We have 29 MLS clubs and I'm not sure how many teams the "lesser" league has but I'm not convinced they have the money (or are willing to prioritize money toward it) to fund a professional style academy either.
An acquaintance of ours, his son was accepted to IMG Academy as GK ( few years back ) no scholarship, no outside funding and it was over $60,000/yr
THEY PAID IMG. For son to attend as GK- who actually ended up out the game due to injuries.
So why in the world would teams form academies, taking on players and funding their development AND education ( i use that term lightly lol ) in hopes they either become 1st team player or sold off for profit? Its too late to convince owners. This should have been set up from DAY ONE of MLS - but they got spooked by all the "tryin to be like baseball/minors" talk.