This week, a story crept up that the parent company of the San Antonio Spurs (and WNBA Silver Stars and AHL Rampage), Spurs Sports and Entertainment, was interested in bringing professional soccer to San Antonio.

The league that would serve as San Antonio’s first step into the world of pro futbol would be the USL, sort of the apprentice league to the top-level Major League Soccer (MLS).

Rather than considering this a foray into yet another minor league venture, San Antonians should recognize this as the first step up the MLS ladder.  That is the ladder that leads to the above scene of 32,000 rabid supporters cheering on the Seattle Sounders.

Professional soccer has been steadily growing in the US and the MLS has been expanding as the country’s appetite for the sport grows. The sport has proven to be family-friendly and affordable. And not coincidentally, 3 out of the last 4 expansion MLS franchises have been awarded to cities that featured USL teams, including the aforementioned Sounders.

As a soccer fan, I have to believe that a USL team in San Antonio would definitely be a step in the right direction. It would be a step towards the MLS, top-flight soccer, and a revolution in the San Antonio sports scene.

(Originally posted on The Post-Karmic Stream…)