Country | United States (15 teams) |
---|---|
Other club(s) from | Mexico (2 teams) |
Confederation | Confederación Panamericana de Minifutbol (CPM) |
Founded | May 18, 2008 |
Number of teams | 17 |
Domestic cup(s) | U.S. Open |
Current champions | Baltimore Blast (2015–16) |
Most championships | San Diego Sockers (4) |
TV partners | MASL TV Live on YouTube |
Website | www |
2016–17 season |
The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a North American indoor soccer league formerly known as the Professional Arena Soccer League. MASL is an affiliated member of the World Minifootball Federation (WMF), the governing body of the sport.
The league was organized as the Professional Arena Soccer League on May 18, 2008, as an offshoot of the Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL-Premier), the nation's largest amateur league. The league was originally nicknamed "PASL-Pro" to distinguish it from PASL-Premier.
In 2011, it was announced the professional league would officially be referred to as simply PASL, while the amateur league would still be referred to as the PASL-Premier. The first league game was played on October 25, 2008, in front of a crowd of 3,239 at , with the California Cougars defeating the Colorado Lightning 10–5.
On March 17, 2014, one day after the 2013–2014 Major Indoor Soccer League Championship finale, United Soccer Leagues President Tim Holt announced "a number" of teams would not be returning to MISL the following year. In April 2014 it was officially announced that six teams (Baltimore Blast, Milwaukee Wave, Missouri Comets, Rochester Lancers, St. Louis Ambush, and Syracuse Silver Knights) joined PASL for the 2014–2015 season.
The league announced a change in its name from the Professional Arena Soccer League to the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) on May 18, 2014. This represents a merging of the MISL and PASL names. MASL fielded 23 teams for the 2014–15 season.
In February 2016, the current owner of the Baltimore Blast, Ed Hale, announced his intentions to leave the MASL and form a new league, the Indoor Professional League. Hale was later announced as the chairman of the league, and Sam Fantauzzo, former owner of the Rochester Lancers, was announced as the first commissioner of the league. The St. Louis Ambush, Baltimore Blast, and Harrisburg Heat announced plans to join, along with the expansion Florida Tropics SC. In July of 2016, the MASL was reformed as a new not for profit entity 501(c)6, a new entity separate from the previous MASL, LLC.