AROUND THE LEAGUE: JUMP START

by Joseph Reina

Can’t you feel it? The Major Arena Soccer League kicks off this week with a three-game slate involving St. Louis, Kansas City, Empire, and San Diego. With eight teams, the league is primed for the most competitive season ever, where every team could beat any other team on any given night.


We know you can’t wait to see your favorite players and teams take the field after what feels like an eternity away from the turf, so we’ve created an extensive season preview, with breakdowns of all eight teams, including stats, analysis, tactics, and a few predictions to boot.

San Diego Sockers

20-4-0   56 Points (2nd Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Finals

  • Hoxie: +53 (6th)
  • Kelvin: +21 (4th)
  • GPS:  0.263 (3rd)
  • OppGPS: 0.201 (2nd)
  • Player To Watch: Luiz Morales

The Sockers’ goal for 2025/26 is clear and unwavering: Bring the Ron Newman Cup back to San Diego. Anything less would be unthinkable. Last year’s team was among the most talented in the league, but against the dominant Chihuahua Savage, they played the unfamiliar role of underdogs and faltered at the final hurdle. This year, there’s no wiggle room. It’s a championship or bust in Southern California.


Their defense led the way last season, allowing just 4.958 goals per game, the second-fewest, behind only Baltimore. This is largely because the Sockers conceded fewer shots than average and posted the second-lowest opposition goals per shot (OppGPS), meaning the chances they did concede were less dangerous than expected.

Offensively, the Sockers were methodical in possession, passing up good shots for great ones, even if that meant taking fewer shots overall. Their attack, though devastating on paper, took only 27.708 shots per game, slightly below the league average of 28.417 and well behind the likes of Milwaukee, Kansas City, and Empire.


The mindset of taking fewer, better shots rather than more, worse shots is a sound one, but the output isn’t where they’d likely expect it to be at this point. They overperformed their xG on both sides of the ball by nearly one goal per game, so adding a more explosive offensive rotation that allows their talented attackers to find and exploit space rather than control the ball would likely help this team find the ideal mix of patient possession and artificial chaos.

In the quest for their third MASL title, the Sockers added two-time MASL MVP Nick Perera and four-time goalkeeper of the year Chris Toth from Tacoma, while 25-year-old attacking phenom Jesus Pacheco joined from Baltimore. With returning stars like Drew Ruggles, Gabriel Costa, Luiz Morales and TST’s Million Dollar Goal-scorer, Charlie Gonzalez, the real challenge for head coach Phil Salvagio will be getting his gameday roster down to just 16 players.


Two-thirds of San Diego’s games this season will be against Tacoma, Empire, and Kansas City, with all five of their meetings with the Comets coming after February 13. A positive record in those games will be imperative if they want to claim the MASL Shield and a top seed for the playoffs.


The Sockers open their season at home against the Strykers on Friday, Nov. 28, at 10:30 PM EST.

Baltimore Blast

16-7-1   48 Points (3rd Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Semifinals

  • Hoxie: +83 (5th)
  • Kelvin: +25 (3rd)
  • GPS:  0.255 (4th)
  • OppGPS: 0.215 (5th)
  • Player To Watch: Bruno Henrique

After taking a step backwards in 2023/24, the Blast returned with a vengeance last season. The evergreen powerhouse put together a strong campaign, finishing the regular season in 3rd with 48 points, 16 more than they had the previous year. Head coach David Bascome and his side would have been happy to return to the playoffs, but they know that more is possible.


The Blast finished the season with the 4th-most Hoxie Points (47) and earned one more, indicating that their overall level of play correlated well with their final place in the table and their eventual semifinal elimination. However, when looking at their Kelvin, Baltimore actually overperformed to the tune of 1.062 goals per game, thanks largely to their attacking prowess. 

The Blast scored nearly a goal per game more than expected (0.875), perhaps due to their intense press, often seen at home, and their uncanny ability to create extremely dangerous chances, especially at the back post. Their playstyle works incredibly well at home, but they haven’t quite figured out how to adapt it as well on the road.


Let’s talk about that home-field advantage briefly, because Baltimore accumulated nearly 64% of their 47 Hoxie points at TU Arena. Despite facing roughly the same number of shots at home and away, the Blast took a staggering 12.163 fewer shots on average in road games compared to those at home. 

When the league average is just over 28, not taking 12 shots makes a huge difference. Their above-average GPS remained consistent both at home and away, suggesting the Blast could benefit from finding a way to take more shots on the road.


While Jesus Pacheco departed for pastures new, the Blast managed to retain many of the players that brought them success last season. The team’s points leaders, Juan Pereira, Chad Poarch, and Bruno Henrique, return while Victor Parreiras, Julian Rodriguez, Patrick Thompson, and several other key pieces re-signed as coach Bascome and his team attempt to climb further up the table in 2025/26.


Baltimore will kick off their season against Kansas City at TU Arena on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 6 PM EST.

Milwaukee Wave

14-8-2   42 Points (5th Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Semifinals

  • Hoxie: +107 (4th)
  • Kelvin: +44 (5th)
  • GPS:  0.238 (7th)
  • OppGPS: 0.235 (8th)
  • Player To Watch: Alex Sanchez


A new era begins in Milwaukee this season as Marcio Leite becomes the team’s third full-time head coach since 1992. While much has changed, much remains the same for the Wave, who enjoyed a second successive trip to the Ron Newman Cup semifinals last year.


From 2006 to 2024, Leite played for Milwaukee under both Giuliano Oliviero and Keith Tozer, and he now joins the latter’s illustrious coaching tree. Leite’s passion for futsal specifically is well documented and is expected to guide his coaching philosophy during his first season with the team. 

Last season, the Wave didn’t stand out when looking at any of our advanced statistics. Their GPS was slightly below average both offensively and defensively, and they didn’t show much positive variance when shooting, at least not enough to gain a tangible advantage. Where they did excel, however, was their volume.


The Wave took the second-most shots (759) behind only Chihuahua and also scored the second-most goals (177) last season. While goals are incredibly random and fall victim to luck and chance, shot creation gives us a better understanding of skill. Better teams generally create and take more shots, and as a result, are more likely to score more goals. 

For the Wave, the focus should be on defensive stability this season. The other teams atop the league have figured out a way to either prevent their opponents from taking shots or force them into less dangerous shots that result in more blocks or saves. Fixing, not patching that hole, could be the key to bringing this team to the next level.


Key to their success will be MVP candidate Alex Sanchez, who stole the headlines last season as he led his team in points with 27 goals and 21 assists. The 24-year-old took the third-most shots of all players last season, accounting for 18.3% of the Wave’s attempts by himself. If he can avoid regression to the mean and prove that 2024/25 was not a fluke, the Wave has every chance of challenging the perennial favourites for silverware.


The Wave opens its campaign with a three-game road stretch, beginning with a tough test against the Sockers at Frontwave Arena on Sunday, Dec. 7, at 6 PM EST.

Kansas City Comets

15-7-2   46 Points (4th Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Quarterfinals

  • Hoxie: -18 (7th)
  • Kelvin: +17 (5th)
  • GPS:  0.183 (11th)
  • OppGPS: 0.162 (1st)
  • Player To Watch: Marcel Berry


Kansas City is among the more fascinating teams to analyze from last season, given their outlying numbers in several key statistics. After making it to the Ron Newman Cup Finals in 2023/24, the Comets lost their first game of the 2024/25 playoffs against their rivals, Milwaukee. For a team attempting to become one of the league’s perennial favorites, this step backwards could have been an indictment of the system and a sign to start the project over, but crucially, the Comets understand the volatility and randomness that comes with one-game samples.


When using data analytics, numbers without nuance can lead to contradictory understandings of reality. The Comets are a perfect example of a team that has embraced a negative or counterintuitive metric to improve performance. While it may sound at odds with common sense, the Comets conceded the most shots against of all teams returning for 2025/26, yet gave up the fourth fewest goals; one more than Baltimore, five more than San Diego, and ten more than Chihuahua. 

The expected goals data only make this disparity more apparent. When we subtract their goals against from their expected goals figure, we see that the Comets actually conceded an astounding 47 fewer goals than expected, more than double the next best team (Chihuahua, 23). So how does this make sense?


If you watched the games last season, you know the Comets put a heavy emphasis on blocking shots rather than preventing them. They forced opponents into difficult shooting positions, which favored their defenders, who led the league in blocks per game (13.583), and goalkeepers, who led all eight playoff teams in saves per game (13.417). 

Though shot-location data is not readily available, if you were to see the Comets’ shots-against map, there's a good chance it would be largely devoid of shots from the the most dangerous place on the turf, around the box and key,


Their offence certainly has its issues, namely the exact opposite situation, where they take a large amount of shots but don’t convert them at a high rate, and as a result, scored the fewest goals of all playoff teams last season. Head coach Stefan Stokic is notably a defensive-minded tactician, but adding the likes of Dom Francis to the attacking rotation, along with other new signings, will likely help conversion rates regress to the mean this season.


The Comets will open the 2025/26 MASL season on the road against their I-80 rivals, the St. Louis Ambush, on Friday, Nov. 28 at 6:05 PM EST, before hosting the reverse fixture the following evening.

Utica City FC

13-9-2   41 Points (6th Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Quarterfinals

  • Hoxie: +108 (3rd)
  • Kelvin: -1 (7th)
  • GPS:  0.268 (2nd)
  • OppGPS: 0.264 (11th)
  • Player To Watch: Mehrshad Ahmadi

It feels unfair to characterize Utica’s season as anything other than “The Tale of Two Cities”. You have to understand the phenomenon of Kelvin Oliveira and his impact on the team’s performance. After his midseason departure, the team’s identity fundamentally changed, in many ways for the better, but it’s frankly impossible to replace an individual as uniquely talented as Kelvin.


The team averaged 7.58 goals per game with Kelvin on the turf, but without him, that figure dropped by half a goal per game to 7.08. This drop in scoring coincided with a slight increase in shooting volume, suggesting a slight decline in shooting efficiency. 

However, their attacking GPS, both with and without Kelvin, was one of the best in the league, showing this slight change could be symptomatic of a tactical shift that actually benefited the team's overall chance creation without the Brazilian star.


After Kelvin left, Utica diversified its attack, with players like Nilton de Andrade, Vinicius Dantas, Sergio Pinal, Gordy Gurson, and Mehrshad Ahmadi all finishing the season with over 20 points. Kelvin definitely drew more attention on the turf, but his absence allowed more players to flourish in head coach Hewerton Moreira’s rapid transition system, which benefited the team in the end. 

Against the Blast in the playoffs, their frantic nature found moments of success, but Baltimore’s ability to slow the game down doomed Utica to just that, a few promising moments in a game dominated by their opponent. In their six contests during the regular season, Utica only managed to win once, and they’ll need to find a way to even that series in 2025/26 if they want to get back to the playoffs.


Team captain Nate Bourdeau and long-time goalkeeper Andrew Coughlin both announced their retirements in the weeks leading up to the new season. Their veteran presences will certainly be missed, but bringing in the likes of midfielder Willie Spurr from Tacoma and goalkeeper Xavier Snaer-Williams on loan from San Diego will allow them to revamp the team’s identity and system in the hopes of climbing back up the table this season.


Utica will open its season at the Adirondack Bank Center against the Comets on Sunday, Dec. 7, at 3 PM EST.

Empire Strykers

12-10-2   37 Points (7th Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Quarterinals

  • Hoxie: +209 (2nd)
  • Kelvin: -26 (11th)
  • GPS:  0.228 (8th)
  • OppGPS: 0.280 (12th)
  • Player To Watch: Justin Stinson

2024/25 was undoubtedly a step in the right direction for Empire. Onua Obasi’s first season at the helm led to a style of play that caught the rest of the league’s attention immediately, with his side’s goalkeeper joining the attack to create a numerical advantage anytime the team had possession.


This pseudo sixth-attacker allowed the Strykers to control the tempo extremely well and limited their opponents to just 21.417 shots per game last season, the fewest in the MASL, and nearly 25% lower than the league average. However, their opponent’s GPS (0.280) was the highest in the league, as the team conceded 29 more goals than expected, over one per game. 

The team managed to outshoot its opponents with tremendous consistency, which allowed them to amass 58 Hoxie points, the same amount as the Savage, who won the MASL shield. The issue was a combination of poor defending, which conceded far too many dangerous chances, and an offense that lacked the clinical finishing necessary to balance the scales.


Despite their wealth of possession, Empire only took 30.125 shots per game and converted them at an average rate while opponents defended patiently and hit on the counter with devastating tact. The Strykers struggled to break down teams that sat back and defended, and there often appeared to be no backup plan or alternate look. 

In their quarterfinal matchup against the Sockers, Empire fell behind after a pair of goals in the second quarter. While Marco Fabián’s breakthrough halved the deficit, the Sockers followed the game plan perfectly, as they added a third before halftime, and a fourth early into the third quarter. It seems clear that Obasi’s system achieves its intended purpose, that is, preventing shots while retaining possession; it’s just not happening at a rate high enough to turn that advantage into wins.


Establishing an offensive system that creates and finds high-value shots would make a massive difference. Fabián and Justin Stinson led all players in shots last year, so it might be a good idea to find shooting looks for other attacking options who might be open while defenses prioritize the two most dangerous players.


Empire’s first test of the season will be a trip to San Diego on Friday, Nov. 28, at 10:30 PM EST.

St. Louis Ambush

11-12-1   33 Points (8th Place); Lost in Ron Newman Cup Quarterfinals

  • Hoxie: -155 (9th)
  • Kelvin: +29 (1st)
  • GPS:  0.270 (1st)
  • OppGPS: 0.227 (7th)
  • Player To Watch: Riley Urie

Six of the eight playoff teams left San Diego last April after losses. Four teams exited in the first round, but one caught my eye. Despite entering the weekend as the lowest seed and losing to eventual champions Chihuahua by four goals, St. Louis put together an incredible fight and went out not with a whimper but with a bang. If a few bounces had gone the Ambush’s way, it’s very possible we could have seen an upset that Friday, but as it happened, luck was not on their side.


St. Louis entered the playoffs on an incredible run, earning 25 of their 33 points in the second half of the year. They finished the whole season with the highest GPS of all 12 teams (0.270), but their GPS during the final 12 games was even higher, an astounding 0.308. While they were certainly underdogs, those who wrote them off in that quarterfinal tie were perhaps not fully aware of just how well the Ambush were playing at the time. 

Let’s take a look at one moment from that quarterfinal contest. The Ambush struggled to create shooting opportunities all afternoon, but the ones they did find were extremely dangerous. This artificial counterattack, initiated by a substitution in possession, caught the Savage napping as Riley Urie found space, attacked, and squared a pass to Lucas Almeida. His first-time shot, which would have put his team up 1-0 after just seven minutes, wound up sailing safely over the boards and away from danger.


That specific moment shows exactly where this team excels. Yes, Almeida would likely want that shot back, but he ultimately was in the right spot, and his miss was a cruel twist of fate that just didn’t go his way. A team’s ability to create that chance early on against the best team in the league should not go unnoticed, and any coach would prefer to have a player who knows where to be to get a shot like this, rather than one who never gets to take that shot because they ran to the back post instead. This is why they rank 1st in both GPS and goals minus expected goals; They find the dangerous shots. 

This team’s game plan works, and with all their returning players, the Ambush absolutely deserve to be in the playoff conversation. Almeida led the MASL last season with 24 assists to go with his seven goals, alongside Duduca Carvalho and William Eskay, who also finished the season with over 30 total points. Additionally, nine further players finished the campaign, averaging over 0.5 points per game for the Ambush, showing just how well they spread the love.


For 2025/26, head coach Jeff Locker and his side need to close the gap to the Comets and keep the pressure on the Wave and Empire if they want to give themselves a chance to be successful. Those three opponents account for all of their first eight contests and 14 total games this season. Seven wins from those games would be a massive step towards making it back to the playoffs, and would certainly catch the attention of the rest of the league.


The Ambush hosts the 2025/26 MASL Regular Season opener against the Kansas City Comets on Friday, Nov. 28, at 6:05 PM EST.

Tacoma Stars

10-11-3   32 Points (9th Place); Did Not Qualify For Playoffs

  • Hoxie: -61 (8th)
  • Kelvin: -9 (9th)
  • GPS:  0.192 (10th)
  • OppGPS: 0.208 (10th)
  • Player To Watch: Yahir Romero

Last season could have turned out differently for the Stars. Following a massive upset win on opening night against their rivals, San Diego, Tacoma embarked on a seven-game losing streak that lasted until Jan. 25, when they bested the Strykers in a shootout. Another four-game losing streak followed, leaving the Stars with just eight points and only 11 games to play.


From that point on, the Stars put together an extraordinary series of results, with a pair of weekend sweeps over the Blast and the Comets showing just how good this team could be. The problem for Tacoma was its reliance on superstars, as Nick Perera led the team with 38 points in just 20 games, while goalkeeper Chris Toth’s 75.2% save percentage led the league. In case you missed the boat, both players left the team to join San Diego this summer. 

Realistically, this is shaping up to be a textbook rebuilding year in Tacoma, and at the heart of that should be an attempt to revamp the team’s identity and playing style. In recent years, we’ve seen a slight shift in the league’s tactics away from possession-based play and towards chaotic moments of high-speed transition. It’s typically seen from underdogs as a way to unsettle their opponents and hopefully induce mistakes through high-pressing and counter-attacking, and it would likely suit the Stars quite well.


Tacoma has several players who excel in a rapid transition, like Yahir Romero and Jamael Cox, who can punish opponents quickly in possession. Mike Ramos and Tyler John will likely bear the brunt of the attacking load in Perera’s absence, and that should be a welcome thought for Stars fans. Ramos and John finished the season with 27 and 23 points, respectively, good enough to average over a point per game each. 

They’ll face the same challenges as last season, with San Diego and Empire accounting for ten of their 24 games. It’s a tall ask, but if they could get three or four wins from those games, perhaps take a few to overtime, they could surprise a few people and sneak their way into playoff contention. They’ll need to start strong and take advantage of home games early in the year to avoid climbing out of a hole like they did last year.


The Stars will be the final MASL team to hit the field in 2025/26, with their season opener slated for Saturday, Dec. 13, at 9:05 PM EST, when Baltimore visits the accesso ShoWare Center.