A freshman in the National Amateur League asks if moving to MLS Next could still lead to Division I soccer. MLS Next improves visibility but doesn't guarantee it, since most MLS Next players don't reach that level. The real goal is finding a coach who gives you minutes, whether at Division I or III.
I'm playing NAL right now. Could I still go Division 1 if I make an MLS Next team next year? Since you're a freshman right now, all the doors are still open and available to you. It depends. If you go to an MLS Next team next year, that does not mean you're gonna play Division 1. Most MLS Next kids do not even make it Division 1. Does it increase your chances for Division 1 playing MLS Next? Absolutely. Because you're a freshman and you're playing NAL, which hopefully means the NAL team you're with is either becoming an MLS Next 2 team or is directly affiliated with the MLS team, every year as a freshman you get to try and break into the MLS team. And if you break into the MLS team, by the time you're a sophomore and you go to these showcases, they will come watch you and you have a better chance of playing college soccer. Forget Division I, Division II, Division III. You're trying to find the right coach, whether it's Division I or Division III. You're aiming for the right coach for you where you play minutes and you're happy. So the answer is yes, playing MLS NEXT would help you in your process. But being a freshman in NAL does not mean it's too late to play Division I. It does mean you need to make more video. You will have to go to more camps than a kid who's already playing MLS NEXT. And you have to be realistic to what type of Division I. There's Stanford-level Division I, 1, and then there's IUPUI Division 1, and there is a big gap there, but they're both technically Division 1.
