FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – It has officially been five years of Revolution II. The current MLS NEXT Pro team started their inaugural season in 2020 as part of USL League One, and it was anything but ordinary. With the COVID-19 pandemic in full swing, coaches and players had to be flexible. Their first-ever kickoff was scheduled for March 28, 2020, but the debut was delayed by four months. Finally, on July 25, 2020, Revs II launched their journey with a 0-0 draw against Union Omaha at Gillette Stadium.
After two seasons in USL League One, beginning in 2022 the team transitioned to MLS NEXT Pro, a league designed by Major League Soccer to strengthen player development and bridge the gap between Academy programs and MLS first teams. For the Revolution, that pathway has already shown major success, recently celebrating the milestone of their 50th Academy player to make a pro debut with Revs II.
“I’ve been watching this team for five years,” said current Revolution II head coach Richie Williams, who was an assistant coach with the first team when Revs II launched in 2020. “Seeing the team from where it started to where it is now, in five years the growth has been tremendous.”
Since its inception, Revs II has experienced a spectrum of outcomes: making the playoffs, contending in a conference final, and spending time at both the bottom and top of the league table. But results are largely secondary at the second team level, as the pathway’s greatest achievement has been fulfilling its mission of developing young players and elevating them to new heights in their soccer careers.
For Damario McIntosh, who signed a first team contract at the start of the year after rising through the Revolution Academy and second team, his experience with Revs II has been crucial to setting him up for success.
“You’re learning day in and day out and it’s a big part of when you make that jump to the first team, getting used to the physicality and the tempo of professional games. That plays a key role in moving up to the first team,” the 17-year-old explained. “Once you start, you can feel nervous, but once you play more and more you see, ‘Yeah, I belong here.’”
This season has been a successful one for Revolution II. They’ve currently gone four games unbeaten and sit at fifth in the Eastern Conference table with a 7-4-5 record. It’s been a major turnaround from last year, when they found themselves at the bottom of the East, with fewer wins by the end of the season than they’ve found now, after just 16 games.
“It’s credit to the players,” said Williams. “I think having a mix of some older guys with more professional experience, combined with some of the younger players who may not have as much professional experience, but they have a lot of talent, that really meshes well together. For me the thing I harp on with them always is to not let their opportunities slip by.”
The Revolution second team has been strong on both ends of the pitch this season. With only 21 goals against and 28 goals scored, the team’s balanced approach hasn’t been by chance, it’s been by desire.
“For the whole team, our mentality is just different. We want to win games. When we get in front of the goal, we’re scoring and we’re defending really well. That’s a big part of our success this season,” explained McIntosh.
The success of the second team has always been about more than winning games. For MLS NEXT Pro, victory comes in the form of development, as more Revolution Academy players rise through the pro pathway, make their Revolution II debuts, and continue to sign with the first team. This past May, central midfielder and Academy product Eric Klein became the 12th player to move from Revs II to the Revolution.
Revolution II has proven effective in developing both depth and difference makers for the Revolution roster, but it’s not just about New England. MLS NEXT Pro is about building the future of MLS and soccer in the United States, and with the success of the past five years, there’s a growing belief that this focus on development could be the key to transforming MLS into one of the world’s most respected leagues.
