Major League Soccer has announced its plans for the next round of expansion, with the process, timeline, and expansion fee detailed by MLS commissioner Don Garber.
"There is tremendous interest in professional soccer across the United States and Canada," commissioner Garber said. "Since announcing plans to expand to 28 clubs late last year, many potential ownership groups have contacted us, and numerous public officials have stated their desire to bring an MLS expansion team to their city.
"We look forward to reviewing expansion applications in the coming months and conducting formal meetings in 2017 with possible team owners."
At present, there are 22 teams in the league, including Minnesota United and Atlanta United, which will start play next season. Los Angeles FC will start play in 2018, while expansion plans in Miami are "making progress" according to MLS, which would bring the total to 24 teams.
The plans outline the process for adding teams 25 through 28. Prospective cities will need to submit applications by Jan. 31, 2017.
Following a review of each prospective market, which will take place in the first six months of 2017, teams 25 and 26 will be selected during the second or third quarter of 2017.
The teams selected will be expected to begin play in 2020, and the expansion fee for those teams is $150 million. As a point of comparison, Toronto FC's expansion fee ahead of its inaugural season back in 2007 was $10 million.
That $150 million is just the start of what is expected to be a sizable investment by an ownership group. When stadium plans, development of training facilities, youth academy infrastructure, and players and team staff are included, the total investment is expected to exceed $300 million.
The timeline for teams 27 and 28 will be determined at a later date, as will the expansion fee for those teams.
As has long been the case, the applicants will be judged on three main criteria: having a committed local ownership, a market with a long history of fan support in a desirable geographic location capable of attracting sponsors and television partners, and a comprehensive stadium plan.
At this time, ownership groups from 10 markets have expressed interest in acquiring an MLS expansion franchise. They are: Charlotte, Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville, Raleigh/Durham, Sacramento, St. Louis, San Antonio, San Diego and Tampa/St. Petersburg.
Out of those 10, Sacramento and St. Louis appear to be the furthest along in satisfying the league's criteria, but more will be known in the coming months.
The evaluation of the candidates will be led by the league's expansion committee, which consists of five owners: the New England Revolution's Jonathan Kraft, the Chicago Fire's Andrew Hauptman, Columbus Crew SC's Anthony Precourt, Orlando City's Phil Rawlins, and the Philadelphia Union's Jay Sugarman.