Lower Tier Soccer | Top Tier Coverage
Protagonist soccer is a media organization dedicated to lower-tier soccer; UPSL, NPSL, BSSL
Your guide the 2024 US Open Cup Round of 16 is here and our writers and guest contributors give us the lay of the land. No new clubs have entered and we have begun the final whittling down toward the Final… We have USL vs USL and USL vs MLS - great matchups for fans of the Soccer Warz. So, let’s take a look and get stuck in!
by Protagonist Staff and Guest Contributors
Read MoreWhile most of the soccer fans in this country has their tv’s tuned to ESPN+ for the US Open Cup final, we had our own man in Exploria Stadium to see the match first-hand. From before the match to Denny’s after, Cameron Reed describes the matchup between USL and MLS and how Sacramento Republic gave all lower league fans a sense of hope.
by Cameron Reed
Read MoreWith under 24 hours to go before the US Open Cup Final, Major League Soccer franchise Orlando City SC admit they are being investigated for possible spying on the “Underdogs” - are the “Favorites” scared?
by Joshua Duder
Read More“Major League Soccer doesn’t deserve the Sacramento market… They played their inaugural season in 2014 and only went on to win the league in their first foray into the soccer world – in nearly every civilized footballing nation, that would have seen them move up.”
by Joshua Duder
Read MoreWith only four matches this round, we are running out of teams to care about - Sacramento Republic of the USL Championship and Union Omaha of USL League One are the only two clubs left carrying the guidon for non-MLS teams to root for.
by Joshua Duder
Read More“I’m not saying we can take this roster and go play in MLS, and compete week-in week-out at that level, but in a knock-out competition, I think we can win any game we play in. We’ve proved that so far, and hopefully it can continue, but even if it doesn't, I think we proved that no matter what YOU are, you need to respect Union Omaha in a knock-out game.”
by Joshua Duder
Read More“Beyond our community, we do user interviews every week with club presidents, operations directors, coaches, and players, from clubs at all levels of the pyramid in the US, Canada, UK, and other countries. I've personally spoke to 150 people about how they manage their club.”
by Joshua Duder
Read MoreThere are eight matches left in the whole competition and only three of them really matter to us - otherwise its the end of the road for the teams we can get behind in the 2022 US Open Cup.
by Joshua Duder
Read More“But there is a fourth path to earning a berth in the CONCACAF Champions League (from the United States), one MLS has not completely made unavailable to the rest of the leagues, professional or even amateur, and that is the winner of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup (coincidentally, a tournament the Seattle Sounders have won four times).”
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