| Season | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Dates | Mar. 31 – Oct. 25 (regular season) Oct. 28 – Nov. 11 (playoffs) |
| Champions | City Union |
| Regular season title | Chattanooga FC |
| Matches played | 108 |
| Goals scored | 268 (2.48 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Markus Naglestad (15) |
← 2022 2024 → | |
The 2023 NISA season is the fifth season of the National Independent Soccer Association's third-division soccer competition. Michigan Stars are the defending champions, after winning the 2022 season.
Of the eight teams that finished the 2022 season, five return for 2023, two (Flower City Union and Syracuse Pulse) merge to form a new team branded City Union, and one, California United Strikers, is on hiatus, with the aim to return in 2024.[1]
The six teams are joined by three expansion clubs: Club de Lyon, Gold Star FC and Savannah Clovers FC.[1]
Participating club| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albion San Diego | San Diego, CA | Canyon Crest Academy Stadium | 5,000 |
| Chattanooga FC | Chattanooga, TN | Finley Stadium | 20,668 |
| City Union | Rochester, NY Auburn, NY |
Marina Auto Stadium Falcon Park |
13,768 2,800 |
| Club de Lyon | Daytona Beach, FL | Daytona Stadium | 9,601 |
| Gold Star FC | Livonia, MI | Gold Star Stadium | 5,000 |
| Los Angeles Force | Irvine, CA | Championship Stadium | 5,000 |
| Maryland Bobcats | Boyds, MD | Maryland SoccerPlex | 4,000 |
| Michigan Stars | Washington, MI | Romeo High School | 4,000 |
| Savannah Clovers | Savannah, GA | Memorial Stadium | 5,000 |
| Team | Head coach | Captain(s) | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion San Diego |  Diego Gómez
|
 Tyler Gabarra
|
Capelli
|
DarkHorse |
| Chattanooga FC | Rod Underwood
|
 Richard Dixon
|
 Hummel
|
Volkswagen |
| City Union |  Jordan Sullivan
|
Mumbi Kwesele
|
Hummel
|
— |
| Club de Lyon | Victor Balaguer
|
 Victor Rojas
|
 Adidas
|
— |
| Gold Star FC | Alex Lubyansky
|
Brandon Barnes
|
Adidas
|
— |
| Los Angeles Force | Matt Morse
|
Brandon Gomez
|
Xara
|
— |
| Maryland Bobcats |  Alex Kao
|
 Josselin Possian
|
Hummel
|
Holiday Inn College Park |
| Michigan Stars |  Tatenda Mkuruva
|
Hummel
|
HTC | |
| Savannah Clovers | David Proctor
|
Shandon Wright
|
Umbro
|
Castro Wood Floors |
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion San Diego | Jeff Korytoski
|
Signed by Chattanooga Red Wolves SC | December 14, 2022[3] | Preseason | Diego Gómez
|
February 23, 2023 |
| City Union | Colton Bly (interim)
|
End of interim period | February 10, 2023 | Jordan Sullivan
|
February 10, 2023[4] | |
| Maryland Bobcats |  Sylvain Rastello
|
Resigned | February 21, 2023 | Alex Kao
|
March 1, 2023[5] | |
| Los Angeles Force |  Jesus Ochoa (interim)
|
End of interim period | April 23, 2023 | 5th | Matt Morse
|
April 23, 2023[6] |
The season started on March 31, with the nine teams playing an unbalanced schedule weighted on regional play.[7]
| Pos | Team
|
Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chattanooga FC (X) | 24 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 12 | +29 | 52 | Qualification for the semifinals |
| 2 | Michigan Stars | 24 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 37 | 21 | +16 | 46 | |
| 3 | Los Angeles Force | 24 | 13 | 5 | 6 | 33 | 21 | +12 | 44 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 4 | Albion San Diego | 24 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 31 | 21 | +10 | 41 | |
| 5 | Maryland Bobcats | 24 | 11 | 3 | 10 | 31 | 22 | +9 | 36 | |
| 6 | City Union (C) | 24 | 8 | 3 | 13 | 30 | 34 | −4 | 27 | |
| 7 | Club de Lyon | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 23 | 45 | −22 | 23 | |
| 8 | Savannah Clovers | 24 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 19 | 47 | −28 | 19 | |
| 9 | Gold Star FC | 24 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 23 | 45 | −22 | 12 |
| Home \ Away | ALB | CHA | FLO | CLY | GOL | LAF | MAR | MIC | SAV | ALB | CHA | FLO | CLY | GOL | LAF | MAR | MIC | SAV | ALB | CHA | FLO | CLY | GOL | LAF | MAR | MIC | SAV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion San Diego | — | 0–5 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | — | 3–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 4–0 | — | ||||||||||||
| Chattannooga | 2–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 5–0 | — | |||||||||||
| City Union | 1–1 | 0–1 | — | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | — | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 4–2 | — | |||||||||||
| Club de Lyon | 1–2 | 0–3[A] | — | 3–2 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 0–4 | 1–2 | 2–1 | — | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | ||||||||||||||
| Gold Star FC | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 1–2 | — | 0–3 | 2–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–3 | — | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–4 | — | ||||||||||||
| L.A. Force | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | — | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 4–0 | — | 2–1 | 1–0 | — | ||||||||||||
| Maryland Bobcats | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 5–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | — | 0–2 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | — | 0–0 | 0–1 | — | |||||||||||
| Michigan Stars | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | — | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | — | — | |||||||||||||
| Savannah Clovers | 1–4 | 3–2 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–5 | 0–1 | — | — |
The playoffs will keep the same format from last year, and feature the top six teams from the regular season. The top two teams receive a bye into the semifinals. Teams finishing third through sixth play in the quarterfinals, with the winners being re-seeded before playing in the next round.
| Quarterfinal October 29 | ||||
| 3 | Los Angeles Force | 2 | ||
| 6 | Flower City Union | 4 | ||
| Quarterfinal October 28 | ||||
| 4 | Albion San Diego (p) | 0 (8) | ||
| 5 | Maryland Bobcats FC | 0 (7) | ||
| Semifinals November 4/5 | NISA Championship Final November 11 | ||||||||
| 1 | Chattanooga FC | 0 (0) | |||||||
| 6 | Flower City Union (p) | 0 (2) | |||||||
| 6 | Flower City Union | 1 | |||||||
| 2 | Michigan Stars FC | 0 | |||||||
| 2 | Michigan Stars FC | 3 | |||||||
| 4 | Albion San Diego | 2 | |||||||
| October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28) | Albion San Diego | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (8–7 p) | Maryland Bobcats FC | San Diego, California |
| 5:30 PM PDT |
|
Report |
 24' 70' 96' 114' |
Stadium: Canyon Crest Academy Stadium |
| Penalties | ||||
 |
Espinal Thiam Mansour Pritchett Akinkoye Filerman Sutton |
|||
| October 29, 2023 (2023-10-29) | Los Angeles Force | 2–4 | Flower City Union | Whittier, California |
| 6:00 PM PDT |
57'  85' 67' 73' |
Report |
 34' 81' 84' 90+3' |
Stadium: Rio Hondo College Stadium |
| November 4, 2023 (2023-11-04) | Michigan Stars FC | 3–2 | Albion San Diego | Washington Township, Michigan |
| 3:30 PM EST |
27' 45' 56' 60' 70' |
Report |
82' 83' |
Stadium: Romeo High School |
| November 5, 2023 (2023-11-05) | Chattanooga FC | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (0–2 p) | Flower City Union | Chattanooga, Tennessee |
| 5:00 PM EST |
|
Report |
59' |
Stadium: Finley Stadium |
| Penalties | ||||
|
|
Cavanaugh Bolduc Diakhate |
|||
| November 11, 2023 (2023-11-11) | Michigan Stars FC | 0–1 | Flower City Union | Washington Township, Michigan |
|
Report |
35' 52' 90' 57' 70' 85' 90' |
Stadium: Romeo High School |
| Award | Winner | Team | Reason | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Boot |  Markus Naglestad
|
Chattanooga FC | 15 goals in 23 games | [10] |
| Golden Glove |  Jean Antoine
|
Chattanooga FC | 15 shutouts in 23 matches; 9 goals against | [10] |
| Coach of the Year | Diego Gomez
|
Albion San Diego | 11-8-5 record in his debut season | [10] |
| Golden Ball (Most Valuable Player) |  Darwin Espinal
|
Maryland Bobcats | 11 goals, 5 assists in 22 matches | [10] |
| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jean Antoine (CHA)
|
Aydan Bowers (CHA) Richard Dixon (CHA) Jimmy Filerman (MAR) Anatolie Prepeliță (CHA)
|
 Daniel Bedoya (ALB) Tyler Gabarra (ALB) Alex McGrath (CHA)
|
Darwin Espinal (MAR) Leon Maric (MIC) Markus Naglestad (CHA)
|
[10] |
| Month | Winner | Team | Reason | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | Jean Antoine
|
Chattanooga FC | 4 clean sheets | [11] |
| May |  Ignacio Ten López
|
Club de Lyon | 4 goals scored | [12] |
| June | Edwin Rivas
|
Los Angeles Force | 3 assists in 136 minutes | [13] |
| July | Ben Roach
|
Albion San Diego | 3 clean sheets | [14] |
| August | Aldo Quintanilla
|
Los Angeles Force | Team went 4-0-0, scored hat-trick | [15] |
| September | Daniel Bedoya
|
Albion San Diego | 3 goals scored | [16] |
| Month | Winner | Team | Reason | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | Alex Kao
|
Maryland Bobcats FC | 2-0-0 in league play; win in US Open Cup | [11] |
| May | Diego Gómez
|
Albion San Diego | 3-1-0 in league play | [12] |
| June | Rod Underwood
|
Chattanooga FC | Undefeated in June | [13] |
| July | Rod Underwood
|
Chattanooga FC | 3-1-0 in league play | [14] |
| August | Matt Morse
|
Los Angeles Force | 2-2-0 in league play | [15] |
| September | Alex Kao
|
Maryland Bobcats FC | 2-1-0 in league play | [16] |
|
| |
|---|---|
| Current teams |
|
| On hiatus |
|
| Future teams |
|
| Former teams |
|
| Seasons |
|
| Affiliated leagues |
|
|
| |
|---|---|
| USISL Pro / D-3 Pro / USL Second Division |
|
| USL Pro / United Soccer League |
|
| USL League One |
|
| National Independent Soccer Association |
|
| MLS Next Pro |
|
|
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
« 2022 2024 » | |||||||||||||
| National teams |
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| League competitions |
| ||||||||||||
| Cup competitions |
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| Youth competitions |
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