Starting next season, the first eight out of the 13 teams in the standings will take part in post-season play, as opposed to six in 2006, and a bye will no longer be awarded for finishing first or second.
The top seeded team will square off against the eighth, the second against the seventh – and so on – in a home and away series on total goals.
After the quarterfinal round, teams will be re-seeded according to their place in the final standings, with the top remaining seeds playing against the lowest remaining seeds.
“All teams had open discussions with the league during our meetings in Tampa and I think the changes that were made prove that league officials intend to continuously improve the way things are done,” said Montreal Impact head coach Nick De Santis. “The league is clearly taking action to help clubs progress and it’s a step in the right direction.”
TWO NEW TEAMS
As previously announced, the Impact will have two new opponents in 2007: the Carolina Railhawks and the California Victory, two expansion teams slated to join the USL First Division in 2007.
The Railhawks will be based in Cary, North Carolina and will play their home games at the SAS Soccer Park, with former Rochester Raging Rhinos player Scott Schweitzer as head coach.
The Victory will play at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco, the San Francisco 49ers’ (NFL) previous home. The owner of the new franchise, Dmitry Piterman, is also the chairman of Spanish second division club Deportivo Alaves.
Meanwhile, the Impact’s Ontario rivals, the Toronto Lynx, left the First Division to play in the USL Premier Development League (PDL). With the Lynx’ departure, only two Canadian teams remain in the league: Montreal and Vancouver.
-30-
Source: Patrick Vallée, Montreal Impact
Info: 514-328-3668 (ext. 27)
