Union of North American Soccer

The Union of North American Soccer (UNAS) is the premier soccer league in North America for both men and women. While only the men's league is extremely popular and mainstream around the world, there is a smaller Women's UNAS. Other leagues do exist in the continent since the area covered by the league is so massive, but none are as respected, skilled or popular as UNAS.

Founding and Initial Growth
As the sport of soccer grew in the rest of the world, people couldn't quite understand why the Americans hadn't capitalized on soccer. Amateur and semi-pro teams existed, but there was no official league. Finally, a group of soccer fans, former European players, American legends from foreign leagues and businessmen worked together on founding a league. Players from the U.S National team were ecstatic for the opportunity to play at home. But, the announcement of the Union of North American Soccer, which had teams from the every country and territory in North America, baffled many fans and critics. People had a wide array of teams to choose from and as predicted, the league grew in popularity quickly.

Establishing a Role
The announcement of one governing body for all of North American soccer was flabbergasting to the rest of the world. But, it instantly put the league on the map. While smaller leagues across North America exist, UNAS dominates the sport in the continent. Realizing how vast the league was, they realized they had to frequently hold friendlies against teams from other continents and leagues.

Notable Teams
Since the union holds a dumbfounding ammount of teams, here are some notable teams the union has to offer.

Indianapolis Rhinos: United States: Consistently one of the top teams in the country, the league and the world

Los Guerreros de Juarez: Mexico: Always able to find young talent, Los Guerreros are a frequent contender for championships and are one of the most loved soccer teams in the world.

Differences From Major League Soccer

 * Flopping results in a 4-game suspension
 * Rather than a coin toss, there is a jump ball where players may only use their hands for that
 * Loaning is more restricted as teams can only have the player for two months before being forced to return the player or buy the contract with interes

Postseason Format
The postseason format of UNAS is quite simple. Each region has a tournament to determine the regional champion. The regional champions then meet in a pre-determined location to hold an annual tournament to determine that season's best team in North America.

Awards
Awards are issued both by the league and by the country/region. Here are the primary awards issued both by the league and the country/region...
 * Most Valuable Player
 * Defensive Player of the Year
 * Goalie of the Year
 * Coach of the Year
 * Rookie of the Year
 * Most Improved Player

Women's UNAS
There is a spinoff of UNAS for women's teams. The union does consist of every country and territory in North America, but contains far less teams. The same rules, awards and postseason format is in the women's league as the men's league. But, the women do frequently play in friendlies against the men.

Trivia

 * The logo for the league is an edited version of http://tinyurl.com/pclpouw