So what are the stakes tonight? Yes, a place in the semi-finals against yet another MLS team. And yes, another opportunity to make the world take notice of this club we have built. But for a lot of people, the biggest prize will be U.S. Soccer Division Two bragging rights

The team we face is Miami FC, from the NASL (North American Soccer League). How about we get this out of the way: they are a better team than us. Neat, we have already beaten three teams in this tournament that are better than us on paper (enjoy the compliment louisville, your league standing is literally the only thing you can hold over us, for now). Miami FC has talent they have managed to pluck away from MLS, which is rare, and have manhandled their league with it. Speaking of their league . . .

The NASL is not the USL, but they co-own the USSF Division 2 with FCC’s own USL. This, you should understand, is weird. In years past, NASL was the division two league, and USL was the division three league. That changed this past off-season when USSF decided to award both leagues, on a provisional basis, second division status. This did not seem very likely for the NASL a few months ago, and is something of a miracle.

It is a miracle because the NASL nearly died last year. In fact, it is possible that it Jon Snow-ed itself and came back after getting rid of some long-standing demons. In this past off season, two teams defected to the USL, Tampa and Ottawa while Indianapolis and North Carolina FC looked to be on the verge of joining them. Two teams died off, Ft. Lauderdale and Rayo OKC. One team, Minnesota United, completed their planned move to MLS. And the storied club New York Cosmos nearly folded. And yet, here we are, with an NASL intact. In fact they added a team in that same offseason, the San Francisco Deltas. Believe it or not, with all of those changes, they are adding two more teams in the next year or so with San Diego and Orange County joining the party.