Ownership groups from 12 cities across the United States submitted Major League Soccer expansion bids this week as the league prepares to expand from 22 teams in 2017 to 24 in ’18, 26 in ’20 and 28 sometime afterward.
Minnesota United and Atlanta United join MLS for the 2017 season, with LAFC and a Miami team (pending stadium approval) set to join next year.
The MLS expansion committee will review the applications from the 12 cities — Sacramento, San Diego, Phoenix, San Antonio, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Nashville, Detroit, Cincinnati, Raleigh/Durham, Charlotte, Tampa/St. Petersburg — starting this month.