About Us


The Maryland Developmental Soccer League (MDSL) was founded in 2022 to combat the high costs of youth soccer leagues in the DC, MD, VA area. We pride ourselves on being the most affordable league in the region all while maintaining a high standard in the quality of the facilities that we use, the referees that we employ, and professionalism in our administration.

We offer outdoor leagues during the spring, summer, and fall seasons in addition to an indoor futsal league during the winter. Our league offers three levels of play (recreation, classic, and competitive) and creates an environment to support player development. Our leagues are only as strong as our coaches, so we look for coaches who share the same ideologies for player development and who want their players to learn how to play soccer the correct way.

In our Recreation division, the teams feature players who are beginners but that doesn’t mean that the expectation is solely for the players to run around the field at U-9 with an 11 v 11 format on full size goals and a 60 x 40 field. In our league we want the recreational players to have fun, and for those who want to excel in soccer, an opportunity to thrive. What makes our recreation division different to other leagues in the DC, MD, VA region is that the format of games range from 4 v 4, 5 v 5, to 7 v 7 to provide beginner players plenty of touches on the ball.

In our Classic division, the formats are similar for U-6 – U-12 teams at the Recreation level, but U-13 teams have the option to play 11 v 11. Teams tend to be a bit more advanced at this level than at the recreation level, and our format provides a great opportunity for teams who wish to ascend to the competitive division. Scores are kept from U-9 and up.

In our Competitive division, formats remain the same although teams play 10 months out of the year. The level of competition is very high as teams are committed to other obligations outside of our league by playing in various tournaments before and after the league season. The level of play is great in this division and teams utilize our league to prepare for some of the top tournaments in the region. Scores are kept from U-9 and up.

The MDSL is the league solution for smaller clubs will smaller budgets. Here we do not treat your club/teams as just another club/team, instead we treat you as a partner. There are League committees that your club will be able to join, and at the end of each season we issue a survey for your to let us know how we did. At the beginning of each season we have a meeting that is mandatory for clubs to attend. At the end of the season we also meet to recap the previous season and to learn more about your club/team’s experience to see how we could make it better. Your feedback matters to us and we want to ensure that we exceed your expectations.