The 2019–20 Major Arena Soccer League season is the twelfth season for the league. The league adopted a new format during the offseason, merging the four divisions into two conferences and eliminating the divisional format. On 12 March 2020, the league announced they would end the regular season early due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.[2] On July 1, 2020, MASL announced that the Board of Directors had voted to conclude the 2019–20 season with the recognition of the Monterrey Flash and Florida Tropics being the winners of the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively.[3]
| Season | 2019–20 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Monterrey Flash (West), Florida Tropics (East) |
| Matches played | 179 |
| Goals scored | 2,289 (12.79 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Franck Tayou (44 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Monterrey Flash 14–1 Dallas Sidekicks (December 2, 2019) |
| Biggest away win | Rochester Lancers 4–17 Florida Tropics SC (January 3, 2020) |
| Highest scoring | 24 goals Rochester Lancers 8–16 St. Louis Ambush (February 1, 2020) |
| Longest winning run | 13 Games: Monterrey Flash (11/22/19–1/17/2020) |
| Longest losing run | 21 Games: Rochester Lancers (11/29/19–3/7/20) |
| Total attendance | 454,670 (1 match did not report attendance)[1] |
| Average attendance | 2,540 |
← 2018–19 2021 →
All statistics correct as of July 11, 2020. | |
Changes from 2018-19
edit- Expansion
- Folded
- Moved to MASL 2
- Returning
- Change in season format
On July 19, 2019, the MASL announced the following changes for the 2019–20 season.
- Teams will be divided into two conferences (Eastern and Western), rather than four divisions.
- All playoff matchups will follow the best of three format, with the third game being a mini-game following game #2, if the series is tied.
Standings
editAs of March 12, 2020[6]
2019-20 League Championship
2019-20 Playoff Team
(Bold) Division Winner
(Italic) Defending Champion
o-Eliminated from playoffs x-clinched playoff spot
Eastern Conference
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida Tropics SC—x | 21 | 18 | 3 | 173 | 86 | +87 | .857 | +4 |
| 2 | Milwaukee Wave | 20 | 14 | 6 | 157 | 96 | +61 | .700 | +0.5 |
| 3 | Utica City FC | 20 | 14 | 6 | 141 | 106 | +35 | .700 | +0.5 |
| 4 | Baltimore Blast | 23 | 15 | 8 | 175 | 104 | +71 | .652 | — |
| 5 | Harrisburg Heat | 21 | 13 | 8 | 150 | 115 | +35 | .619 | 1 |
| 6 | Kansas City Comets-o | 21 | 10 | 11 | 145 | 136 | +9 | .476 | 4 |
| 7 | St. Louis Ambush-o | 21 | 9 | 12 | 126 | 168 | −42 | .429 | 5 |
| 8 | Orlando SeaWolves-o | 20 | 1 | 19 | 88 | 202 | −114 | .050 | 12.5 |
| 9 | Rochester Lancers-o | 22 | 1 | 21 | 79 | 235 | −156 | .045 | 13.5 |
Tiebreakers are as follows: Win%, Head to Head, Goal Differential, Wins, Losses.
Western Conference
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monterrey Flash—y | 22 | 20 | 2 | 196 | 111 | +85 | .909 | +9 |
| 2 | San Diego Sockers-x | 21 | 15 | 6 | 124 | 104 | +20 | .714 | +4.5 |
| 3 | Ontario Fury | 21 | 12 | 9 | 137 | 115 | +22 | .571 | +1.5 |
| 4 | Sonora Suns | 22 | 11 | 11 | 173 | 154 | +19 | .500 | — |
| 5 | Tacoma Stars | 20 | 8 | 12 | 112 | 124 | −12 | .400 | 2 |
| 6 | Turlock Cal Express | 20 | 8 | 12 | 112 | 128 | −16 | .400 | 2 |
| 7 | Mesquite Outlaws-o | 21 | 7 | 14 | 109 | 123 | −14 | .333 | 3.5 |
| 8 | Dallas Sidekicks-o | 22 | 3 | 19 | 92 | 178 | −86 | .136 | 8 |
Tiebreakers are as follows: Win%, Head to Head, Goal Differential, Wins, Losses
Statistics
editTop scorers
edit| Rank | Scorer | Club | Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Franck Tayou | Ontario Fury | 21 | 47 | 18 | 65 |
| 2 | Leo Gibson | Kansas City Comets | 20 | 29 | 31 | 60 |
| 3 | Vini Dantas | Baltimore Blast | 22 | 37 | 17 | 54 |
| 4 | Ian Bennett | Milwaukee Wave | 20 | 44 | 7 | 51 |
| 5 | Brayan Aguilar | Monterrey Flash | 20 | 33 | 15 | 48 |
| 6 | Ricardo Carvalho | Florida Tropics SC | 21 | 23 | 23 | 46 |
| 7 | Tony Donatelli | Baltimore Blast | 23 | 22 | 23 | 45 |
| 8 | Max Ferdinand | Milwaukee Wave | 20 | 17 | 27 | 44 |
| 9 | Enrique Cañez | Sonora Suns | 21 | 33 | 10 | 43 |
| 10 | Nick Perera | Tacoma Stars | 20 | 22 | 20 | 42 |
Playoffs
editTop 4 teams from both conferences qualify. Teams seeded 1st get to choose which lower seeded opponent from their conference they will face in the opening round. All rounds of the playoffs, including the championship finals, are best 2 of 3, with the 3rd game being a 15-minute mini-game, if required. On May 21, MASL announced that it intends on having playoffs, with modifications such as one centralized location, and a five-day training camp period.[8] However, on June 3, MASL announced that the plan from May 21 was no longer being implemented, due to logistical difficulties as well as any positives being outweighed by the negatives.[9] With the announcement of the Flash and Tropics winning their conferences, the 2020 season concluded with no playoffs.
End-of-season awards
editMASL announced their end of season awards schedule would start on the 8th of April with the All-MASL Honorable Mentions team and culminate on the 18th of April with the MVP award.
References
edit- ^ MASL Attendance
- ^ "Major Arena Soccer League to End Regular Season Effective Immediately". March 12, 2020.
- ^ "Flash and Tropics Named Regular Season Champions". July 2020.
- ^ "Mesquite Outlaws Will Join Major Arena Soccer League". April 15, 2019.
- ^ "Masl Announces Revised 2019-2020 Schedule". November 23, 2019.
- ^ "Standings - Major Arena Soccer League". www.maslsoccer.com.
- ^ MASL Stats
- ^ "Statement on 2019-20 Season". May 21, 2020.
- ^ "Masl Still Monitoring Return to Play Scenarios". June 3, 2020.