[1] Before the 2022 season, only two OVC members—Eastern Illinois and SIU Edwardsville (SIUE)—sponsored men's soccer, respectively playing that sport in the Summit League and Missouri Valley Conference (MVC).
[4] The OVC still had only four men's soccer schools, two short of the number required for a conference to receive an automatic bid to the Division I tournament.
However, further developments in conference realignment would give the OVC the opportunity to add enough members to start a men's soccer league.
[12] However, the MAC had lost men's soccer associate SIUE to the MVC in 2021[13] and would lose West Virginia to the SBC in 2022.
[9] After the departure of West Virginia, the MAC had only five men's soccer members, one short of the six needed to maintain its automatic bid.
The new league would include full members Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, SIUE, and Southern Indiana, plus affiliates Chicago State, Houston Christian, Liberty, and UIW.