USL Championship 2026 Season Revealed | OneFootball

Today the USL Championship, the 2nd tier of professional soccer in the United States, revealed its structure for the upcoming 2026 season.

Source: USL Championship on X

Regular Season Breakdown

Like the 2025 season, teams will be divided into two conferences: East and West. Teams will play home-and-away fixtures against teams within their own conference, plus a handful of non-conference games, for a total of 30 games.

All regular season league games will be played over a 34-week span between March 7 and October 24.

Jägermeister Cup Should Return

Though not formally announced, the 30 game regular season strongly implies that the Jägermeister Cup will be played for a third time in 2026. This cross-league competition will pit Championship sides against clubs from the lower-division USL League One.

Two New Expansion Clubs

The Eastern Conference saw major changes during the off-season.

North Carolina FC announced back in November that they would not renew their franchise option with the USL this season. Instead, the club will focus on stadium development in the Raleigh area and apply for a Division I license for 2028.

Newcomers into the Conference will be Brooklyn FC and Sporting Club Jacksonville. Brooklyn FC announced Monday the hiring inaugural manager Marlon LeBlanc, who was previously the coach for Philadelphia Union II. The club will play in Maimonides Park. Sporting Club Jacksonville (or Sporting JAX) featured ex-West Ham United executive Mark Warburton as Head of Soccer. Both clubs also have women’s teams that play in the Gainsbridge Super League.

Post-Season Breakdown

The USL Playoffs will kick-off on October 31. Once again, the top eight teams from each conference will compete in a single elimination competition. The conference winners will then meet up for the USL Cup Final.