We did not publish any rankings last week as not every team played. Of course, with an odd number of teams currently in the league (25) that would be impossible, but 5 teams did not play in Week 1, and another 3 did not play in Week 2. 3 will not play in Week 3. It’s going to take a while to get to the point where we can put the Forge Factor back into play. So, with a very limited dataset to work from (21 games, but a boatload of goals), here are the first Forge Power Rankings of 2026.
| Rank | Team | Record | Last 5 | Note | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Louisville City | 2-0-0 | WW | Louisville City’s 6-2 scoring record over 2 games should already have everyone scared. But does Danny Cruz’ sudden departure change everything? | v. Rhode Island |
| 2 | Oakland Roots | 2-0-0 | WW | A first-ever perfect start for the Roots against two good sides. Shades of more to come? Another tough assignment this week. | @ Phoenix |
| 3 | Charleston Battery | 1-0-0 | W | Charleston got off to a great start, beating the champions 2-1. They were off last weekend but played a very long Open Cup tie in midweek. A well-rested Legion next. | v. Birmingham |
| 4 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1-0-0 | W | The rebuilt Rowdies edged the equally rebuilt Legion 1-0 but showed clear promise. They should be considered a contender. A big test this week. | v. Pittsburgh |
| 5 | El Paso Locomotive | 1-0-1 | TW | A 1-1 draw with Colorado Springs was SOP for the Locomotive; a 3-0 win over Monterey Bay was moderately overperforming. | Bye |
| 6 | Detroit City | 1-0-0 | W | Starting with a 3-0 win over an expansion team (Brooklyn) is good for a warm-up and that will likely continue this week against a habitually weak Indy. | @ Indy |
| 7 | Sacramento Republic | 1-0-1 | WT | 4 points and no goals allowed over 2 games against solid opposition (Tulsa and Lexington)? Not bad at all but they still need to step up the attack. | v. Monterey Bay |
| 8 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 1-1-0 | LW | Splitting the results over two goals totalling 8 goals would be an OK start for most teams but is perhaps a little concerning for the titleholders. This week is a big game. | @ Tampa Bay |
| 9 | San Antonio | 1-0-1 | WT | A great 2-1 start over Phoenix was followed by a far less impressive 0-0 draw with Tulsa. San Antonio has left quite a few questions unaswered so far. | v. New Mexico |
| 10 | Hartford Athletic | 1-0-1 | WT | Hartford’s 3-0 win in Jacksonville was closer than the score suggests and they had to get cynical to earn a point in Birmingham. And an assist from the ref. | @ Brooklyn |
| 11 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks | 1-0-1 | TW | The Switchbacks would have had two 2-2 draws but for a late own goal by Las Vegas. A good start but there are some concerns about seeing games out. | @ Orange County |
| 12 | Lexington SC | 0-1-1 | LT | A 1-2 loss to Louisville is no cause for shame. A 0-0 draw with Sacramento counts as progress. This Lexington squad has reason to be optimistic | Bye |
| 13 | Birmingham Legion | 0-1-1 | LT | Only 1 point from 2 home games over 5 days but the opponents were both contenders and the Jay Heaps Legion is going to be entertaining. | @ Charleston |
| 14 | Loudoun United | 0-1-0 | L | Loudoun were in 1 of 3 5-goal games in Week 2. They ended up on the short side against Pittsburgh after a strong start. Still, it was close. | v. Miami |
| 15 | Phoenix Rising | 0-1-1 | LT | The Rising had a rough start against San Antonio and gave up the win late against Orange County. They should be better than that. The conference leaders next. | v. Oakland |
| 16 | New Mexico United | 0-1-0 | L | New Mexico went down 1-2 to Oakland, exposing some defensive weakneses. It won’t get any easier this week on the road in Texas. | @ San Antonio |
| 17 | FC Tulsa | 0-1-1 | LT | 1 point, no goals scored and 2 given up is not the start the Conference title defenders will have wanted. Was 2025 an abberation? | v. Las Vegas |
| 18 | Orange County | 0-0-2 | TT | Two 1-1 draws makes for an OK start, except that one of them was with Las Vegas. This will porbably be another year that OC competes for a low playoff spot. | v. Colorado Springs |
| 19 | Rhode Island FC | 0-0-1 | T | A score draw for Rhode Island? Color me shocked. Well, only because the opponent was Jacksonville. At least they get Lou City in a state of flux this week. | @ Louisville |
| 20 | Brooklyn FC | 1-1-0 | WL | Beating Indy wasn’t exactly hard and made for a confidence-building introduction to the Championship. Losing to Detroit was a reality wake-up call. | v. Hartford |
| 21 | Las Vegas Lights | 0-1-1 | TL | 3 goals over 2 games and still the Lights could only get 1 point. A second point got blown late by an own goal from ex-Legionary Ben Ofeimu. | @ Tulsa |
| 22 | Sporting Jacksonville | 0-1-1 | LT | Jax held the Athletic for almost a half before the floodgates opened. Then they held New England’s other team to a 1-1 draw. It will take a while to settle in. | Bye |
| 23 | Indy Eleven | 0-1-0 | L | Indy’s 0-1 loss to newcomers Brooklyn probably didn’t surprise anyone, including themselves. They will likely be competing for the wooden spoon again in 2026. | v. Detroit |
| 24 | The Miami FC | 0-1-0 | L | A 1-4 loss to Louisville? Don’t bother to alert the media. This is the very definition of SNAFU. Expect another long and miserable season. | @ Loudoun |
| 25 | Monterey Bay FC | 0-2-0 | LL | 2 losses with a 0-4 overall score is…not good. Sebastain Lletget may want to reconsider his decision. Or he will need to galvanize the team fast. | @ Sacramento |
