The United Soccer League announced club owners voted to implement a promotion and relegation system. The first of its kind for a professional sports league in the U.S. This move allows the USL to align with the world's top leagues like the English Premier League,

United Soccer League intends to start a promotion/relegation system along the international model, a contrast to Major League Soccer. The USL announced the decision Wednesday but did not say when the system in which teams at the bottom of the standings will drop down a level and top teams will be promoted will start.