MLS NEXT has three tiers: Tier 1 clubs affiliated with MLS franchises, Tier 2 playoff teams like Barca Residency and Gosha, and Tier 3 lower-tier teams. Players can pursue Division I, II, or III college soccer or sign an MLS NEXT Pro contract, though that deal can block NCAA eligibility if they don't make the MLS first team.
MLS Next, beyond the basics. Is MLS Next good enough to help you play college soccer? There's two tiers I want you to keep in mind when it comes to MLS Next. Actually, three. Number one are MLS Next teams that are directly affiliated with pro teams. LA Galaxy, Philadelphia Union, New York Red Bulls. Tier two are MLS Next teams that are going to playoffs at flex. So this could include those teams, but it could also include a Barca Residency, a Gosha, a Delco, these high-level teams. And then underneath that you have MLS Next teams that are trying to make it to playoffs, but maybe don't go to playoffs every single year. Depending on which level you're at, these tend to be the top 5 schools in the country, right, the highest level if you're directly affiliated with an MLS Next team and you're debating between a pro contract and college soccer. Then the teams like Gosha, still same deal. You may not be in line to go pro, but you're definitely in line to go to the best colleges. If you're going to MLS Next playoffs, you're definitely in line for potential Division I. And if you're an MLS Next team, then you're in line for Division I still, or Division II or Division III, depending on what your goals are. But you have to keep in mind, playing MLS Next is not the highest level. There's MLS Next teams that are the best in playoffs and MLS NEXT teams that are ranked because their players are playing for their youth national teams or are directly affiliated with pro teams and they're debating between a pro contract and playing college soccer. There's quite a few players who end up deciding to play pro instead of college and that's good for them. There are other players who go, you know what, I might be able to sign an MLS NEXT pro team contract, which is technically considered pro but is not the first team in MLS, it's the second team. And they go on to play and then never make it to the first team and you know, never play really at the higher levels than that and blew their amateur contract. They can never go to college. Other players go to college because they didn't make their MLS NEXT Pro team or chose not to. For example, on UCLA, there's quite a few LAFC kids who got offered pro contracts but chose to go to UCLA. They kill it at UCLA, like Lepley, rejected a Sporting Kansas City offer, decided to go to college at UCLA, get an education, and then he got drafted before he could even graduate to the Galaxy and won the MLS Cup. So what you decide to do really depends on your goals, but either way, MLS NEXT is a great opportunity to play college soccer. If you would like a list of MLS NEXT teams in your state, comment the word "state" and I will send you a list of all the schools in your state.
