American second division, just like the American League is for the National League, in hockey. It will therefore allow the hopes of an organization, as well as its veterans to prove their worth in the hope of being called back to MLS.
Last season, young and old CF Montreal players who were not with the big club either played in the Canadian Premier League or trained in the Academy.
Of the 21 squads that will kick off the 2022 MLS NEXT Pro campaign, 20 will be affiliated with a Garber Circuit squad, including teams from the other two Canadian MLS organizations, the Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps. Eight other clubs associated with a professional organization will enter in 2023.
The only independent team in this new league will be Rochester NY FC. The England star belonging to Leicester City, in the English Premier League, Jamie Vardy, is co-owner of the new club, along with David and Wendy Dworkin.
“We look forward to promoting Rochester as a premium professional club and are excited to start it off by helping kick off the inaugural season of the MLS NEXT Pro in 2022,” the multi-award winning player said in a statement. to his record, including the Golden Boot of the English Premier League in 2019-2020, an honor awarded annually to the top scorer of the best English circuit. Joining this league, filled with opportunities for our community, fans, players and staff, both on and off the pitch, is a point of pride for our organization. ”
Each MLS NEXT Pro roster will play 24 duels per season and eight of them will make the playoffs.
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