MLS Reserve League

For the league launched in 2022, see MLS Next Pro.

MLS Reserve League
Founded2005
Folded2014
CountryUnited States
Canada
Last championsChicago Fire Reserves

The MLS Reserve League was a soccer league for the reserve teams of Major League Soccer with teams in both the United States and Canada.

It was inaugurated on April 9, 2005, with the first official reserve game being a 2–0 victory by Chivas USA over the host San Jose Earthquakes. The reserve division disbanded after the 2008 season but returned in 2011 with 18 clubs split into East, Central, and West divisions.[1] Each club played ten games consisting of home-and-away matches versus each of its five divisional opponents.

In 2013, the schedule of the MLS Reserve League was integrated with the schedule of the USL Pro, with teams from each league playing each other.[2]

Format

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2005–2008

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  • Each MLS franchise fielded a reserve division team and played a 12-game schedule (six home, six away). All teams played a minimum of seven opposing reserve division teams at least once throughout the year. The reserve division standings consisted of a single table with the team that finished in first place at the end of the regular season earning the title of reserve division champions and a $20,000 team bonus.
  • A total of 20 eligible players for the home team and 20 players for the visiting team could be placed on a club's game roster for any Reserve Division game with each team permitted to make up to six substitutions.
  • Suspensions attributable to yellow and red cards issued in Reserve Division games would only be imposed for future Reserve Division matches and not for games during the MLS regular season. Similarly, suspensions attributable to yellow and red cards issued during MLS regular season games would not apply to Reserve Division matches.
  • Any player who received four yellow cards during the Reserve Division season would be suspended from the next Reserve Division game in which he could appear.
  • No player could play more than 120 minutes in a Reserve Team match and any preceding match(es) that occur within a 60-hour period. Injury time is not considered a part of a player's maximum number of minutes played (e.g., if a player enters a game at halftime and the referee adds 2 minutes of stoppage time to the end of the second half, the player will be considered to have played 45 minutes since the 2 minutes of stoppage time is essentially added to make up for 'lost' time).
  • A Reserve Division call-up or "Guest Player" with an MLS team could be eligible to appear in an MLS Reserve Division Game provided that he is properly registered with U.S. Soccer.

2011–2012

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  • Teams face all but two conference opponents once at home and once away. The two matches with a USL Pro side count towards the 14 match season, therefore removing two games with MLS reserve sides.
  • Teams may at their discretion schedule additional exhibition games for their reserve squads against non-MLS opponents.
  • At the conclusion of the Reserve League season, the team with the most points out of all three conferences will be determined the Reserve League Champion.
  • All players appearing on an MLS club's roster may represent their team in MLS Reserve League play; however, no player may play more than 120 minutes in a reserve team match and any preceding matches that occur within a sixty-hour period. Further, no player may play more than a combined total of 90 minutes in a Reserve Team Match and any preceding matches that occurred within 36 hours prior to such reserve team match.
  • Clubs may also use up to five academy players per reserve game.
  • A Reserve League call-up or "Trialist Player" with a club may appear in reserve league games provided that he is properly registered with US Soccer. A representative from the MLS Club must also certify that the trialist is a bona fide professional soccer player. Trialists may participate in a maximum of two games per club per season.
  • Clubs may play up to a maximum of five non-MLS Roster players per Reserve League Game. Within the five non-MLS roster player limit, only three players may be trialist players.

2013–2014

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In early 2013, MLS and USL reached an agreement to integrate the schedules of the Reserve League and USL Pro. Matches between teams of each league would be scheduled resulting in more games for all clubs.[2] MLS Reserve teams recorded 6 wins, 9 draws, and 11 losses against USL Pro teams in 2013.[3][4]

2014 was the final Reserve League season. Starting in 2015, MLS clubs must either affiliate with a USL Pro club or create their own team in the USL Pro. The LA Galaxy reserve team joined USL Pro as the LA Galaxy II in 2014 and finished third. MLS Reserve teams recorded 9 wins, 5 draws, and 14 losses against USL Pro teams in 2014.

Past winners

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Season Winners Runners-up
2005 D.C. United Reserves MetroStars Reserves
2006 Colorado Rapids Reserves Kansas City Reserves
2007 Colorado Rapids Reserves Chivas USA Reserves
2008 Houston Dynamo Reserves Kansas City Reserves
2009–2010 Reserve League on hiatus
2011 Columbus Crew Reserves Seattle Sounders Reserves
2012 Columbus Crew Reserves Montreal Impact Reserves
2013 No Championship game, Houston (East)
& LA Galaxy (West) won their divisions.
2014 Chicago Fire Reserves Seattle Sounders Reserves

Winners table

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Team Titles
Colorado Rapids 2
Columbus Crew 2
D.C. United 1
Houston Dynamo 1
Chicago Fire Reserves 1

Final standings by year

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2005

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 D.C. United Reserves (C) 12 8 4 0 26 21 +5 24
2 MetroStars Reserves 12 5 3 4 16 12 +4 19
2 New England Revolution Reserves 12 5 3 4 20 18 +2 19
2 FC Dallas Reserves 12 6 5 1 24 24 0 19
5 Colorado Rapids Reserves 12 5 4 3 29 22 +7 18
5 Chicago Fire Reserves 12 5 4 3 24 20 +4 18
5 San Jose Earthquakes Reserves 12 5 4 3 23 20 +3 18
5 Kansas City Wizards Reserves 12 5 4 3 19 17 +2 18
9 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves 12 4 5 3 20 28 −8 15
10 Real Salt Lake Reserves 12 4 6 2 29 34 −5 14
11 Columbus Crew Reserves 12 4 7 1 19 25 −6 13
12 Chivas USA Reserves 12 2 9 1 15 23 −8 7

2006

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Colorado Rapids Reserves (C) 12 9 3 0 24 14 +10 27
2 Kansas City Wizards Reserves 12 7 3 2 25 16 +9 23
3 Houston Dynamo Reserves 12 7 5 0 24 17 +7 21
3 Real Salt Lake Reserves 12 6 3 3 23 20 +3 21
5 D.C. United Reserves 12 6 5 1 22 11 +11 19
6 FC Dallas Reserves 12 4 3 5 20 13 +7 17
7 New York Red Bulls Reserves 12 5 6 1 15 25 −10 16
8 Chivas USA Reserves 12 4 5 3 18 23 −5 15
9 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves 12 4 6 2 20 19 +1 14
9 Chicago Fire Reserves 11 4 5 2 16 18 −2 14
11 Columbus Crew Reserves 12 3 8 1 14 23 −9 10
12 New England Revolution Reserves 11 0 7 4 9 31 −22 4

2007

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Colorado Rapids Reserves (C) 10 7 0 3 22 8 +14 24
2 Chivas USA Reserves 11 6 3 2 25 23 +2 20
2 New England Revolution Reserves 12 6 4 2 20 14 +6 20
4 Kansas City Wizards Reserves 12 6 5 1 22 19 +3 19
5 D.C. United Reserves 12 4 3 5 16 12 +4 17
6 FC Dallas Reserves 12 4 4 4 17 18 −1 16
7 Columbus Crew Reserves 11 4 4 3 17 14 +3 15
7 New York Red Bulls Reserves 9 5 4 0 14 15 −1 15
7 Real Salt Lake Reserves 11 5 6 0 19 17 +2 15
10 Toronto FC Reserves 12 3 5 4 14 19 −5 13
11 Houston Dynamo Reserves 12 3 6 3 16 21 −5 12
12 Chicago Fire Reserves 11 2 6 3 12 19 −7 9
13 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves 11 2 7 2 14 29 −15 8

2008

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Houston Dynamo Reserves (C) 12 9 1 2 33 15 +18 29
2 Kansas City Wizards Reserves 11 8 1 2 31 13 +18 26
3 Real Salt Lake Reserves 12 7 3 2 31 24 +7 23
4 Chicago Fire Reserves 12 5 5 2 25 22 +3 17
5 D.C. United Reserves 10 5 4 1 19 21 −2 16
5 Toronto FC Reserves 10 5 4 1 12 19 −7 16
7 Chivas USA Reserves 12 4 5 3 19 21 −2 15
7 San Jose Earthquakes Reserves 12 4 5 3 18 22 −4 15
7 FC Dallas Reserves 12 4 5 3 19 24 −5 15
10 Columbus Crew Reserves 11 4 5 2 13 13 0 14
11 Colorado Rapids Reserves 12 4 6 2 16 21 −5 14
12 New York Red Bulls Reserves 12 3 7 2 16 23 −7 11
13 New England Revolution Reserves 10 2 6 2 11 16 −5 8
14 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves 12 1 8 3 15 23 −8 6

2011

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Eastern

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Columbus Crew Reserves (C) 10 9 1 0 29 10 +19 27
2 D.C. United Reserves 10 5 1 4 21 14 +7 19
3 New England Revolution Reserves 10 4 5 1 14 22 −8 13
4 New York Red Bulls Reserves 9 2 5 2 10 20 −10 9
5 Toronto FC Reserves 9 2 5 2 15 15 0 8
6 Philadelphia Union Reserves 10 2 7 1 9 17 −8 7

Central/Mountain

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Chicago Fire Reserves (C) 10 7 2 1 19 10 +9 22
2 Houston Dynamo Reserves 10 6 4 0 11 5 +6 18
2 FC Dallas Reserves 10 6 4 0 18 21 −3 18
4 Sporting K.C. Reserves 10 3 5 2 11 14 −3 11
5 Colorado Rapids Reserves 10 3 6 1 12 11 +1 10
6 Real Salt Lake Reserves 10 3 7 0 10 10 0 9

Western

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Seattle Sounders Reserves (C) 10 8 1 1 21 11 +10 25
2 Portland Timbers Reserves 10 6 2 2 24 16 +8 20
3 Chivas USA Reserves 10 3 3 4 18 21 −3 13
4 San Jose Earthquakes Reserves 9 3 5 1 11 12 −1 10
5 Vancouver Whitecaps Reserves 10 2 6 2 10 14 −5 8
6 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves 9 1 6 2 11 20 −9 5

2012

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Eastern

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Columbus Crew Reserves (C) 10 7 2 1 21 9 +12 22
2 Montreal Impact Reserves 10 7 2 1 19 10 +9 22
3 Philadelphia Union Reserves 10 4 4 2 20 20 0 14
4 New York Red Bulls Reserves 10 3 5 2 14 16 −2 11
5 D.C. United Reserves 9 3 5 1 9 19 -10 10
6 New England Revolution Reserves 10 2 5 3 9 15 −6 9
7 Toronto FC Reserves 9 2 5 2 13 16 −3 8

Central/Mountain

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Houston Dynamo Reserves (C) 10 6 2 2 19 11 +8 20
2 FC Dallas Reserves 10 6 3 1 17 11 +6 18
3 Colorado Rapids Reserves 10 5 4 1 12 10 +2 16
4 Chicago Fire Reserves 10 4 6 0 12 15 −3 12
5 Real Salt Lake Reserves 10 3 5 2 10 17 −7 11
6 Sporting K.C. Reserves 10 2 6 2 8 16 −8 8

Western

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts
1 Los Angeles Galaxy Reserves (C) 10 6 3 1 22 11 +11 19
2 San Jose Earthquakes Reserves 10 5 3 2 15 12 +3 17
3 Seattle Sounders Reserves 10 4 5 1 18 19 -1 13
3 Portland Timbers Reserves 10 4 5 1 17 18 -1 13
5 Chivas USA Reserves 10 3 4 3 21 21 0 12
6 Vancouver Whitecaps Reserves 10 3 5 2 11 22 −11 11

2013

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East

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Pos Club GP W L T GF GA GD Pts PPG
1 Houston Dynamo Reserves (C) 9 5 4 0 12 16 -4 15 1.67
2 Columbus Crew Reserves 14 6 6 2 28 26 +2 20 1.43
3 New York Red Bulls Reserves 12 5 5 2 24 19 +5 17 1.42
4 Montreal Impact Reserves 11 4 4 3 16 13 +3 15 1.36
5 Toronto FC Reserves 8 3 4 1 15 12 +3 10 1.25
6 FC Dallas Reserves 13 5 7 1 21 26 -5 16 1.23
7 Chicago Fire Reserves 13 5 7 1 24 30 -6 16 1.23

West

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Pos Club Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts PPG
1 LA Galaxy Reserves (C) 10 5 1 4 16 9 +7 19 1.90
2 Vancouver Whitecaps Reserves 10 4 2 4 21 15 +6 16 1.60
3 Real Salt Lake Reserves 14 6 4 4 14 13 +1 22 1.57
4 Chivas USA Reserves 12 5 6 1 23 24 -1 16 1.33
5 San Jose Earthquakes Reserves 10 4 5 1 18 12 +6 13 1.30
6 Colorado Rapids Reserves 14 5 7 2 16 20 -4 17 1.21
7 Seattle Sounders FC Reserves 12 4 6 2 17 21 -4 14 1.17
8 Portland Timbers Reserves 14 4 7 3 16 23 -7 15 1.07

USL Pro

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Beginning in 2013, MLS teams could elect to affiliate with a USL Pro team rather than fielding an MLS Reserve League team.

MLS club USL Pro affiliate
D.C. United Richmond Kickers
New England Revolution Rochester Rhinos
Philadelphia Union Harrisburg City Islanders
Sporting Kansas City Orlando City

2014

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Pos Club GP W L T GF GA GD Pts PPG
1 Chicago Fire Reserves (C) 9 6 1 2 16 9 +7 20 2.22
2 Seattle Sounders Reserves 7 3 1 3 11 6 +5 12 1.71
3 FC Dallas Reserves 8 4 4 0 11 11 0 12 1.50
4 Montreal Impact Reserves 8 3 4 1 8 8 0 10 1.25
5 Colorado Rapids Reserves 6 1 2 3 9 11 -2 6 1.00
6 Real Salt Lake Reserves 7 1 2 4 8 10 -2 7 1.00
7 New York Red Bulls Reserves 8 2 5 1 9 15 -6 7 0.88
8 Chivas USA Reserves 7 1 5 1 9 12 -3 4 0.57

USL Pro

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In 2014, the number of MLS teams electing to affiliate with USL Pro teams (rather than fielding an MLS Reserve League team) increased and the LA Galaxy moved their reserve team to compete directly in the USL Pro league.

MLS club USL Pro affiliate
Columbus Crew Dayton Dutch Lions
D.C. United Richmond Kickers
Houston Dynamo Pittsburgh Riverhounds
LA Galaxy LA Galaxy II
New England Revolution Rochester Rhinos
Philadelphia Union Harrisburg City Islanders
Portland Timbers Sacramento Republic
San Jose Earthquakes Sacramento Republic
Sporting Kansas City Oklahoma City Energy
Orlando City SC
Toronto FC Wilmington Hammerheads
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Charleston Battery
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References

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  1. ^ Commissioner reveals details of Reserve Division
  2. ^ a b "MLS, USL Pro reach deal on restructured Reserve League". www.mlssoccer.com. January 23, 2013. Retrieved January 27, 2013.
  3. ^ "USL Pro 2013 Schedule". United Soccer Leagues (USL). September 8, 2013. Archived from the original on March 8, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  4. ^ "2014 Reserve League Schedule". www.mlssoccer.com. March 8, 2014. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
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