The United Soccer League, or USL, has renewed its broadcast rights contract with ESPN for another year. First reported by World Soccer Talk, the deal will extend the partnership through the upcoming 2023 season.
In the deal, ESPN will broadcast all USL Championship and USL League One games on ESPN+. The giant sports media company is also set to broadcast select USL matches on its television networks. Presumably, these would be the most important matchups throughout the campaign.
There have been many changes in the historic USL
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Founded in 1986, the USL was initially formed as an indoor soccer league. Three years later, the organization added a traditional outdoor soccer league to its operation. Name changes, team expansions and mergers have filled the history books of the competition in recent decades. It’s safe to say that the USL has gone through a lot of changes in the last 37 years.
However, one of the biggest modifications to the league was to become the official second and third divisions in the United States. US Soccer granted the move in 2017. The USL Championship now sits directly behind Major League Soccer in the nation’s division pyramid. USL also created a third division, called USL League One, during the same year as well.
San Antonio set to defend USL title next month on ESPN+
The USL Championship now consists of 24 teams in two different conferences. San Antonio FC is the current reigning champion of the league, having beaten Louisville City FC in the title game in November. The cities that have teams in this division are usually larger cities in the US that do not have an MLS team. The next Championship season is scheduled to begin on March 11.
World Soccer Talk has contacted the USL for comment. However, a USL spokesperson says the league cannot comment at this time.
PHOTO: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire
