Football
Jeff Carlisle, U.S. soccer correspondent 7y

North Carolina FC owner Steve Malik rules out NASL expansion

The North American Soccer League has "no plans" to add expansion teams in 2017, according to North Carolina FC owner Steve Malik.

The NASL currently adopts a split-season format with spring and fall campaigns, and in an interview with WRALSportsFan, Malik indicated that the NASL will play with eight teams for both seasons.

"We'll be making announcements throughout the year about teams that we expect to come on in 2018," Malik said.

Malik's statement is contrary to what sources told ESPN FC on Friday -- that three expansion teams would be added in the fall.

The NASL had been rumored in recent months to be on the brink of shutting its doors. Two teams -- the Tampa Bay Rowdies and the Ottawa Fury -- left for the USL, while four others were in various states of financial trouble.

But the NASL has managed to survive, and the U.S. Soccer Federation announced on Friday that it would continue to sanction the NASL as a Division II league.

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