Atlanta United 2 will move from the USL Championship into a new league, MLS NEXT Pro, in 2023.
MLS announced the teams that will compose the league on Monday.
The new league’s goal is to create an “integrated player pathway from MLS NEXT through to MLS first teams” by serving as a bridge from the Academies into the professional system.
The league is scheduled to debut in March 2022.
The following teams will debut next season: Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Miami, Minnesota, New England, NYCFC, Orlando, Philadelphia, Portland, Salt Lake, San Jose, Seattle, St. Louis, Toronto and Vancouver.
In addition to Atlanta United 2, coming online in 2023 is scheduled to be Austin FC, Charlotte FC, D.C. United, LA Galaxy, LAFC, Nashville SC, and New York Red Bulls. Rochester NY FC, the only independent club, will also join. The league plans to add more independent teams in future seasons.
The team name will remain Atlanta United 2 and it will play at Kennesaw State in 2022. The team hasn’t made any decisions about the team name or venue when it begins play in the new league in 2023.
George Bello and Miles Robinson are among the players who have moved from Atlanta United 2 into the first team.
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