NPSL: First competition to fall to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed the NPSL 2020 season. It also puts into doubt the fate of the 15 NPSL teams bound for the U.S. Open Cup.

In the face of the pandemic, the National Premier Soccer League, with 15 of its amateur teams qualified for the U.S. Open Cup, has become the first national soccer league to cancel its season.

The NPSL is among the largest men’s soccer leagues in the U.S. with over 90 teams. The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup annually pits the best U.S. amateur soccer teams against select pro teams including, from MLS and the USL. Some of the strongest amateur teams each year come from the NPSL. But this time, the pandemic has blocked their progress.

First, on March 13, the U.S. Soccer Open Cup Committee suspended the 2020 U.S. Open Cup in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The first three rounds were set for March 24-25, April 7-9 and April 21-23.

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At this time, with uncertain restart dates, neither the Open Cup Committee nor NPSL would make any commitment to what may happen to any league participation in this competition, but it is highly plausible that the entire competition might be eliminated.

And then, on March 26, the NPSL canceled its 2020 season spanning the summer months. The United States Adult Soccer Association had extended its ban on any activity until April 30, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warning against group activity for eight weeks extending to May 10.

Although it’s an amateur league, each NPSL ownership group resembles a small business. Like other small businesses struggling to stay alive during the pandemic, these owners need flexibility with a customized schedule once the pandemic ends, with a league ready to adapt as necessary. That prompted the league to take this action to protect its structure.

Many of these small-business-style owner groups don’t control their own venues. Those venues, including schools and colleges, are closed. Their expected reopen dates are late, many past the NPSL summer season. The NPSL National Championship happens on the first Saturday of August when college students return. It is unlikely that the league could reach the Championship stage by early August.

While still uncertain, the league hopes to stage its 2020 Members Cup in August. Also, the league places a priority on getting some sort of game schedule cobbled together if the COVID-19 pandemic subsides quickly and in time. Details, however, are pending, the league emphasizes.

For now, however, the league has been canceled and the teams’ participation in the U.S. Open Cup is extremely doubtful, with the competition potentially set to be scrapped due to fixture pile-up. The NPSL promises a glorious return in 2021 should no games be played this year.