An official application to enter an unofficial Bermuda national team into an American pro league will be posted within days.

National coach Kyle Lightbourne, assistant Paul Scope and recently-retired pro Shaun Goater are behind a bid to bring a United Soccer League franchise to Bermuda for the 2007 season.

Following in the footsteps of the Puerto Rico Islanders, the group are hoping to be able to put a pro team into the second-tier American League ?to improve the overall standing of Bermuda football and give the national team more of a chance in regional competitions.?

The application is all but filled in, with some minor details needing to be completed before the franchise bid is put to the USL, who operate two divisions with Bermuda keen to go into the nine-team second division.

Although national teams themselves cannot enter the pro competition, the all-Bermudian team operating as a club would be eligible to play in the competition, guaranteeing them a minimum of 20 games throughout the summer.

The team would play their away matches in ?swings?, heading off on a mini-tour to take in three or four games rather than travelling away to each match, while the Bermuda team ? who would be an expensive opponent to visit for the US sides ? would have to stump up the costs of an extra night in a hotel and airfares from a gateway city for the visiting teams.

Although no sponsorship has yet been sought ? as the franchise has not been approved ? it is understood there are a number of interested parties keen on backing the enterprise.

?This isn?t about making money,? said Scope, who took charge of the national side in Lightbourne?s absence on Friday night in the 3-2 defeat to touring pro side Southend United.

?This is about helping Bermuda football. A lot of our rivals in the region have either pro leagues or have a lot of their team playing full time. Although we have always had a few overseas pros, the majority of our team has always been made up of amateur players from the domestic league.

?Although that isn?t necessarily that bad a thing, we need to be able to bring up our overall standard to be able to compete ? and this is a very good way of guaranteeing ourselves a lot of matches and a chance for our players to improve.?

Available details are limited at this stage, but it is understood the team will have as many as four full-time players while the rest of the squad will be paid to play in some other way, either through a stipend plus bonuses or at the very least being compensated for lost wages while playing in away games.

The application is set to be submitted soon and will be considered at the August USL AGM, giving the side, whose name is yet to be determined but will not simply be ?Bermuda?, around eight months to get up and running.

The business plan is budgeting for an average crowd of 500 for the home matches with sponsorship making up any shortfall.

In a similar way to David Bascome?s proposed Island Soccer League, college-bound youngsters would not be able to play due to the eligibility problems related to playing a the pro level.