United Soccer Leagues started in 1986 as the Southwest Indoor Soccer League, and has since grown into the largest professional league ever in the United States, comprising over 140 teams in both indoor, outdoor, amateur and women’s leagues. USL originally started in 1986 playing only indoor soccer, but added an outdoor season starting in 1989. Since then, the outdoor league has grown rapidly to become the primary grass-roots league operating at the minor league level. In 1997, USL absorbed the A-League teams, creating a new USSF sanctioned Division 2 league (now called “USL First Division”) of 24 teams, as well as a USSF sanctioned 3rd division (now called “USL Second Division”), and the Premier Development League (an amateur circuit, informally the “4th division”). These comprise over 100 teams. The Women’s league (W-League), the Super 20 League and the Super Y-League (Youth) expanded the USL into a wide territory. USL has flourished, with nationwide presence and the stronger teams drawing in excess of 4,000 fans. Many thanks to eRic Vormelker (netminder@sbcglobal.net) and Mark Hlavenka for researching much of the 1989-1995 data. Some of the earliest material was provided by Kevin Raymond Mitzel (kevin@npsl.com).
Outdoor scoring system (1989-1995): 6 points for a win, 4 points for a shootout win, 2 points for a shootout loss, 0 points for a regulation loss, 1 point for each goal scored up to 3 per game.
Indoor scoring system (1986-present): 4 points for a win, 3 points for a shootout win, 1 point for a shootout loss, 0 points for a regulation loss.
Outdoor scoring system (1996-1998): 3 points for a regulation win, 1 point for a shootout win, 0 points for a shootout loss, 0 points for a regulation loss.
Outdoor scoring system (1999): 4 points for a regulation win, 2 points for a shootout win, 1 point for a shootout loss, 0 points for a regulation loss.
Outdoor scoring system (2000-2002): 4 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss + 1 bonus point when scoring three or more goals in a game.
Outdoor scoring system (2003-present): 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points.
Current Division 1 standings | Current Division 2 Standings | Current PDL standings
1986-1987 SOUTHWEST INDOOR SOCCER LEAGUE (indoor) GP W L GF GA PTS Garland Genesis 12 11 1 49 12 98 Lubbock Lazers 12 10 2 36 13 90 Oklahoma City Warriors 12 8 4 23 16 68 Albuquerque Outlaws 12 6 6 32 30 57 Amarillo Challengers 12 5 7 31 35 52 Semifinal: Lubbock defeated Oklahoma City in a best of 3 series. FINAL: Addision defeated Lubbock 7-2. Note: Bonus points were awarded, hence the unusual placement of Lubbock and Oklahoma City. Garland moved to Arlington during the season. 1987-1988 SOUTHWEST INDOOR SOCCER LEAGUE (indoor) Before the season, Austin was added. Albuquerque changed their name to Gunners. (GF-GA info 99% complete, 5 games missing.) GP W L GF GA PTS Oklahoma City Warriors 20 13 7 132 94 53 Albuquerque Gunners 20 13 7 152 93 53 Austin Soccadillos 20 10 10 118 107 40 Arlington Arrows 20 10 10 94 109 39 Lubbock Lazers 20 9 11 93 110 35 Amarillo Challengers 20 5 15 87 153 20 Semifinals: Austin defeated Albuquerque. Okalhoma City defeated Arlington. FINAL: Oklahoma City defeated Austin 8-5, 9-7, 11-3. 1988-1989 SOUTHWEST INDEPENDENT SOCCER LEAGUE (indoor) Before the season, Houston, San Antonio, and Wichita were added. GP W L GF GA PTS North Division Addison Arrows 24 15 9 137 124 61 Oklahoma City Warriors 24 15 9 132 99 61 Wichita Tornado 24 6 18 99 155 22 South Division Austin Sockadillos 24 19 5 167 98 76 Houston Express 24 11 13 144 156 44 San Antonio Heat 24 6 18 116 166 24 West Division Lubbock Lazers 24 17 7 157 113 67 Albuquerque Gunners 24 16 8 213 120 65 Amarillo Challengers 24 3 21 106 231 12 First Round: Lubbock defeated Albuquerque 3-2, 5-4 Addison defeated Oklahoma City 3-9, 6-5, 6-3 Houston defeated San Antonio, 11-12, 5-4, 3-1 Semifinals: Lubbock defeated Addision 4-6, 8-6, 10-8, 4-10, 8-5 Austin defeated Houston 7-6(OT), 11-7, 12-9 CHAMPIONSHIP: Lubbock defeated Austin, 5-4, 6-4, 5-6 (SO), 4-7, 2-1 (Mini-game) After the season, Wichita folded. 1989 Before the season, Colorado, and Tulsa were added. SOUTHWEST INDEPENDFENT SOCCER LEAGUE (Outdoor) GP W L GF GA PTS Colorado Comets 12 11 1 49 12 98 Tulsa Renegades 12 10 2 36 13 90 Addison Arrows 12 8 4 23 16 68 Austin Sockadillos 12 6 6 32 30 57 Albuquerque Gunners 12 5 7 31 35 52 San Antonio Heat 12 3 8 18 35 33 Lubbock Lazers 12 2 9 15 43 27 Oklahoma City Warriors 12 2 10 9 36 21 Semifinals: Addison defeated Tulsa 1-1 (PK), 1-4, 0-0 (PK) CHAMPIONSHIP: Colorado defeated Addison 3-1. 1989-1990 SOUTHWEST INDEPENDFENT SOCCER LEAGUE (Indoor) Beore the season, Arkansas, El Paso, Permian Basin, Phoenix, Richardson, Tucson and Waco were added. GP W L GF GA PTS EASTERN CONFERENCE Texas Division Richardson Rockets 24 17 7 176 112 69 Austin Capital Sockadillos 24 14 10 165 130 56 Waco Kickers 24 11 13 132 182 44 Houston Express 24 2 22 66 143 9 San Antonio Generals 13 1 8 60 91 4 Tex-Ark-Oma Division Addison Arrows 24 17 7 179 122 68 Tulsa Renegades 24 14 10 170 155 54 Oklahoma City Warriors 24 13 11 138 131 53 Arkansas Diamonds 12 2 10 46 97 8 WESTERN CONFERENCE Central Division Colorado Comets 24 21 3 235 102 84 Lubbock Lazers 24 19 5 199 106 76 Permian Basin Shootin' Stars 24 5 19 142 218 21 Amarillo Challengers 24 5 19 125 272 19 Cactus Division Phoenix Hearts 24 21 3 207 118 84 Tucson Amigos 24 12 12 128 126 46 Albuquerque Gunners 24 9 15 157 167 37 El Paso Sixshooters 24 0 24 44 179 0 First Round: Phoenix defeated Lubbock 7-6, 4-0 Colorado defeated Tucson 5-4, 9-4 Richardson defeated Tulsa 7-5, 7-6 Addison defeated Austin 12-4, 8-5 Semifinals: Pheonix defeated Colorado, 6-4, 7-8 (OT), 11-10 (OT) Addison defeated Richardson 7-5, 5-4 CHAMPIONSHIP: Addison defeated Phoenix 9-6, 9-8 (SO), 10-3 After the season, Amarillo and Houston folded. 1990 SOUTHWEST INDEPENDFENT SOCCER LEAGUE (Outdoor) Before the season, Addison became North Texas United, and San Antonio became the Generals. GP W L SW-SL BP GF GA PTS Eastern Conference Tulsa Renegades 14 12 2 (1-1) 34 45 17 106 Austin Sockadillos 14 8 6 (0-2) 33 45 27 85 San Antonio Generals 14 10 4 (2-0) 29 38 25 85 Richardson Rockets 14 7 7 (0-0) 28 38 22 70 North Texas United 14 7 7 (1-0) 25 36 30 68 Arkansas Diamonds 14 6 8 (0-2) 20 26 34 60 Waco Kickers 14 1 13 (0-0) 9 9 54 15 Oklahoma City Warriors 6 1 5 (0-0) 7 7 25 13 Western Conference Lubbock Lazers 14 11 3 (0-0) 35 52 28 101 Colorado Comets 14 12 2 (1-0) 30 38 17 100 Phoenix Hearts 14 8 6 (1-0) 30 39 29 76 Tucson Amigos 14 7 7 (0-1) 28 29 20 68 Albuquerque Gunners 14 3 11 (0-0) 17 17 51 35 Permian Basin Shooting Stars 14 2 12 (0-0) 19 20 43 31 Quarterfinals: Colorado defeated Lubbock 5-1, 5-2 Richardson defeated Tulsa 1-2, 1-0, 3-1 Austin defeated San Antonio 0-1, 4-1, 3-2 Tucson defeated Phoenix 2-1, 2-1 Semifinals: Richardson defeated Austin 2-1, 5-1 Colorado defeated Tucson 2-0, 1-0 CHAMPIONSHIP: Colorado declared champion based on overall record. After the season, North Texas United became Ft. Worth. 1990-1991 SUNBELT INDEPENDENT SOCCER LEAGUE (Indoor) Before the season, Albuquerque became New Mexico. El Paso became the Sixshooters. Atlanta, Georgia, Memphis and Nashville were added. North Texas United became Ft. Worth Kickers. GP W L GF GA PTS Southeast Conference Richardson Rockets 20 18 2 174 76 72 Oklahoma City Warriors 20 14 6 144 91 50 Fort Worth Kickers 20 12 8 158 105 48 Tulsa Renegades 20 12 8 134 122 48 Atlanta Express 20 11 9 133 132 44 Memphis Rogues 20 8 12 132 145 32 Georgia Steamers 10 5 5 61 56 20 Arkansas Diamonds 20 5 15 109 138 20 Nashville Metros 10 0 10 44 124 0 Southwest Conference Tucson Amigos 20 15 5 174 100 60 Austin Soccadillos 20 14 6 162 113 56 Colorado Comets 20 13 7 178 71 52 Phoenix Hearts 20 13 7 144 97 52 Lubbock Lazers 20 12 8 156 107 48 Permian Basin Shooting Stars 20 4 14 86 181 24 New Mexico Roadrunners 10 1 9 39 112 4 El Paso Spurs 10 0 10 30 142 0 San Antonio Generals 20 0 20 62 227 0 Quarterfinals: Colorado defeated Austin 7-6 (OT),10-9, 6-1(MG) Phoenix defeated Tucson 9-3, 8-7 Ft. Worth defeated Richardson 9-6, 9-7, 7-4 Oklahoma City defeated Tulsa 8-7, 9-5 Semifinals: Ft. Worth defeated Oklahoma City 6-3, 7-3, 8-6 Colorado defeated Tucson 9-6, 9-3 CHAMPIONSHIP: Colorado defeated Oklahoma City 8-3, 7-5, 5-4 1991 SUNBELT INDEPENDENT SOCCER LEAGUE (Outdoor) Before the season, Georgia Steamers became the Atlanta Quicksilvers. El Paso becomes the Patriots, and New Mexico becomes the Chiles. Permian Basin did not play this season. Waco was merged into Forth Worth. GP W L GF GA BPT PTS PK Southeast Conference Memphis Rogues 16 12 4 31 36 30 98 2-0 Atlanta Quicksilver 16 9 7 41 31 35 89 0-0 Arkansas Diamonds 16 8 8 30 30 26 76 0-1 Nashville Metros 16 7 9 30 35 23 63 1-0 Atlanta Express 16 4 12 20 40 19 47 0-2 Tex-Oma Conference Richardson Rockets 16 10 6 40 27 33 97 0-2 Fort Worth Kickers 16 11 5 30 18 26 92 1-1 Tulsa Renegades 16 8 8 39 28 28 76 1-1 San Antonio Generals 16 8 8 32 29 28 72 2-0 Oklahoma City Warriors 16 7 9 29 40 25 67 0-0 Austin Sockadillos 16 5 11 37 42 31 63 1-2 Southwest Conference New Mexico Chiles 16 11 5 38 18 30 96 0-0 El Paso Patriots 16 11 5 34 20 27 95 1-2 Colorado Comets 16 10 6 35 23 30 88 1-0 Tucson Amigos 16 7 9 20 23 17 61 1-2 Phoenix Hearts 16 7 9 27 26 21 59 2-0 Lubbock Lazers 16 1 15 7 74 7 13 0-0 Quarterfinals: Memphis defeated Atlanta Quicksilver 1-2, 2-0, 1-0 Richardson defeated Tulsa 3-0, 3-0 New Mexico defeated Colorado 1-0(OT) Fort Worth defeated El Paso 3-0, 2-3, 2-1 Semifinals: New Mexico defeated El Paso 1-0(PK), 4-1, 3-0 Richardson defeated Fort Worth 2-1 CHAMPIONSHIP: Richardson defeated New Mexico 3-0. 1991-1992 UNITED STATES INTERREGIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE (Indoor) Before the season, Richardson became North texas. Forth Worth moved to Dallas. Lubbock became the Tornado. Memphis became the Survivors. Permian Basin became the Mirage. Amarillo and the Atlanta Magic were added. GP W L GF GA PTS SO Southeast Conference Atlanta Magic 8 7 1 121 78 28 0-0 Memphis Survivors 8 6 2 68 57 24 0-0 Atlanta Lightning 8 4 4 88 94 16 0-0 Nashville Metros 8 2 6 45 72 8 0-0 Arkansas Diamonds 8 1 7 49 70 4 0-0 Southwest Conference Tucson Amigos 14 12 2 113 69 48 0-0 Colorado Comets 14 10 4 133 80 40 0-0 Lubbock Tornado 14 9 5 114 81 36 0-0 Phoenix Hearts 14 5 9 79 93 20 0-0 Amarillo Challengers 14 5 9 119 129 20 0-0 Permian Basin Mirage 14 1 13 74 164 4 0-0 Tex-Oma Conference Dallas Kickers 14 11 3 131 69 44 0-0 Oklahoma City Warriors 14 11 3 120 57 44 0-0 North Texas Mid-Cities Flyers 14 8 6 107 70 32 0-0 San Antonio Generals 14 7 7 97 112 28 0-0 Tulsa Renegades 14 5 9 73 112 20 0-0 Austin Soccadillos 14 0 14 29 137 0 0-0 Playoffs: Dallas defeated North Texas Mid-Cities 7-3,13-6) Tucson defeated Colorado 9-5,4-3,3-9,7-6 (OT)) Atlanta Lightning defeated Memphis 8-4) Atlanta Magic defeated Atlanta Lightning 11-3) Sizzling Four: Dallas 3, Tucson 2 Atlanta 9, Oklahoma City 6 Atlanta 9, Oklahoma City 6 Atlanta 8, Tucson 7 Oklahoma City 8, Dallas 3 Atlanta 4, Dallas 3 Oklahoma City 8, Tucson 3 FINAL: Oklahoma City defeated Atlanta, 7-2 After the season Tulsa, Atlanta Quicksilver, and Colorado folded. Lubbock sat out the outdoor season. 1992 UNITED STATES INTERREGIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE (Outdoor) Before the season, Orlando, Boca Raton, Chattanooga, Gwinnest County, Palo Alto, North Bay, San Francisco, and East Bay are added. Atlanta Express became Gwinnest County. Fort Worth Kickers became the Americans. Richardson moved to Dallas. Memphis became the United Express. Phoenix Hearts became the Arizona Cotton. GP W L GF GA BP PTS SO Southeast Conference Orlando Lions 14 10 4 37 17 30 94 0-2 Boca Raton Sabres 14 10 4 27 17 26 86 0-0 Atlanta Datagraphic Magic 14 10 4 35 20 29 85 2-0 Memphis United Express 14 8 6 34 22 27 77 0-1 Nashville Metros 14 6 8 25 23 21 55 1-0 Chattanooga Railroaders 14 3 11 22 40 19 37 1-1 Gwinnest County Steamers 14 2 12 12 36 11 25 0-1 South Central Conference Dallas Rockets 14 13 1 29 13 27 105 1-1 Oklahoma City Warriors 14 7 7 22 24 21 63 0-0 Dallas Americans 14 6 8 21 22 20 56 0-0 San Antonio Generals 14 6 8 27 32 20 54 0-0 Austin Soccadillos 14 5 9 19 27 17 49 0-1 Arkansas Diamonds 14 2 12 13 47 11 21 1-0 Southwest Conference El Paso Patriots 14 12 2 32 15 29 96 0-0 New Mexico Chiles 14 7 7 29 22 24 95 1-2 Tucson Amigos 14 5 9 23 36 20 52 0-1 Arizona Cotton 14 5 9 22 28 20 48 1-0 Pacific Conference Palo Alto Firebirds 14 12 2 32 15 26 94 2-0 North Bay Breakers 14 10 4 32 13 26 86 0-0 San Francisco All Blacks 14 7 7 25 26 23 65 0-0 East Bay Red Riders 14 7 7 25 24 21 63 0-0 Round 1: Oklahoma City defeated Dallas 0-2, 3-0 Tucson defeated New Mexico 2-0, 3-1 Atlanta defeated Memphis 5-1, 1-0 Round 2: Dallas defeated Oklahoma City 0-2, 3-1, 2-0(MG) Tucson defeated El Paso 1-2(SO), 2-1 Atlanta defeated Boca Raton 0-2, 3-0 Palo Alto defeated North Bay 0-1, 4-2, 2-0(MG) Sizzling Six: El Paso 3, Atlanta 1 Palo Alto 2, Orlando 0 Tucson 3, Dallas 1 Dallas 3, Atlanta 2 Tucson 2, Orlando 0 Palo Alto 2, El Paso 0 FINAL: Palo Alto defeated Tucson, 1-0. After the season, Gwinnest County folded. 1992-1993 UNITED STATES INTERREGIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE (Indoor) Knoxville (indoor only) was added. Lubbock changed their name back to the Lazers. Texas Stampede was added. GP W L GF GA PTS SO Southeast Conference Atlanta Magic 12 12 0 135 35 48 0-0 Chattanooga Railroaders 12 7 5 87 70 28 0-0 Knoxville Impact 12 4 8 82 136 16 0-0 Nashville Metros 12 1 11 57 117 4 0-0 South Central Conference Oklahoma City Warriors 12 11 1 103 55 44 0-0 Dallas Americans 12 7 5 91 87 28 0-0 San Antonio Generals 12 6 6 96 88 24 0-0 Texas Stampede 12 2 10 76 104 8 0-0 Southwest Conference Tucson Amigos 12 8 4 101 74 30 2-0 Arizona Cotton 12 7 5 104 72 28 0-0 Lubbock Lazers 12 6 6 79 78 25 0-1 Playoffs: Arizona 6, Tucson 3 Arizona 10, Tucson 9 Atlanta 6, Nashville 0 Atlanta 7, Knoxville 2 Chattanooga 3, Knoxville 2 Chattanooga 6, Nashville 2 Sizzling Four: Arizona 4, Oklahoma City 3 Atlanta 8, Dallas 2 Atlanta 4, Arizona 2 Oklahoma City 6, Dallas 4 FINAL: Atlanta defeated Arizona, 11-7. After the season, Lubbock folded. 1993 UNITED STATES INTERREGIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE (Outdoor) Chico, San Francisco Bay, East Los Angeles, Valley, Charleston, Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh, Texas, New Orleans, Montgomery, Connecticut, Baltimore, Delaware, Montclair, Columbia, Standard, Richmond, Santa Cruz, Coral Springs, and Birmingham were added. Arkansas changed their name to the A's. Texas became the Tyler Lightning. Dallas Americans became the Dallas/Ft. Worth Toros. San Antonio became the Pumas. Atlanta Magic became the Lasers. Memphis became the Jackals. G W L GF GA PTS Atlantic Division Greensboro Dynamo 16 14 2 41 14 114 Delaware Wizards 16 10 6 34 22 88 Raleigh Flyers 16 10 6 31 24 84 Richmond Kickers 16 8 8 30 30 78 Charleston Battery 16 8 8 27 23 72 Connecticut Wolves 16 7 9 29 33 68 Baltimore Bays 16 5 11 28 38 59 Charlotte Eagles 16 5 11 26 35 52 Columbia Spirit 16 3 13 12 43 32 Southeast Division Orlando* Lions 16 14 2 46 10 124 Atlanta Lasers 16 10 6 44 34 93 Coral Springs Kicks 16 10 6 42 43 92 Memphis Jackals 16 9 7 49 30 87 Boca Raton Sabres 16 8 8 37 31 80 Nashville Metros 16 6 10 29 37 60 Chattanooga Express 16 3 13 33 45 52 *Orlando, as 1992 champion, gets a bye to the Championships. South Central Division Tulsa Roughnecks 16 12 4 33 18 99 Oklahoma City Slickers 16 11 5 34 32 97 Dallas-Ft. Worth Toros 16 11 5 34 17 94 San Antonio Pumas 16 8 8 39 35 83 Austin Soccadillos 16 8 8 30 33 69 Dallas-Ft. Worth Toros 16 5 11 22 42 52 Tyler Lightning 16 5 11 22 40 49 Southwest Division East L.A. Cobras 16 11 5 40 18 101 Montclair Std. Falcons 16 10 6 30 33 89 El Paso Patriots 16 10 6 34 16 87 New Mexico Chilies 16 9 7 25 15 73 Tucson Amigos 16 8 8 23 30 72 Valley Golden Eagles 16 3 13 20 42 37 Arizona Cotton 16 3 13 12 43 29 Pacific Division San Jose Hawks 16 14 2 42 11 119 Palo Alto Firebirds 16 12 4 50 8 107 SF United All-Blacks 16 13 3 39 17 106 Chico Rooks 16 11 5 47 29 98 North Bay Breakers 16 8 8 37 25 79 Santa Cruz Surf 16 7 9 27 42 66 SF Bay Diablos 16 3 13 20 51 38 East Bay Red Riders 16 2 14 7 52 13 Southern Challenge Cup (Provisional) N.O. Riverboat Gamblers 9 6 3 20 17 48 Birmingham Grasshoppers 9 5 4 18 9 45 Jacksonville Fury 9 4 5 15 27 35 Montgomery Capitals 9 2 7 13 38 25 Teams in the Northeast and Midwest have points that reflect the addition of a 1 point corner kick bonus per game. Play-in Games: Richmond defeated Charleston 2-0 Divisional Semi-finals: San Jose defeated Chico 6-0 SF United defeated Palo Alto 3-2 (OT) Los Angeles defeated Standard 7-3 Dallas defeated Oklahoma City 4-0 Greensboro defeated Richmond 4-1 Delaware defeated Raleigh 4-2 Atlanta defeated Memphis 3-2 Boca Raton defeated Coral Springs 4-1 Divisional Finals: San Jose defeated SF United 3-0 Los Angeles defeated Valley 0-6, 3-0, 2-0 Dallas defeated Tulsa 4-3(OT), 0-3, 1-0(MG) Greensboro defeated Delaware 5-0, 2-1 Atlanta defeated Boca Raton 1-0, 3-2 SIZZLING SIX CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1st Round: San Jose defeated East Los Angeles 4-1 Orlando defeated Dallas 3-1 Greensboro defeated Atlanta 9-0 2nd Round: Greensboro defeated East Los Angeles 4-0 Orlando defeated Atlanta 5-1 San Jose defeated Dallas 3-1 FINAL: Greensboro defeated Orlando 2-1 After the season, East Bay folded. 1993-1994 UNITED STATES INTERREGIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE (Indoor) Before the season, Toledo was added. Texas became the Arsenal. GP W L GF GA PTS Northern Division Baltimore Bays 12 12 0 174 42 48 Richmond Kickers 12 7 5 70 70 28 Greensboro Dynamo 3 1 2 20 20 4 Toledo Twisters 8 0 8 23 117 0 Southeast Division Atlanta Magic 12 12 0 109 39 48 Chattanooga Express 12 8 4 82 69 32 Cocoa Expos 12 6 6 50 58 24 Orlando Lions 12 6 6 45 44 24 Knoxville Impact 12 5 7 85 82 20 Nashville Metros 12 1 11 54 120 4 South Central Division Tulsa Roughnecks 12 9 3 107 88 36 Texas Lightning 12 6 6 92 98 24 Oklahoma City Warriors 12 6 6 101 79 24 Texas Arsenal 12 3 9 57 92 12 Sizzlin' Four: Chattanooga defeated Baltimore 8-6. Atlanta defeated Tulsa 6-2 Baltimore defeated Tulsa 15-10 Atlanta defeated Chattanooga 11-3 3rd Place: Baltimore defeated Tulsa 2-1 FINAL: Atlanta defeated Chattanooga 8-3 After the season, Toledo and Texas folded.