The 2008 Season is the 22nd edition of the United Soccer Leagues season.
The season kicked off on Friday, April 12 with two First Division games, as the Charleston Battery visited Miami FC and the Montreal Impact visited the Vancouver Whitecaps.
| Competition | Champion | Runner-Up | Regular Season Champion/Best USL team |
|---|---|---|---|
| USL First Division | Vancouver Whitecaps | Puerto Rico Islanders | Puerto Rico Islanders |
| USL Second Division | Cleveland City Stars | Charlotte Eagles | Charlotte Eagles |
| USL PDL | Thunder Bay Chill | Laredo Heat | Michigan Bucks |
| U.S. Open Cup | D.C. United (MLS) | Charleston Battery (USL-1) | Charleston Battery |
| Canadian Championship | Montreal Impact | Toronto FC (MLS) | n/a |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Puerto Rico Islanders | 30 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 43 | 23 | +20 | 54 | Commissioner's Cup, bye to semifinal round of playoffs |
| 2 | Vancouver Whitecaps (C) | 30 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 34 | 28 | +6 | 53 | First round of playoffs |
| 3 | Montreal Impact | 30 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 33 | 28 | +5 | 42 | |
| 4 | Rochester Rhinos | 30 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 35 | 32 | +3 | 41[a] | |
| 5 | Charleston Battery | 30 | 11 | 12 | 7 | 34 | 36 | −2 | 40[b] | |
| 6 | Seattle Sounders | 30 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 37 | 36 | +1 | 40[b] | |
| 7 | Minnesota Thunder | 30 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 40 | 38 | +2 | 39 | |
| 8 | Carolina RailHawks | 30 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 34 | 43 | −9 | 37 | |
| 9 | Miami FC | 30 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 28 | 34 | −6 | 34[c] | |
| 10 | Atlanta Silverbacks | 30 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 37 | 50 | −13 | 34[c] | |
| 11 | Portland Timbers | 30 | 7 | 13 | 10 | 26 | 33 | −7 | 31 |
Teams were re-seeded for semifinal matchups
Vancouver was selected by the league to host the final despite being the lower seeded team
| First round September 26/28 | Semi-finals October 3/5 | Final October 12 | ||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Seattle Sounders | 2 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Montreal Impact | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Montreal Impact | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Vancouver Whitecaps | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | Minnesota Thunder | 0 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Vancouver Whitecaps | 2 | 3 | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Vancouver Whitecaps | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Puerto Rico Islanders | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Charleston Battery | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Rochester Rhinos | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Rochester Rhinos | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 1 | Puerto Rico Islanders (a.e.t) | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Rochester Rhinos | 2–0 | Charleston Battery |
|---|---|---|
 86' 90' 90' |
Report |
Attendance: 6,923
Referee: Chris Penso
| Charleston Battery | 1–0 | Rochester Rhinos |
|---|---|---|
42' |
Report |
53' 61' |
Attendance: 2,131
Referee: Doug Wolff
Rochester Rhinos won 2–1 on Aggregate.
| Seattle Sounders | 2–1 | Montreal Impact |
|---|---|---|
42' (pen.) 51' 61' 78' |
Report |
86' 90' |
Attendance: 2,865
Referee: Edvin Jurisevic
| Montreal Impact | 3–1 | Seattle Sounders |
|---|---|---|
45' 56' 68'  75' 90' |
Report |
62' 90' 90' |
Attendance: 11,134
Referee: Mauricio Navarro
Montreal Impact won 4–3 on Aggregate.
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 2–0 | Minnesota Thunder |
|---|---|---|
58' 73' 89' |
Report |
76' |
Attendance: 4,943
Referee: Carol Anne Chenard
| Minnesota Thunder | 4–3 | Vancouver Whitecaps |
|---|---|---|
64' 73' 77' 78' 90' (pen.) 90' |
Report |
44' 55' |
Attendance: 3,811
Referee: NA
Vancouver Whitecaps won 5–4 on Aggregate.
| Rochester Rhinos | 2–0 | Puerto Rico Islanders |
|---|---|---|
63' 78' 90' |
Report |
36' 36' 90' |
Attendance: 7,001
Referee: Niko Bratsis
| Puerto Rico Islanders | 3–0 (a.e.t.) | Rochester Rhinos |
|---|---|---|
33' 40' 70' 119' |
Report |
|
Attendance: 9,112
Referee: Tony Russo
Puerto Rico Islanders won 3–2 on Aggregate in Extra Time.
| Montreal Impact | 1–0 | Vancouver Whitecaps |
|---|---|---|
88' |
Report |
52' |
Attendance: 12,002
Referee: Steve DePiero
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 2–0 | Montreal Impact |
|---|---|---|
37' 41' 56' 81' |
Report |
48' 64' 80' |
Attendance: 4,992
Referee: Dave Gantar
Vancouver Whitecaps won 2–1 on Aggregate.
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 2–1 | Puerto Rico Islanders |
|---|---|---|
71' |
Report |
|
Attendance: 5,822
Referee: Mark Kadlecik
| USL First Division 2008 Champions |
|---|
 Vancouver Whitecaps FC Second title |
First Team
F: Alex Afonso (Miami FC) (Leading Goalscorer); Macoumba Kandji (Atlanta Silverbacks)
M: Osvaldo Alonso (Charleston Battery); Stephen deRoux (Minnesota Thunder); Martin Nash (Vancouver Whitecaps); Jonathan Steele (Puerto Rico Islanders) (MVP)
D: Cristian Arrieta (Puerto Rico Islanders) (Defender of the Year); Taylor Graham (Seattle Sounders); David Hayes (Atlanta Silverbacks); Nevio Pizzolitto (Montreal Impact)
G: Bill Gaudette (Puerto Rico Islanders) (Goalkeeper of the Year)
Coach: Colin Clarke (Puerto Rico Islanders) (Coach of the Year)
Second Team
F: Sebastien Le Toux (Seattle Sounders); Eduardo Sebrango (Vancouver Whitecaps)
M: Leonardo Di Lorenzo (Montreal Impact); Johnny Menyongar (Rochester Rhinos); Ricardo Sanchez (Minnesota Thunder); Matt Watson (Carolina RailHawks)
D: Wesley Charles and Takashi Hirano (Vancouver Whitecaps); Cameron Knowles (Portland Timbers); Scott Palguta (Rochester Rhinos)
G: Matt Jordan (Montreal Impact)
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charlotte Eagles | 20 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 45 | 15 | +30 | 44 | Regular season champion |
| 2 | Richmond Kickers | 20 | 14 | 4 | 2 | 48 | 20 | +28 | 44 | Qualified for playoffs |
| 3 | Cleveland City Stars | 20 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 33 | 16 | +17 | 37 | |
| 4 | Crystal Palace Baltimore | 20 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 34 | |
| 5 | Harrisburg City Islanders | 20 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 33 | 20 | +13 | 31 | |
| 6 | Western Mass Pioneers | 20 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 19 | 29 | −10 | 20[a] | |
| 7 | Wilmington Hammerheads | 20 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 32 | 33 | −1 | 19 | |
| 8 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 20 | 4 | 10 | 6 | 25 | 37 | −12 | 18 | |
| 9 | Bermuda Hogges | 20 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 21 | 50 | −29 | 17 | |
| 10 | Real Maryland Monarchs | 20 | 3 | 15 | 2 | 15 | 51 | −36 | 10[a] |
| First Round August 13 | Semifinals August 16 | Final August 23 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Charlotte Eagles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Crystal Palace Baltimore (AET/PK) | 2 (7) | 4 | Crystal Palace Baltimore | 1 | |||||||||
| 5 | Harrisburg City Islanders | 2 (6) | 1 | Charlotte Eagles | 1 | |||||||||
| 3 | Cleveland City Stars | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Richmond Kickers | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Cleveland City Stars | 4 | 3 | Cleveland City Stars(AET) | 1 | |||||||||
| 6 | Western Mass Pioneers | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Cleveland City Stars | 4–2 | Western Mass Pioneers |
|---|---|---|
23', 89' 32' 69' 81' 88' |
Report |
16' 34' 68' 43' 64' 44' 66' |
Attendance: 1,683
Referee: Chris Penso (United States)
| Crystal Palace Baltimore | 2–2 (a.e.t.) | Harrisburg City Islanders |
|---|---|---|
30' 59' |
Report |
75' 119' |
| Penalties | ||
  |
7–6 |
|
Attendance: 1,352
Referee: Bryan Roslund (United States)
| Charlotte Eagles | 2–1 | Crystal Palace Baltimore |
|---|---|---|
|
51' 65' 70' 90' |
Report |
54' 59' |
Attendance: 1,188
Referee: Jeff Muschik
| Richmond Kickers | 0–1 (a.e.t.) | Cleveland City Stars |
|---|---|---|
67' 77' 101' |
Report |
108' |
Attendance: 2,693
Referee: Daniel Stead
| Cleveland City Stars | 2–1 | Charlotte Eagles |
|---|---|---|
39' 66' 89' |
Report |
52' 65' 87' 90' |
Attendance: 2,016
Referee: Jason Krnac
First Team
F: Jorge Herrera (Charlotte Eagles); Boyzzz Khumalo (Pittsburgh Riverhounds); Dustin Swinehart (Charlotte Eagles) (league MVP)
M: Mike Burke (Richmond Kickers); Floyd Franks (Cleveland City Stars); Shintaro Harada (Crystal Palace Baltimore)
D: Brady Bryant and Steve Shak (Charlotte Eagles); Sascha Gorres (Richmond Kickers); Mark Schulte (Cleveland City Stars) (Defender of the Year)
G: Terry Boss (Charlotte Eagles)
Coach: Mark Steffens (Charlotte Eagles) (Coach of the Year)
Rookie of the Year: Stanley Nyazamba (Richmond Kickers)
Second Team
F: Gary Brooks (Crystal Palace Baltimore); Sallieu Bundu (Cleveland City Stars); Jeff Deren (Western Mass Pioneers)
M: Trey Alexander (Wilmington Hammerheads); Justin Evans (Pittsburgh Riverhounds); Matthew Mbuta (Crystal Palace Baltimore)
D: Dustin Bixler (Harrisburg City Islanders); Trevor McEachron (Richmond Kickers); Federico Molinari (Western Mass Pioneers); Dame Walters (Wilmington Hammerheads)
G: Ronnie Pascale (Richmond Kickers)
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USL Second Division seasons
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| Men's national teams |
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| Women's national teams |
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| Men's outdoor leagues |
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| Indoor and futsal competitions |
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| Cup competitions |
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| College and university soccer |
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| Defunct Canadian leagues |
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| Defunct cup competitions |
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| Other |
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| Associations |
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| American Soccer League |
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| United Soccer League (1984–85) |
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| APSL/A-League |
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| USISL Select League / A-League |
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| USL First Division |
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| USSF Division 2 Professional League |
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| North American Soccer League |
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| USL / USL Championship |
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| Canadian National Soccer League |
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| Other defunct leagues |
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| USSF (U.S. based leagues) |
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Note: There is no clear information from CSA about tier of U.S. based leagues which have Canadian clubs. In terms of historical information, they have been deployed as tier 2 league as USSF have done. | |||||||||||||||
