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Midwest Premier League

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Midwest Premier League
Founded2019
CountryUnited States
ConfederationCONCACAF
Divisions4
Number of clubs36
Domestic cup(s)U.S. Open Cup
(via qualifying tournament & NAC)
National Amateur Cup
(via USASA Region II)
International cup(s)CONCACAF Champions League
(via U.S. Open Cup)
Current championsInter Detroit (East),

Milwaukee Bavarian SC (West), Ajax St. Louis (South)

(2021 season)
Most championshipsMilwaukee Bavarian SC Ajax St. Louis(2 division titles)
Websitemidwestpl.com
Current: 2024 MWPL season

The Midwest Premier League (MWPL) is an American amateur and semi-professional soccer league. The league spans primarily the eastern and central portions of the Midwestern United States.

History

[edit]

The league was founded by four clubs which were all previously members of the United Premier Soccer League Midwest Conference.[1] Following the 2019 UPSL season, the clubs decided that they could create a stable league that would focus on sustainability of the member clubs by sharing ideas, keeping league costs to a minimum, and maximizing the opportunities for all clubs to compete by limiting end-of-season playoffs that often shorten the season for many teams.[2]

The league announced Union Dubuque F.C. as its first member on September 18, 2019, with the other three founding members being announced in the subsequent weeks.[3] RWB Adria joins the MPWL on September 25, 2019.[4] DeKalb County United joins the MWPL on October 2, 2019.[5] Cedar Rapids Inferno join the MWPL on October 9, 2019 making it the fourth member team.[6] And concludes the joining of the founders.

Cliff Conrad has been elected as the league's first president. Conrad is the co-founder and president of Union Dubuque F.C., one of the league's charter members.[7]

After a period with no expansion news, FC Diablos of Normal, Illinois was announced on January 10, 2020, and an expansion continues into March. With expansion side Rockford FC being unveiled shortly thereafter on January 30, 2020.[8][9] Livonia City FC joins the MWPL on Feb. 29th 2020.[10] Lake St.Clair joins the MWPL on March 2, 2020.[11] BiH Grand Rapids joins the MWPL on March 6, 2020.[12]

The league was set to kick off in spring 2020; however, the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.[13][14]

The Midwest Premier League appoints Andy Hayes as the league's first commissioner.[15]

On July 27, 2020, the league announced Lansing Common FC from Lansing, Michigan as a new member club.[16][17]

On September 3, 2020, the MWPL entered a partnership agreement with the National Independent Soccer Association, a USSF Division 3 professional league, which includes pathways for both players and clubs to go fully pro.[18][19]

November 2020 kicked off another round of expansions for the league. Starting with Edgewater Castle FC on Nov. 27th 2020.[20]

It was announced on March 21, 2022 that the MWPL would have 3 Divisions within it.[21]

The schedule for the second season of the league was announced on April 6, 2022, nearly a month ahead of the first game. With Detroit City U23 gone, there would be a new champion in the East Division. And with a finalized Southern Division, 3 champions were to be crowned at the end of the 2022 season.[22]

A new conference alignment was announced by the league on February 6, 2023. The MWPL confirmed that for the 2023 season, the South Conference would now be known as the Gateway Conference, the West Conference would now be the Heartland Conference and the East Conference would be the Great Lakes Conference, with an East and West Division.[23]

Teams

[edit]
Team City Stadium Founded
Great Lakes East Division
Aim SC Dearborn, MI Fordson High School 2012
Cedars FC Dearborn, MI Fordson High School 2019
Detroit Union FC Waterford, MI Waterford Mott High School 2021
Inter Detroit FC Auburn Hills, MI Evolution Sportsplex 2017
Liquid Football Detroit MI University Liggett School 2022
Michigan Jaguars FC Novi, MI Walled Lake Central High School 1989
Michigan Stars U23 Washington Township, MI Romeo High School 1982
Thundercats SC Chesterfield, Michigan
Troy United FC Troy, MI The Hawk 2021
YPSI Yetis FC Saline, MI Saline High School 2023
Heartland Division
Bavarian United SC Glendale, WI Heartland Value Fund Stadium 1929
Berber City FC Chicago, IL Illinois Institute of Technology 2013
Chicago City SC Chicago, IL Lions for Hope Sports Complex
Chicago House AC Chicago, IL DePaul College Prep 2021
Czarni Jaslo Chicago, IL Olympic Park, Schaumburg 1998
DeKalb County United DeKalb, IL NIU Soccer and Track & Field Complex 2017
Edgewater Castle FC Chicago, IL CIBC Fire Pitch 2017
Rockford FC Rockford, IL Auburn High School 2019
RWB Adria Chicago, IL Hales Franciscan High School 1959
Steel City FC Joliet, IL Duly Health and Care Field 2021
Great Lakes West Division
1927 SC Fort Wayne, IN Fort Wayne Sport Club Fields 1927
BiH Grand Rapids Grand Rapids, MI Crestwood High School 2018
Futsal Factory Academy Dexter, MI
Holland Rovers FC Holland, MI 2016
Lansing Common FC Lansing, MI Eastern High School Stadium 2020
Livonia City FC Livonia, MI Madonna University 2015
Tulip City United SC Holland, MI Holland High School 2020
United West FC Grand Rapids, MI Hudsonville's Freshman Campus 2022
West Michigan Bearings Byron Center, MI South Christian High School 2020
Gateway Division
AFC Columbia Columbia, MO R. Marvin Owens Field 2020
Ajax St. Louis St. Louis, MO Ajax Fields
Cedar Rapids Inferno[24] Cedar Rapids, IA Kingston Stadium 2019
Club Atletico Saint Louis Saint Louis, MO
Iowa Raptors FC Cedar Rapids, IA Prairie High School
Santa Fe Wanderers Kansas City, KS Avila University

Rockhurst University

1995
Southeast Soccer Academy Burlington, Iowa 1997

Location map

[edit]
Midwest Premier League is located in Midwest USA
Bavarian
Berber City Chicago City CHI House Czarni Jaslo Edgewater Castle RWB Adria
Berber City
Chicago City
CHI House
Czarni Jaslo
Edgewater Castle
RWB Adria
Iowa Raptors Cedar Rapids
Iowa Raptors
Cedar Rapids
Steel City DeKalb Rockford
Steel City
DeKalb
Rockford
1927 SC
1927 SC
BiH GR Grand Haven United West Holland Rovers West Michigan Tulip City
BiH GR
Grand Haven
United West
Holland Rovers
West Michigan
Tulip City
Lansing Livonia Futsal FA
Lansing
Livonia
Futsal FA
Columbia
Columbia
Ajax STL Atletico STL
Ajax STL
Atletico STL
SESA
SESA
Santa Fe
Santa Fe
Aim SC Cedars FC Detroit Union Inter Detroit Liquid Football MI Jaguars MI Stars Thundercats Troy FC YPSI Yetis FC
Aim SC
Cedars FC
Detroit Union
Inter Detroit
Liquid Football
MI Jaguars
MI Stars
Thundercats
Troy FC
YPSI Yetis FC
class=notpageimage|
Current team locations:
  • Heartland Division
  • Great Lakes West Division
  • Gateway Division
  • Great Lakes East Division

Former teams

[edit]
Team City Joined Final season Fate
LK St. Clair Mount Clemens, Michigan 2020 2021 Left league
Chicago Athletic Bensenville, Illinois 2021 Left league
Chicago Mustangs Crystal Lake, Illinois 2021 Left league
Detroit City FC U23 Hamtramck, Michigan 2021 Left league
Union Dubuque Dubuque, IA 2021 suspended[25]
FC Diablos Bloomington, IL 2021 suspended operations

Seasons

[edit]

2021 Fall Season

[edit]

The first season for the MWPL ended on August 1, 2021[26]

The Eastern division contained 8 teams for the 2021 season.

This Western division contained 12 teams for the 2021 season.

Eastern Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Detroit City U23 (C) 39 14 29
2 Lansing Common 31 14 21
3 West Michigan Bearings 27 14 15
4 BiH Grand Rapids 20 14 7
5 Michigan Stars U23 19 14 1
6 Livonia City 9 14 -18
7 Inter Detroit 8 14 -18
8 LK St Clair 5 14 -37
Western Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Milwaukee Bavarian (C) 28 11 24
2 RWB Adria 28 11 21
3 Steel City 20 11 7
4 Berber City 20 11 4
5 Cedar Rapids Inferno 16 11 -2
6 Union Dubuque 15 11 -8
7 FC Diablos 14 11 2
8 Chicago Mustangs 13 11 1
9 Edgewater Castle 12 11 -6
10 Rockford 9 11 -9
11 Dekalb County 7 11 -15
12 Chicago Athletic 4 11 -19

Rules for classification: P) points; (GP) games played; (GD) goal differential;

(C) Champion

2022 season

[edit]

The first season with 3 divisions in it.

The Eastern division contained 11 teams for the 2022 season.

The Western division contained 12 teams for the 2022 season

The Southern division contained 4 teams for the 2022 season.

Eastern Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Inter Detroit (C) 21 10 5
2 Lansing Common 20 10 10
3 Tulip City United 20 10 10
4 Michigan Jaguars 18 10 9
5 Cedars FC 16 10 0
6 Grand Haven Admirals 14 10 4
7 Michigan Stars U23 14 10 1
8 Livonia City 12 10 -1
9 West Michigan Bearings 9 10 -7
10 Detroit Union 6 10 -17
11 BiH Grand Rapids 5 10 -15
Western Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Milwaukee Bavarian (C) 24 11 23
2 RWB Adria 24 11 21
3 Iowa Raptors 24 11 18
4 Chicago House AC 20 11 18
5 DeKalb County United 17 11 1
6 Steel City 15 11 3
7 Chicago City SC 14 11 -1
8 Rockford FC 14 11 -6
9 Cedar Rapids Inferno 14 11 -14
10 Berber City 8 11 -11
11 FC Diablos 7 11 -24
12 Edgewater Castle 3 11 -28
Southern Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Ajax St. Louis (C) 15 6 2
2 AFC Columbia 12 6 6
3 Santa Fe Wanderers 6 5 0
4 Springfield FC 0 5 -10

Rules for classification: P) points; (GP) games played; (GD) goal differential;

(C) Champion

2023 Season

[edit]

The first season with 4 divisions.

Gateway Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Ajax St. Louis (C) 22 10 19
2 Cedar Rapids Inferno 19 10 8
3 Iowa Raptors FC 16 10 1
4 AFC Columbia 14 10 -3
5 Club Atletico Saint Louis 12 10 0
6 Southeast Soccer Academy 3 10 -25
N/A Santa Fe Wanderers
Great Lakes West Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 1927 SC (C) 27 12 21
2 West Michigan Bearings SC 27 12 20
3 Lansing Common FC 24 12 18
4 Tulip City United SC 20 12 9
5 Livonia City FC 20 12 3
6 BiH Grand Rapids 10 12 -11
7 Futsal Factory Academy 8 12 -4
8 Holland Rovers FC 6 12 -40
9 United West FC 4 12 -35
Heartland Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Czarni Jalso (C) 23 10 14
2 RWB Adria 19 10 15
3 Chicago House AC 18 10 23
4 Bavarian United 16 10 9
5 Dekalb United 16 10 8
6 Chicago City SC 15 10 12
7 Edgewater Castle FC 14 10 2
8 Steel City FC 14 10 -3
9 Berber City FC 11 10 -6
10 Indy Boyz FC 7 10 -35
11 Rockford FC 2 10 -39
Great Lakes East Division Standings
Pos Team P GP GD
1 Inter Detroit FC (C) 28 12 37
2 Liquid Football 26 12 9
3 Thundercats SC 19 12 5
4 Michigan Stars FC U23 19 12 2
5 Detroit Union FC 18 12 -3
6 Cedars FC 17 12 -3
7 Troy United FC 16 12 -9
8 Michigan Jaguars FC 13 12 -1
9 Aim SC 4 12 -20

Rules for classification: P) points; (GP) games played; (GD) goal differential;

(C) Champion

2024 Season

[edit]

The first season with 5 divisions in it.

The Gateway division contained 8 teams for the 2024 season.

The Great Lakes East division contained 10 teams for the 2024 season

The Great Lakes West division contained 6 teams for the 2024 season.

The Heartland Division was split up into two division for the 2024 season. Withe promotion and relegation between the two.

The Heartland division 1 contained 6 teams for the 2024 season.

The Heartland division 2 contained 7 teams for the 2024 season.

Division Winners

[edit]

Great Lakes Conference Winner

Note: Formerly the East Division

Season Winner Runner-up
2021 Detroit City U23[27] Lansing Common
2022 Inter Detroit Lansing Common
2023 West: 1927 SC
East: Inter Detroit 		West: West Michigan Bearings
East: Liquid Football
2024 West: Northern Indiana FC

East: Cedars FC

West: 1927 Fort Wayne FC

East: Michigan Stars FC U-23

Heartland Conference Winner

Note: Formerly the West Division

Season Winner Runner-up
2021 Milwaukee Bavarian SC[28] RWB Adria
2022 Milwaukee Bavarian RWB Adria
2023 Czarni Jaslo RWB Adria
2024 RWB Adria Milwaukee Bavarian

Heartland Conference Division 2 Winner

Season Winner Runner-up
2024 AFC Roscoe Green Bay Glory

Gateway Conference Winner

Note: Formerly the South Division

Season Winner Runner-up
2022 Ajax St. Louis AFC Columbia
2023 Ajax St. Louis Cedar Rapids Inferno
2024 Cedar Rapids Inferno Not Decided Yet

Golden Boot winner

[edit]

The golden boot winners were announced on September 15, 2021.[29][30]

East Division Winner
Season Team Winner Goals
2021 Lansing Common Shady Omar 10
2022
West Division Winner
Season Team Winner Goals
2021 FC Diablos Jordan Walker 15
2022 Steel City FC Shea Bechtel 9
South Division Winner
Season Team Winner Goals
2022

Notable Players

[edit]

The following players have either played at the professional or international level, either before or after playing for a Midwest Premier League team:

United StatesEgypt Shady Omar, Lansing Common FC - 2021, played professionally at Ittihad El-Shorta (Egypt) 2015-2017 and Al Hilal Matruah (Egypt) in 2022 [4]

United States Damon Almazan, Steel City FC - 2020, played professionally at Chicago House AC for a season (2021).

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Erik Long, "Sustainability and Responsible Growth, Protagonist USA, 9 October 2019
  2. ^ "Midwest Premier League Announces Formation - Midwest Premier League". September 16, 2019.
  3. ^ "Union Dubuque F.C. Joins Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". September 18, 2019.
  4. ^ "RWB Adria Becomes Second Team To Join Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". September 25, 2019.
  5. ^ "DeKalb County United Joins Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". October 2, 2019.
  6. ^ "Cedar Rapids Inferno Becomes Fourth Midwest Premier League Club - Midwest Premier League". October 9, 2019.
  7. ^ "Cliff Conrad Elected As Inaugural President - Midwest Premier League". September 28, 2019.
  8. ^ "FC Diablos Joins Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". January 11, 2020.
  9. ^ "Rockford FC Joins Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". January 31, 2020.
  10. ^ "Livonia City FC Joins Midwest Premier League - Midwest Premier League". February 29, 2020.
  11. ^ "LK St. Clair Joins East Division - Midwest Premier League". March 2, 2020.
  12. ^ "East Division Adds BiH Grand Rapids - Midwest Premier League". March 6, 2020.
  13. ^ O'Connor, Larry. "Midwest Premier League cancels 2020 soccer season". The Detroit News. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  14. ^ "Member Clubs Vote To Cancel 2020 Season - Midwest Premier League". March 27, 2020.
  15. ^ "Midwest Premier League Appoints Andy Hayes As League Commissioner - Midwest Premier League". June 2, 2020.
  16. ^ Friend, Phil. "How a group of fans created Lansing Common Football Club, a team owned by its supporters". Lansing State Journal. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  17. ^ Saliby, Sophia (July 28, 2020). "A Year After Lansing Ignite Folded, Lansing Common FC To Step In As Community-Run Team". www.wkar.org. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  18. ^ "NISA Grows Amateur Affiliations in Partnership with Newly-Minted Midwest Premier League". www.nisasoccer.com. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  19. ^ "MWPL Joins Forces with NISA". Midwest Premier League. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  20. ^ "Edgewater Castle FC Joins West Division - Midwest Premier League". November 28, 2020.
  21. ^ "Midwest Premier League 2022 Conference Alignment - Midwest Premier League". March 21, 2022.
  22. ^ "2022 MWPL Schedule Announced - Midwest Premier League". April 6, 2022.
  23. ^ "2023 Conference Alignment - Midwest Premier League". February 7, 2023.
  24. ^ Douglas Miles, "Cedar Rapids Inferno Joins New Midwest Premier League", Cedar Rapids Gazette, October 9, 2019
  25. ^ "LETTER FROM THE UNION BOARD OF DIRECTORS". Union Dubuque FC. February 8, 2022. Archived from the original on February 8, 2022.
  26. ^ Midwest Premier League [@midwestpl] (August 4, 2021). "With our first official season in the books, here are the final league standings! How'd your team finish? https://t.co/xBfrrrb53w" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 4, 2021. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  27. ^ Midwest Premier League [@midwestpl] (August 2, 2021). "Now, let's make it official☑️ Your 2021 #MWPL East Division Champions: @DetroitCityFC U23 👑 https://t.co/tMIZEUmScZ" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  28. ^ Midwest Premier League [@midwestpl] (August 2, 2021). "It took until the final match day, but your 2021 #MWPL West Division Champions are @BavarianSC_Mens 👑 https://t.co/m587nDJo07" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  29. ^ Midwest Premier League [@midwestpl] (September 15, 2021). "The 2021 East Division Golden Boot Winner 🥾 Shady Omar from @lansingcommonfc had 10 goals this season which helped Lansing to a 2nd place finish in the #MWPL East https://t.co/X0Iz0ntScS" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  30. ^ Midwest Premier League [@midwestpl] (September 15, 2021). "The West Division Golden Boot Winner 🥾 Jordan Walker from @ILProSoccer finished the season with 15 goals and is now in the #MWPL record books for most goals in a single season. https://t.co/abYOPlZ66Z" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  31. ^ Detroit City FC's George Chomakov goes distance with upbeat outlook, nose for business [1], Detroit News, April 13, 2020
  32. ^ Detroit City FC re-signs Benedek Tanyi on a short-term deal [2], Detroit City FC, April 18, 2022
  33. ^ Albaraa Alsoufi is Finding Meaning in Heritage [3], NISA Network, April 18, 2022
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