Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

Over the course of the last several years, the U.S. Soccer Federation created an impetus among the leadership of the USL to bring every club into compliance with every FIFA guideline regarding player contracts. As of the end of the 2017 season, USL clubs were more consistently and completely adhering to FIFA guidelines than clubs in the NASL or MLS. The USL made a strong commitment to meet FIFA standards for all player contracts in the league’s effort to be recognized as a sanctioned Division II league by the USSF.

With this background, it comes as a surprise that one USL expansion club has a contract addendum that not only doesn’t meet FIFA guidelines, but seems to undermine the long-term spirit of the way the USL has handled player contracts.

The player contract for the USL expansion side obtained by Soc Takes includes the following language applicable to players with semi-guaranteed deals as an amendment to the standard USL player contract:

“Semi-Guaranteed Player Status: Except as specifically set forth in Section I.B. below, and for the complete avoidance of doubt as it relates to all sections of the Player Agreement (including, but not limited to, Section 1, 16, 18 & Addendum B), Player further agrees and acknowledges that (name redacted) may terminate Player Agreement at any time during the term of the Player Agreement in the Club’s sole discretion. In the event of an early termination of the Player Agreement, Club agrees to pay Player the pro-rata amount of salary due to him as of the date of the termination and shall be under no further obligation to provide any additional compensation (including, but not limited to housing, insurance, etc.) except as specifically required by law (e.g., COBRA insurance coverage, etc.).”

Our understanding is that this clause is not being introduced league wide and not being used as addendum to other player contracts with expansion teams in the league. However, it is possible if the club has success in implementing this clause, other USL teams looking to cut costs and depress wages might follow. It also could serve as an example of the type of cost-cutting player contract addendum we might see in other U.S. professional leagues.

• Related: What USL documents tell us about Tommy Heinemann saga

Through the years, the USL has made an effort to ensure professional players are in professional environments. Not long ago, many players — if not most — outside Major League Soccer were often found holding down second, third and even fourth jobs just to make ends meet.

These days, many players can survive during the season on their USL salaries alone. But now, perhaps given the diminishing revenues across the lower divisions, austerity might begin to reign again in terms of player salaries.

UPDATE

In response to this report, a USL official responded with the following comment:

“The USL has invested heavily in player standards over the years, and its Compliance Department closely monitors these issues across the league to ensure we meet USSF and FIFA regulations. This addendum issue was an isolated occasion with a new expansion club that mistakenly included non-compliant language to their player contracts. As soon as they learned of this issue, the Compliance Department moved quickly to work with the club and ensure these contracts were nullified, and new compliant contracts were executed with the players prior to the new season. The department also reached out to every club in the league, reemphasizing that all contracts are guaranteed by FIFA regulations, and such addendums are not acceptable.

We are committed to upholding player standards across the USL, and we take very seriously our compliance with U.S. Soccer Federation and FIFA player contract regulations. Our team works hard to ensure all the league’s clubs maintain the highest standards, and we continue to build upon that.”

Follow Kartik on Twitter: @kkfla737.

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Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

Welcome to the big show, FC Cincinnati.

The club with by far the most staggering attendance figures in all of lower-division American soccer is off to MLS. League commissioner Don Garber & Co. announced The Queen City as the latest MLS expansion market Tuesday at Rhinegeist Brewery. FC Cincinnati will officially become MLS’ 24th team, set to debut in 2019.

“Let me begin by letting you in on a little secret — alright, maybe not so little,” FC Cincinnati president and GM Jeff Berding said at the announcement. “This day was always the vision for (owner and CEO) Carl Linder and me from the day that we began on Aug. 12, 2015. This was always the plan. We had a vision of where we were going, we had a plan on how we were going to get there, we had a commitment to hold people accountable and we were always guided by the same core values.”

The city’s bid was chosen second, after Nashville, from a selection process that originally started with 12 cities vying for a spot among four. The remaining two cities will be selected at a later date. Sacramento and Detroit, both of whom were named finalists alongside Nashville and Cincy for the first two openings, will now have to reshuffle back into the deck and re-prove their worth over the other eight cities still holding out a glimmer of hope for a spot in MLS: St. Louis, Indianapolis, Raleigh, Charlotte, Phoenix, San Diego, San Antonio and Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg.

Some of those cities’ bids have effectively been killed already due to a lack of local public support, but technically all are still in play. MLS has made it clear that its unlikely to select bids that don’t have a concrete stadium plan and financing ironed out.

This year, Los Angeles FC became the league’s 23rd team. FC Cincinnati will become the 24th next year, while Nashville plans on debuting in 2020 as the 25th. David Beckham and his investment group continue to sort out their ongoing saga down in Miami, but eventually will join as No. 26. Two other markets will be chosen out of the remaining eight to reach MLS’ ultimate stated goal of 28 teams.

FC Cincinnati, currently in the USL, will continue playing at Nippert Stadium in MLS while its shiny new stadium is being constructed.

“After many thrills of victories and agonies of defeat — the great stadium and players that’ll be part of your history — you’re going to remember this day as a truly historic event for The Queen City, for FC Cincinnati, for Major League Soccer and for soccer in North America, so congratulations,” Garber said. “You should be incredibly proud of your meteoric rise as one of our continent’s most incredible soccer cities. And it’s a testament to so many of you that are here today — an event that I will promise you, I’ll never forget.”

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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Photo credit: Matt Boulton/Flickr

Multiple sources inform Soc Takes that Energy FC head coach Jimmy Nielsen has left the Oklahoma City club, taking his staff – Mark Howard, Chris Spendlove and James Ritchie – with him.

The Energy enjoyed a strong second half of the USL season, propagating them to the semifinal of the Western conference.

One source informed Soc Takes that Nielsen quit because “their (Energy FC) player budget was reduced and their raises weren’t big enough.” Soc Takes has not been able to independently verify this claim.

Multiple sources inform Soc Takes that Nielsen does not currently have an UEFA A license; an USSF requirement. Therefore, in keeping Nielsen, Energy showed loyalty to the ex-goalkeeper as the team had to apply for an USSF waiver. With the departure of the Danish manager, Energy FC are expected to be USSF compliant on all counts except field dimensions.  

The future for Nielsen and his crew remains uncertain. While the group were interested in the recently vacated St. Louis FC job, Soc Takes understands that Nielsen is not the front-runner for that position.

Update (11/16/17, 735PM): Nielsen spoke to Soc Takes contributor James Poling about parting ways with the team –

Nielsen: “I respect the ownership tremendously. We couldn’t come to a new agreement, but I don’t envision that changing the relationship that we have moving forward.”

— James Poling (@James_Poling) November 17, 2017

Follow Nipun on Twitter: @NipunChopra7.

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Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

Confusion abounds over the circumstances surrounding the Founders Cup. The NPSL-aligned professional “league” is expected to kickoff in August, but per sources and Chris Kivlehan’s reporting, some issues remain. This article attempts to dive into those issues.

These issues include problems getting group insurance for players, potential member disagreements and/or defections and concerns over sanctioning.

Group Insurance

As Soc Takes reported, NPSL board members convened on June 4 to discuss potential solutions to the player insurance issue. At the core of this issue is that the league has found it difficult to get group insurance rates for a mix of professional and amateur players.

This includes disparate rules for workers compensation which vary from state to state. Using this resource, we examined the state requirements of each team currently slated to be a Founders Cup participant:

Tennessee: Required, but independent contractors (IC) may be exempt. Average cost: $1.13/$100 salary

New York: Required, including part-time employees and IC. Average cost: $0.98/$100 salary

Arizona: Required, but IC exemptions exist. Average cost: $0.95/$100 salary

California: Required. Average cost: $1.85/$100 salary

Florida: Required. Average cost: $1.32/$100 salary

Michigan: Slightly more complicated, but from my reading of it, required for NPSL clubs. Average cost: $1.77/$100 salary

Wisconsin: Required. Average cost: $0.99/$100 salary

(Caveats: Most of these state associations have clauses that claim that entities that have “more than four” employees must provide Workers’ Compensation. However, as it true of most professional clubs in the United States, players are often “independent contractors,” and amateur clubs often have no more than three or four employees on full-time staff. Therefore, some of this will require more legal interpretation. To the best of my reading, however, each state will require the Founders Cup to provide Workers’ Compensation to players.

It must also be noted that these “average” costs are likely to be non-representative of what is required of sports entities. Due to the likelihood of employment-related injuries, sports teams may theoretically have higher rates for workers compensation as they tend to do with insurance.)

Therefore, if we take a representative salary for lower-division soccer — a $30,000 annual salary for 22 players — we have a net of $660,000 as total player salaries. Within the above range of $0.95-$1.85 per $100 salary, each club could be expected to fork out $6,270-$12,210 in Workers’ Compensation costs. Across 10 clubs, that’s approximately $62,700-$122,210.

And this is one of the areas of disagreement — if NPSL provides this insurance league-wide, who should be paying for this cost? Just the Founders Cup members or all members who benefit from the Workers’ Compensation?

NPSL league sources conveyed that it remains unclear whether the league can provide Workers’ Compensation to both professional and amateur players.

However, Soc Takes subsequently learned that USL’s insurance covers professional athletes (Championship, League One) as well as amateur athletes (League Two). Therefore, this particular concern may not apply after all.

It is also possible that clubs resort to providing Workers’ Compensation themselves, in lieu of under a league-wide umbrella. However, Soc Takes understand that the rates for doing so are much higher and may be prohibitive for certain Founders Cup members.

Member disagreements and/or defections

In speaking to owners in the NPSL, there seems to be some disagreement regarding the leadership of the league. Two owners, both non-participants in the Founders Cup, expressed concerns about the interests of Cup members superseding those of non-participants. “We want them to succeed, but we want to be involved (in planning) as well,” one of the aforementioned two owners expressed to Soc Takes.

Meanwhile, a Founders Cup participant described discussions with league members as “herding cats,” citing conflicts between “big personalities” as sidetracking productive conversations.

Additionally, per sources, Miami FC representatives will be attending the NISA meetings being held in Charlotte this week. Soc Takes has learned that Miami FC is likely to participate in the Founders Cup for 2019, but a “small chance” exists that they could be playing with NISA in the fall. Either way, their involvement beyond 2019 appears equivocal.

A source says Miami FC is still committed to the Founders Cup for 2019, but is increasingly likely to jump to NISA for 2020. Soc Takes reached out to NISA chairman John Prutch, but an email went unanswered.

Additionally, two sources inform Soc Takes that other teams associated with the Founders Cup may look to NISA in 2020.

It must be recognized that NISA’s own status remains mired in confusion and conflict. But that’s a different article altogether.

Sanctioning

Amid reports that NPSL Pro/Founders Cup may seek to attain sanctioning, Soc Takes reached out to the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) via a series of emails to clarify the possibilities for sanctioning. This is what we learned:

Nipun Chopra: Is it possible for a professional league to sanction another pro league? Specifically, is it possible for NISA to award pro sanctioning to the NPSL Founders Cup (similar to the USL sanctioning of USL League Two)? Or would that sanctioning have to come directly from the USSF?

USSF spokesperson: Any sanctioning of a league is through U.S. Soccer. USL League Two is not sanctioned as a pro league. It is amateur.

NC: Could NISA theoretically sanction NPSL Pro as an amateur league distinct from the NPSL’s current sanction?

USSF: I’m not sure amateur leagues are “sanctioned” in the way we are discussing. The fact that a league is given sanctioning is to confirm it’s professional. If you want to be amateur you can create that without our approval.

NC: Is there anything prohibiting a league from being sanctioned as amateur, but it’s participating clubs paying its players?

USSF: Fine for amateur team to pay players.

(Note: The interview questions have been edited for clarity. The answers are unedited.)

Based on this interview, it seems that the Founders Cup can attain pro sanctioning from the USSF or amateur sanctioning via a multitude of routes. But, it cannot attain pro sanctioning via any other route than through the USSF.

Now, could they just call themselves a professional league and play outside of the USSF/USASA umbrella? Of course, but that might engage legal/logistical considerations such as FIFA player protection, U.S. Open Cup opportunities, etc.

There also remains a lack of clarity within the NPSL regarding the sanctioning option. An owner who’s not part of the Founders Cup was surprised to learn that they would be applying for sanctioning. On the other hand, a Founders Cup member told Soc Takes that the league would indeed attempt to attain sanctioning “outside the traditional route,” claiming that “administrative concerns” meant it would not be easy.

So, there you go. Lots of confusion with very few clear-cut answers. It seems the league will hobble to the starting line, but the success and future directions of the Founders Cup plan remain equivocal. But then, that’s par for the course in the madness of lower-division American soccer.

An NPSL spokesperson declined to comment on the contents of this story.

Follow Nipun on Twitter: NipunChopra7.

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Image credit: Second Helpings

INDIANAPOLIS — Every time Indy Eleven midfielder Zach Steinberger scores this season, three organizations will link up to put free meals in the hands of Hoosiers in the Central Indiana area.

Second Helpings and Green Bean Delivery have partnered with the Eleven and their skilled 25-year-old attacker on the season-long promotion. Whether home or away, each time Steinberger tallies this year, 100 pounds of fresh produce will be given by Green Bean Delivery to Second Helpings to be distributed to 85 of its local partner agencies.

“We are thrilled to partner with Indy Eleven player Zach Steinberger for his 2018 season,” Green Bean Delivery marketing manager James Nimmer said in a release. “Fighting food insecurity in the Indianapolis community has always been a priority for us at Green Bean Delivery. By donating 100 pounds of fresh produce to Second Helpings for each goal Zach scores, it not only helps feed those in need, but brings needed attention to a prevalent issue within our community, and that is the vast number of children and seniors who don’t have daily access to a warm, nutritious meal.”

Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

Second Helpings, a hunger relief nonprofit, specializes in converting donated and salvaged food into 4,000 free delivered meals a day. Staff and volunteers alike work together to help the organization combat food insecurity. It also offers a free Culinary Job Training program geared toward adults seeking work in the food industry.

“Donated and rescued food is the lifeblood of Second Helpings,” explained the nonprofit’s chef and director of hunger relief Kathy Jones in a release. “Partnerships like this one with Indy Eleven and Green Bean are critical to our ability to provide healthy, nutritious meals to the most vulnerable members of our community.”

Image credit: Green Bean Delivery

Founded in 2007, Green Bean Delivery provides communities with access to fresh, nutritious food. The company has given more than one million pounds of produce to food banks since its inception, per its website.

“After hearing about such an incredible cause from James Nimmer at Green Bean Delivery, I was so excited to get involved any way I could,” Steinberger said in a release. “I had no idea how many people and even children were food insecure in Indianapolis. It was so uplifting to discover that Second Helpings not only provides meals but they also offer job training for those who are desperately in need. I fell in love with this vision. My goal this season is to help spread awareness and contribute as much as I can to eradicating hunger in Indy with the help of Green Bean Delivery and Second Helpings.”

Steinberger’s next opportunity to send out a shipment of 100 pounds of fresh produce is Saturday at North Carolina FC. The Indy Eleven will look to bounce back after a 1-0 loss to FC Cincinnati in their first-ever match at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Keep an eye on Steinberger all season long, and remember that way more than just a ball will have been kicked each time he finds the back of the net; food security in Central Indiana will have been dealt a staggering blow as well.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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Image credit: NPSL

On Friday, the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) unveiled its Region XI, a list of the best 11 players plus a manager from each of the league’s four regions. Here is the full list of 2018 NPSL Region XI selections:

MIDWEST REGION

Head Coach Dale White, Erie Commodores FC Goalkeeper Jan Hoffelner, Duluth FC Defender Chris Cvecko, Cleveland SC Defender Joseph Stanley Okumu, AFC Ann Arbor Defender Trent Vegter, Grand Rapids FC Midfielder Max Stiegwardt, Minneapolis City SC Midfielder Niklas Roessler, Med City FC Midfielder Craig Quinn, Erie Commodores FC Midfielder Derek Sutton, Grand Rapids FC Forward Vinny Bell, Cleveland SC Forward Yuri Farkas, AFC Ann Arbor

Forward William Kidd, Minneapolis City SC

NORTHEAST REGION

Head Coach Carlos Mendes, New York Cosmos B Goalkeeper Hami Kara, Hartford City FC Defender Hani Nasr, FC Motown Defender Jonathan Borrajo, New York Cosmos B Defender Thomas Judge, FC Monmouth Midfielder Matt Nigro, FC Motown Midfielder Jade Mesias, FC Baltimore Midfielder William Eskay, FC Frederick Midfielder Yaya Fane, Junior Lone Star FC Forward Dilly Duka, FC Motown Forward Jacob Gosselin, FC Frederick

Forward Bljedi Bardic, New York Cosmos B

SOUTH REGION

Head Coach Will Montgomery, Little Rock Rangers Goalkeeper Carlos Herrera, Laredo Heat SC Defender Ben Watson, Little Rock Rangers Defender Uzi Tayou, FC Wichita Defender Younes Boudadi, Laredo Heat SC Midfielder Nelson Landaverde, FC Wichita Midfielder Jamie Lovegrove, Fort Worth Vaqueros FC Midfielder Dylan Mares, Miami FC 2 Midfielder Javier Monsalvez Carazo, Jacksonville Armada FC Forward Guillermo Diaz, Laredo Heat SC Forward Alex Guadron, Little Rock Rangers

Forward Isaac Promise, Georgia Revolution FC

WEST REGION

Head Coach Paul Caligiuri, Orange County FC Goalkeeper Hugo Gomez, Orange County FC Defender Brennen Canfield, Academica SC Defender Jorge Lualua, Napa Valley 1839 FC Defender Spencer Wolfe, Spokane SC Shadow Midfielder Tanner Williams, Spokane SC Shadow Midfielder Miguel Lara, Sonoma County Sol FC Midfielder Ignacio Nacho Cancela, FC Arizona Midfielder Daniel Crisostomo, Orange County FC Forward Cody Golbad, Academica SC Forward Edson Cardona, El Farolito

Forward Michael Ramos, Spokane SC Shadow

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