Rochester New York FC: How the only non-MLS owned club is building its squad for the first-ever MLS Next Pro season – recruitment analysis

In two weeks, a new league will start in the USA and Canada. In a football pyramid in which there are no promotions or relegations, the MLS and the USL Championship will continue being the first and second divisions but from 2022, a new third tier will appear alongside the USL League One and the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA): the MLS Next Pro.

According to the league’s official website, they’re committed to “accelerating the future of soccer in North America”, “empowering local communities”, “establishing a platform for innovation and diversity” and “completing the pro player pathway”. In a country in which football (soccer) is growing so quickly, it seems logical for the MLS to have another league that can help them to develop talent in a professional environment fully under their control. 

The league will have 21 teams in its first season, 20 MLS-owned B teams and Rochester New York Football Club. Most of these teams already have their squads and will just move from another league (St. Louis City SC will compete here with their B team ahead of their MLS debut in 2023) but the case of Rochester NY FC is different as they haven’t played since 2017 so they’ll need to recruit a whole new squad.

In this recruitment analysis, we’ll see how they have signed their players so far and what they still need to do before the league starts.