The United Soccer League has grown to become the largest Division II soccer league in the world in 2017, with 30 teams competing for the championship as the league’s continued growth has seen it more than double in size since 2014.

At the heart of that expansion, according to USL President Jake Edwards, is the outstanding ownership groups that have become an integral part of the league’s success on and off the field.

“The ownership we have now, I would stack up against any Division II league in the world,” Edwards told the Los Angeles Times’ Kevin Baxter in a feature story released Sunday. “And we’ve worked hard to achieve that, to attract those kinds of owners.”

Collectively, the USL’s ownership – excluding the clubs owned by Major League Soccer clubs – has a net worth of more than $4 billion, and on top of that many bring experience from top-level professional sports across North America.