This is the first in a series of posts on the US Soccer Directory (USSD) blog outlining the vision behind the project and what we hope to accomplish. USSD is a community-driven initiative dedicated to strengthening the US soccer ecosystem as a whole, with a particular focus on the adult game. That includes everything from the lowest levels of amateur soccer to the top professional division, Major League Soccer (MLS). Across that landscape are countless organizations working to grow the game in their own ways. Our goal is to be part of a broader effort to connect, support, and showcase all of them.

Everything we do through the US Soccer Directory is intended to advance at least one of three core initiatives:

  • Documentation - Record and document the game.
  • Community - Build an inclusive and accessible soccer community.
  • Development - Help improve the quality of US soccer.

Together, these three initiatives serve a single overarching goal: helping grow the game of soccer in the United States. They are not independent objectives, but rather reinforce one another. Better documentation makes the game easier to understand and navigate. A more connected and accessible community creates new opportunities for clubs, players, and leagues. Those stronger connections and opportunities, in turn, help raise the quality of soccer at every level. As the game continues to grow, so too does the need to document and preserve its history, creating a cycle where each initiative strengthens the others.

The sport already has tremendous momentum thanks to the work of clubs, leagues, federations, volunteers, and countless other organizations. At the same time, the size of the country creates natural divisions. Leagues are spread across thousands of miles, making it difficult to compare clubs, build connections, and develop a shared understanding of the broader soccer landscape. USSD hopes to help bridge those gaps by putting clubs and leagues side by side, making the game more visible, connected, and accessible regardless of geography.

USSD is an open project. We want to be transparent in what we build, and we want feedback, ideas, and participation from the community. Every club deserves the opportunity to be visible, included, and connected within the broader competitive landscape. Even without promotion and relegation linking every league, we want clubs and players to better understand where they fit within the US soccer pyramid.

With that in mind, we invite anyone who wants to help grow the project to get involved in one of several ways:

  • Become a contributor – Help document US soccer by contributing information on leagues, clubs, cups, and matches, both current and historical. Today, this collaboration primarily takes place through our Discord community.
  • Create a club account – Clubs can verify and manage their own pages while participating in our community platform, where they can share news such as tryouts, announce events, and connect with other clubs interested in friendlies.
  • Create a player account – Players can join the community platform to discover club events, connect with local soccer communities, and participate more directly in the growth of the game.

Open Roadmap

In the open roadmap updates, there will be updates of the latest and upcoming features, milestones met, and other achievements of the US Soccer Directory project. This first post will include a few of the things in the initial build and introduction of USSD.

  • The database has been built with over 2,750 clubs and 100 leagues added to the system. Within the leagues, over 370 different divisions are being tracked. This does not include cup competitions, and that dataset is growing.
  • Using this data, the US soccer pyramid has been built (and will continue to evolve) with 7+ levels. a few of the leagues in the pyramid have promotion and relegation structures.
  • We have started to capture match data for the leagues in the top 4 tiers of the pyramid and continue to look for ways to stay up to date with fixtures at every level. This is where we need contributors to help us the most.
  • The community platform has been introduced with the intention to bring together clubs and players. Right now, clubs can list tryouts and pickup sessions for players to sign up for, and more is coming.

This is only the beginning. The roadmap will continue to evolve as new features are built, more data is documented, and more members of the community get involved. Every addition to USSD, whether it's a new club, league, match, feature, or contributor, is intended to move the project closer to its three core initiatives: documenting the game, strengthening the community, and helping improve the quality of soccer in the United States. We hope you'll follow along, share your feedback, and help shape where the project goes next.

For all other questions, ideas, or messages, feel free to reach out at [email protected].

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