USL Championship Enters Week 3 | OneFootball

It’s all intra-conference play this weekend, six for the East and five for the West. We’re focusing on the Eastern Conference here.

Every game is streamed live on ESPN+ except for the Indy vs. Detroit fixture.

Loudoun United FC vs. Miami FC

Kickoff: 3:00 ET/12:00pm PTEach team has played a single league fixture and lost. They sit cheek by jowl at the bottom of the Eastern Conference in 12th and 13th respectively. The good news from Loudoun’s opener last weekend was they got an early goal from Icelandic striker Þorleifur Úlfarsson. The bad news is they conceded three before substitute Sean Young clawed one more back in the 71st minute. There’s life here, and with the home pitch advantage they should get a win over Miami. 

By virtue of their poor record in 2025, Miami FC was excluded from the Open Cup’s reduced field this season. They’ll be fresh, whereas five Loudoun starters put up minutes in their narrow 2-1 win over West Chester SC. Miami was spanked hard by Louisville in their opener last weekend, going down three goals by the 31st minute. Alessandro Milessi’s 44th minute score was a consolation, and one of two shots on frame for the visitors.

Louisville City FC vs. Rhode Island FC

Kickoff: 4:00 ET/1:00pm PTThe season is starting right on track for the 2025 Player’s Shield winners. They’ve had a forgiving schedule; this Saturday’s fixture marks the fourth game since the season began in March that they play in Kentucky (their opener was in nearby Lexington). They sit atop the standings with only two conceded goals marring their record.

Rhode Island’s first game was postponed for weather; they drew the next week’s tie to Sporting JAX after Rafferty Pedder hit the net in the 84th minute. Only Koke Vegas, their Spanish goalkeeper, got any minutes in their 4-0 rout of Boston’s CD Faialense in the Open Cup round 1 tie.  No regular starter for LouCity played in their 2-0 win over Southern Indiana.

Brooklyn FC vs. Hartford Athletic

Kickoff: 7:00 ET/4:00pm PTThe USL’s co-newest franchise will host their second home game ever and look to keep a perfect record at Maimonides Park. They lost 3-0 away to Detroit City FC last weekend, and never really looked dangerous despite having 59% possession. All the same, they’re currently third in the table.

Directly above them is visiting Hartford, who have yet to concede a goal but drew 0-0 to Birmingham on March 11 after winning 3-0 over Sporting JAX. Hartford have yet to play a home game, but their road form has been outstanding so far. 

Charleston Battery vs. Birmingham Legion FC

Kickoff: 7:00 ET/4:00pm PTThere are three black and yellow/gold sides in the East; these are two of them. I’m not expecting too much scintillating soccer for this match. Both sides are scrappy and defensive-minded, relaying more on the counter than elegant build up play. Neither team played in Matchweek 2, and only Charleston had an Open Cup tie midweek. Despite dominating possession, shots and free kicks, it took a winner from Colton Swan in the 12th minute of stoppage time for the Battery to notch a 2-1 victory.

Indy Eleven vs. Detroit City FC

Kickoff: 7:00 ET/4:00pm PTNo lie, I expect a Detroit City win here. They looked solid against Brookyn last week, ably counter-striking to wear down the visitors. Darren Smith, who scored 11 goals in 2025, continued in that vein, grabbing a brace in the 2nd and 32nd minutes. Indy Eleven are one of four teams that have yet to score a goal, though at least this dry spell is only a single game old. We know their offense works, as they easily dispatched Des Moines Menace in Wednesday’s Open Cup match 3-0. But don’t expect that to have worn them out; only midfielders Josh O’Brien and Cameron Lindley started for Indy in the midweek matchup.

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds

Kickoff: 7:30 ET/4:30pm PTThere are three players (Laurence Wyke, Lewis Hilton, Endri Mustali) on the current Rowdies roster who were there when the team took 10th place in the Eastern Conference. Basically, this is an entirely new squad. Their biggest coup was pulling Russell Cicerone from Sacramento Republic, although it was Marco Micaletto who got their one goal so far (which also gave them a victory over Birmingham. Pittsburgh is a fun, if frustrating, team to watch. They score a bunch (four in two games), and concede a bunch (four in two games). Great for a neutral; terrible for a fan.  

FC Tulsa vs. Las Vegas Lights FC

Kickoff: 8:00 ET/5:00pm PTWe’re only two games in, but seeing Las Vegas above FC Tulsa in the standings is still wigging me out. Tulsa’s 2026 hasn’t exactly gone to plan so far. They outplayed Sac Republic at home, putting up more shots, shots on frame and xG. Same deal in their 0-0 draw to San Antonio. Something’s got to give, and that’s probably gonna be visiting Las Vegas.

Their opening match to Orange County was simply terrible (by both sides) and somehow ended 1-1 with both teams producing less than 0.35 xG. They were also abysmally bad at Colorado Springs, yet managed to pull off two unanswered goals in the 75th and 79th minute before blowing the game with an 85th minute own goal. Any script with that lunacy would’ve been rejected by the Marx Brothers as being too absurd.

San Antonio FC vs. New Mexico United

Kickoff: 8:30 ET/5:30pm PTI watched New Mexico play Oakland Roots, and they are a good side. I have not watched San Antonio, so anything I say after this should be taken with a grain of salt. I think New Mexico will pull out the win. If not for some fierce defending and last-gasp saves by the Roots keeper they’d have drawn level. San Antonio’s victory over Phoenix in week one was, statistically, against the grain.

Orange County SC vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC

Kickoff: 10:00 ET/7:00pm PTI like this fixture, and think it should supply some decent fireworks. Orange County’s team might be very young (under 24 years old on average), but they did retain nearly 75% of last year’s roster so there’s some experience. They also pulled out the most remarkable clutch finish last week when Nico Benalcazar struck an equalizer in stoppage time against Phoenix. Colorado Springs is generally well coached, well drilled and solid if not pulse-pounding. They may have crapped the bed allowing Las Vegas back into a match they were totally controlling, but it did not lack for entertainment!

Phoenix Rising FC vs. Oakland Roots

Kickoff: 10:00 ET/7:00pm PTIt’s very clear that new coach Ryan Martin has lit a fire under the Oakland Roots’ asses. They’re  far from perfect, but the team plays with an energy and cohesion that was missing from last year’s squad. They’re also sitting on top of the Western Conference, and so are entering this fixture as the favorite… how odd.

If Phoenix had kept their wits about them, they might not be sitting eighth on one point. With six yellows and a red, they are one of the most ill-disciplined squads in the league. They will need to be composed to topple the visitors.

Sacramento Republic FC vs. Monterey Bay

Kickoff: 10:00 ET/7:00pm PTThat the Republic is in third place in the West is simply inconceivable. And with all apologies to Vizzini the Sicilian from A Princess Bride, I do know what that means. They played poorly against FC Tulsa in the season opener and won. They played probably worse in the following week’s match against Lexington and emerged with a 0-0 draw. The less said about their midweek tie against El Farolito in the Open Cup the better (though they did actually win that too).

Sadly, Monterey Bay is even more hapless. Tied for most goals conceded (four) and fewest goals scored (zero), Monterey Bay also have a penchant for cards. Eight yellows and a red have been issued to them in two games. Whether this will be a proper soccer match or more akin to a rugby scrum remains to be seen.