With each passing year, the bond between the USL’s men’s professional leagues grows tighter. In 2025, the USL Championship and USL League One faced off against one another in an interleague cup competition. This offseason, a record number of players have jumped from one division to another.
Soon, if the USL has their way, the two leagues will be linked by promotion and relegation and capped by a division one league. In other words, a team that’s joining League One today could be in the first division five years from now.
As we enter 2026, it’s as good a time as any to get acquainted with the seven expansion clubs joining the USL for the season ahead – and the organizations hoping to follow in their footsteps.
The USL Championship’s Class of 2026
Sporting Club Jacksonville, colloquially known as Sporting Jax, is one of two clubs entering the USL Championship. First announced in 2022, their ownership group includes Florida football great Tim Tebow and former Jacksonville Jaguars star Fred Taylor. Jacksonville will play at the University of North Florida’s Hodges Stadium, and attendance expectations should be high; their Super League team sold more than 6,000 season tickets and is drawing an average crowd near 7,500.
