The CSA will sanction a limited amount of new USL-Pro teams in Canada, but only if they agree to strict Canadian quotas.
The new teams must be affiliated with one of the three existing Canadian MLS teams and the sanctioning will be reviewed annually.
MLS and USL-Pro have a working affiliate arrangement where MLS teams loan a minimum of four players to their affiliate team. However, teams are permitted to operate a stand alone USL-Pro team rather than enter into an affiliate relationship with an existing team.
The program is designed to replace the MLS reserve league.
There were questions as to whether the Canadian MLS teams would be able to operate stand alone teams due to a policy in the CSA that prohibits the sanctioning of new professional teams that operate in predominately American leagues.
Despite those concerns the Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact went ahead with plans to start USL-Pro teams in the 2015 season. Toronto FC has not yet indicated its intentions.
Yesterday, the CSA agreed to sanction the Montreal and Vancouver teams and to extend sanctioning to Toronto should it wish to pursue a team. However, there will be strict quotes imposed.
Each team will be required to ensure that 50 percent of its active USL-Pro roster is Canadian. Importantly, it defines Canadians not by their citizenship but rather by their national team eligibility. Canadians capped by other nations are free to play for the teams, but will be considered imports in relation to CSA sanctioning.
To ensure that the cubs aren't just filling out their roster with Canadians for the sake of meeting the quota, the CSA is also requiring that six of the starting 11 players for each game be Canadian.
In an e-mail statement, CSA president Victor Montagliani said the following:
“Canada Soccer feels confident that these guidelines will allow for the existing Canadian MLS franchises – Impact de Montréal, Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC – to develop a viable homegrown system while ensuring we, as Canada’s governing body for soccer, continue to work towards our goal of becoming a leading soccer nation. We believe this is consistent with our aim to encourage the growth of the game, building an environment that will provide consistent, world-class performances by our National Teams as identified in our 2014-2018 Strategic Plan.”