Lower Tier Soccer | Top Tier Coverage
Protagonist soccer is a media organization dedicated to lower-tier soccer; UPSL, NPSL, BSSL
With the big national leagues in the offseason, one of our favorite regional leagues, First Flight League, is just getting started. In conjunction with On Board, the FFL’s youtube show, we’ve got the Week 1 Power Rankings.
Read MoreFour years, this is the article that started it all. After a decade of play in the Northwest, the Kitsap Pumas closed up shop and exited the NPSL. It came as a shock, but it was also just another name in the list of amateur soccer clubs that didn’t make it.
by Phil Baki
Read MoreIn this throwback article from October 31, 2019, Dan Vaughn looks back over the earliest years of American soccer, highlighting the Fall Fiver Marksmen and their goalkeeper, Findlay Kerr. Family contributions, including never before seen photos, make this article a rich one for history fans.
by Dan Vaughn
Read More4 years ago, Robby Smukler and Icarus were almost unknown the vast majority of lower league soccer. We asked him to write about his inspiration, process, and goals for his company. Since then, his company has grown to dominate lower league amateur soccer in the United States.
by Robby Smukler
Read MoreOriginally published in August of 2018, Club of Immigrants focuses on the story of a Texas club that was founded in Mexico and immigrated with the families that filled the roster. Now three generations of Mexican-Americans have played for Inocentes FC in Fort Worth. This is the story of that club.
by Dan Vaughn
Read MoreIt’s not often that we can get a person on the ground at a National Championship, but our own John Howard-Fusco made the trip to see FC Motown win its first NPSL championship. He reports on the match.
by John Howard-Fusco
Read MoreOne of the perks of writing about lower league soccer is that once you show interest and commitment to telling the grassroots’ stories, the stories will often show up without much work. This story is the story of John Morgan, a man committed to growing youth soccer in the state of Maine.
by Dan Vaughn
Read MoreIn this interview, from 2018, we chatted with Laura Mills. Her work on gameday posters for multiple clubs, including Indy Eleven, is legendary. The article includes a sample of her spectacular work.
By Dan Vaughn
Read MoreIn June of 2020, NPSL standout Tulsa Athletic announced that it would no longer be playing the national anthem before matches. The announcement sent ripples throughout the lower league landscape that continue to have clubs questioning how to show support for their communities.
by Dan Vaughn
Read MoreOriginally run in 2020, this article from our focus on branding series talks with Chattanooga FC’s David Smotherman. David discusses what makes CFC’s approach to merchandising so successful and what lessons other clubs could learn from them.
by Dan Vaughn
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