American Soccer League System Explained: A Complete Guide to Understanding US Soccer

I still remember the first time I tried explaining American soccer to my British cousin during his visit last summer. We were sitting in a packed stadium watching an MLS match when he turned to me and asked, "So how does all this fit together with promotion and relegation?" That's when I realized how confusing the American soccer landscape can be even for seasoned football fans. The truth is, our system operates completely differently from what most international fans are used to, and understanding it requires unraveling what I like to call the American soccer league system explained.

As the match unfolded before us, I started drawing diagrams on a napkin, showing him how we have this unique pyramid structure without the traditional promotion and relegation system that defines European football. I explained how Major League Soccer sits at the top with its 29 teams—26 from the US and 3 from Canada—operating as a single-entity league where the league owns all the teams rather than individual owners. My cousin kept nodding, but I could see the confusion in his eyes when I mentioned that teams can't simply play their way up to the top division through performance alone.

What really made it click for him was when I described how lower divisions like the USL Championship and MLS Next Pro feed into the system, but they won't be coming alone. There's this whole ecosystem developing beneath the surface that most casual fans never see. I shared my experience attending a USL League One match in Richmond last year—the passion in that smaller stadium was just as electric as what we were experiencing in the MLS arena, just on a different scale. The players there dream of moving up, but the path isn't as straightforward as scoring goals and winning matches. It involves complex ownership requirements, financial stability checks, and expansion fees that can reach hundreds of millions of dollars for MLS entry.

The conversation naturally drifted toward the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, which remains one of my favorite competitions precisely because it's the closest thing we have to that traditional pyramid experience. I've followed lower-division teams making Cinderella runs through the tournament, and there's something magical about watching a semi-pro team from somewhere like Michigan beat a professional MLS side. Last year's tournament saw 103 teams compete across all divisions—that's more than the entire English football pyramid participates in their FA Cup. These moments create the kind of drama that American soccer desperately needs more of.

We discussed how the system continues to evolve, with MLS planning to reach 30 teams by 2025 and the USL announcing its own ambitious division one aspirations. Personally, I'm torn about this expansion—part of me loves seeing soccer grow in new markets, but another part worries we're diluting the talent pool too quickly. The average MLS roster now includes about 30 players, with salary budgets ranging from about $5 million to over $20 million for the big spenders like Atlanta United. That's a far cry from the early days when I attended DC United matches in the 90s and the entire league operated on shoestring budgets.

What fascinates me most about our system is how it reflects American sports culture while gradually incorporating more global soccer traditions. We're creating something unique here—a hybrid model that borrows elements from both worlds. The introduction of things like the MLS Cup playoffs satisfies the American appetite for postseason drama, while the Supporters' Shield honoring the regular-season champion appeals to traditional football sensibilities. It's not perfect—I'd personally love to see some form of limited promotion and relegation introduced—but it's ours, and it's growing in ways nobody predicted when the league launched with 10 teams back in 1996.

As the final whistle blew on that match we attended, my cousin finally said he understood—the American system isn't better or worse than what he grew up with, just different. And that's the beauty of global football—these different approaches can coexist and even learn from each other. The complete guide to understanding US soccer isn't just about memorizing league structures—it's about appreciating the unique journey the sport has taken in this country and recognizing that the system continues to evolve in fascinating ways. Next time he visits, I promised to take him to a USL match so he can experience another layer of this complex, occasionally confusing, but always compelling American soccer landscape.