National Independent Soccer Association
Season2023
DatesMar. 31 – Oct. 25 (regular season)
Oct. 28 – Nov. 11 (playoffs)
ChampionsCity Union
Regular season titleChattanooga FC
Matches played108
Goals scored268 (2.48 per match)
Top goalscorerMarkus Naglestad (15)
← 2022
2024 →
All statistics correct as of November 11, 2023.

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.

Teams

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]

Stadiums and locations

2023 National Independent Soccer Association season is located in the United States
City Union
San Diego
Chattanooga
City Union
Los Angeles
Maryland
Michigan
Club de Lyon
Gold Star
Savannah
Locations of announced clubs
  • 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

Personnel and sponsorship

Note: The league has signed a deal with Hummel to be the official kit manufacturer, but it still allows clubs to find their own provider.[2]
Team Head coach Captain(s) Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
Albion San Diego Spain Diego Gómez United States Tyler Gabarra United States Capelli DarkHorse
Chattanooga FC United States Rod Underwood Jamaica Richard Dixon Denmark Hummel Volkswagen
City Union England Jordan Sullivan United States Mumbi Kwesele Denmark Hummel —
Club de Lyon United States Victor Balaguer Venezuela Victor Rojas Germany Adidas —
Gold Star FC United States Alex Lubyansky United States Brandon Barnes Germany Adidas —
Los Angeles Force United States Matt Morse United States Brandon Gomez United States Xara —
Maryland Bobcats France Alex Kao Ivory Coast Josselin Possian Denmark Hummel Holiday Inn College Park
Michigan Stars Zimbabwe Tatenda Mkuruva Denmark Hummel HTC
Savannah Clovers England David Proctor United States Shandon Wright England Umbro Castro Wood Floors

Coaching changes

Team Outgoing coach Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming coach Date of appointment
Albion San Diego United States Jeff Korytoski Signed by Chattanooga Red Wolves SC December 14, 2022[3] Preseason Spain Diego Gómez February 23, 2023
City Union United States Colton Bly (interim) End of interim period February 10, 2023 England Jordan Sullivan February 10, 2023[4]
Maryland Bobcats Canada Sylvain Rastello Resigned February 21, 2023 France Alex Kao March 1, 2023[5]
Los Angeles Force Mexico Jesus Ochoa (interim) End of interim period April 23, 2023 5th United States Matt Morse April 23, 2023[6]

Regular season

The season started on March 31, with the nine teams playing an unbalanced schedule weighted on regional play.[7]

Standings

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
Source: nisasoccer.com
Rules for classification: 1) points per game; 2) goal differential; 3) goals for; 4) head-to-head; 5) goals against
(C) Champions; (X) Regular season winner

Results

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 — —
Source: nisasoccer.com
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Playoffs

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.

Bracket

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


Schedule

Quarter-finals

October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28) Albion San Diego 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(8–7 p)		Maryland Bobcats FCSan Diego, California
5:30 PM PDT
Report
  • Forka Yellow card 9'
  • Richard Yellow card 24'
  • Brown Yellow card 70'
  • Espinal Yellow card 96'
  • Akinkoye Yellow card 114'
 Stadium: Canyon Crest Academy Stadium
Penalties
October 29, 2023 (2023-10-29) Los Angeles Force2–4 Flower City Union Whittier, California
6:00 PM PDT
  • Avoce 18', 51' Yellow card 31'
  • Hale Yellow card 57' Red card 85'
  • Jovel Yellow card 67'
  • Echavarría Yellow card 73'
 Report
Stadium: Rio Hondo College Stadium

Semi-finals

November 4, 2023 (2023-11-04) Michigan Stars FC 3–2Albion San DiegoWashington Township, Michigan
3:30 PM EST
Report
Stadium: Romeo High School
November 5, 2023 (2023-11-05) Chattanooga FC0–0 (a.e.t.)
(0–2 p)		 Flower City Union Chattanooga, Tennessee
5:00 PM EST
Report
Stadium: Finley Stadium
Penalties

NISA Championship Final

November 11, 2023 (2023-11-11) Michigan Stars FC0–1 Flower City Union Washington Township, Michigan
  • Maric Yellow card 63'
 Report
Stadium: Romeo High School

Player statistics

As of October 25, 2023

Awards

Individual awards

Award Winner Team Reason Ref.
Golden Boot Norway Markus Naglestad Chattanooga FC 15 goals in 23 games [10]
Golden Glove Haiti Jean Antoine Chattanooga FC 15 shutouts in 23 matches; 9 goals against [10]
Coach of the Year Spain Diego Gomez Albion San Diego 11-8-5 record in his debut season [10]
Golden Ball (Most Valuable Player) Honduras Darwin Espinal Maryland Bobcats 11 goals, 5 assists in 22 matches [10]

NISA Best XI

Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards Ref.
Haiti Jean Antoine (CHA) United States Aydan Bowers (CHA)
Jamaica Richard Dixon (CHA)
United States Jimmy Filerman (MAR)
Moldova Anatolie Prepeliță (CHA) 		Colombia Daniel Bedoya (ALB)
United States Tyler Gabarra (ALB)
England Alex McGrath (CHA) 		Honduras Darwin Espinal (MAR)
Bosnia and Herzegovina Leon Maric (MIC)
Norway Markus Naglestad (CHA) 		[10]

Player of the Month

Month Winner Team Reason Ref.
April Haiti Jean Antoine Chattanooga FC 4 clean sheets [11]
May Argentina Ignacio Ten López Club de Lyon 4 goals scored [12]
June United States Edwin Rivas Los Angeles Force 3 assists in 136 minutes [13]
July United States Ben Roach Albion San Diego 3 clean sheets [14]
August Mexico Aldo Quintanilla Los Angeles Force Team went 4-0-0, scored hat-trick [15]
September Colombia Daniel Bedoya Albion San Diego 3 goals scored [16]

Coach of the Month

Month Winner Team Reason Ref.
April France Alex Kao Maryland Bobcats FC 2-0-0 in league play; win in US Open Cup [11]
May Spain Diego Gómez Albion San Diego 3-1-0 in league play [12]
June United States Rod Underwood Chattanooga FC Undefeated in June [13]
July United States Rod Underwood Chattanooga FC 3-1-0 in league play [14]
August United States Matt Morse Los Angeles Force 2-2-0 in league play [15]
September France Alex Kao Maryland Bobcats FC 2-1-0 in league play [16]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Forfeited by Club de Lyon due to lack of approved venue availability.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b "NISA announces 2023 clubs and format". www.nisaofficial.com. January 31, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  2. ^ "NISA announces kit sponsorship deal". Twitter.com. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  3. ^ "Ziggy Korytoski named head coach of Chattanooga Red Wolves SC". December 14, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  4. ^ "Flower City Union Announces 2023 Head Coach". February 10, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  5. ^ "President of the Youth Academy and Assistant Coach Alex Kao to become Head Coach of Maryland Bobcats FC Senior Team". March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  6. ^ "Matt Morse Named Los Angeles Force Coach". April 27, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  7. ^ "NISA releases opening weekend match schedule". www.nisaofficial.com. February 3, 2023. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  8. ^ "NISA Match Forfeit and Postponement". Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  9. ^ a b c "NISA player statistics". nisasoccer.com. NISA. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d e "NISA Honors 2023 Annual Award Recipients". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  11. ^ a b "NISA Announces April 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. May 18, 2023. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  12. ^ a b "NISA Announces May 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. June 14, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "NISA Announces June 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. July 19, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "NISA Announces July 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. August 11, 2023. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  15. ^ a b "NISA Announces August 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. September 12, 2023. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  16. ^ a b "NISA Announces September 2023 Performers of the Month Awards". NISAofficial.com. National Independent Soccer Association. October 23, 2023. Retrieved October 24, 2023.

External links

National Independent Soccer Association
United States Soccer – Division 3 seasons
2023 in American men's soccer
Categories