Great Lakes Premier League
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Confederation | CONCACAF |
| Founded | 2015 (as Great Lakes Premier League) |
| Divisions | 2 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup |
| Current champions | Milwaukee Bavarians (1st title) |
| Most championships |
RWB Adria Milwaukee Bavarians (1 title each) |
| Website | plasoccerleague.com/ |
 2017 PLA season
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The Premier League of America (PLA) is an American soccer league. The league currently consists of teams in cities in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The league is a part of the United States Adult Soccer Association and as of 2016, qualifies teams for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The league began its first season of play in 2015 as the Great Lakes Premier League.
Grand Rapids FC and AFC Ann Arbor both applied to become members of the National Premier Soccer League for the start of the 2015 season and they were both denied admission to the league. Instead of waiting a year or finding another league, the teams decided to start a league of their own. AFC Ann Arbor owner Jamey Amrine and Grand Rapids FC president Matt Roberts began discussions with other teams to gauge interest in forming a new league. Their work led to the formation of the Great Lakes Premier League. The new league held its inaugural league meeting on January 17, 2015 in Grand Rapids, MI.
The two clubs were joined as charter members by Oakland United - now Oakland County FC - based in Rochester, Michigan, and two decades-old Croatian American clubs, Croatian Eagles SC of Milwaukee and RWB Adria of Chicago.
Before the inaugural season began, Milwaukee Bavarians was announced as the first expansion franchise, to begin play in 2016. A second expansion team, Toledo United FC, joined in July 2015.
In September 2015, AFC Ann Arbor and Grand Rapids FC left the GLPL for the NPSL. The following November, the Madison 56ers left the NPSL after eleven seasons to join the Great Lakes Premier League.
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