It’s an international break week, so naturally the USL Championship is pressing on. Except…
The most important part
…the Legion are the odd man out so they get a bye this week. No one else is off. That works out in the Three Sparks’ favor not just because they get a rest after that tough game in Charleston but also because two of the club’s center backs will be on international duty.
Ramiz Hamouda is with the US U-18s in Portugal for a youth tournament. They played their first game yesterday beating Iceland 2-1 despite the opponents fielding their U-19 team. Raz did not start; it’s not clear whether he got any time. Phanuel Kavita is with Rwanda who are hosting the FIFA Series 2026 8-team tournament. They play Grenada at 1:00pm today and a second game against either Kenya or Estonia on Monday. Add in the normal travel issues and he will be exhausted (as will Raz).
With Bryce Washington possibly still under concussion protocol, the week off is timely indeed.
Best of the rest
Otherwise the schedule is full. In fact, two league games have already been played: on Wednesday Lexington ran roughshod over Brooklyn 3-0 and Miami had a slightly but not much harder time of it beating Sporting JAX 4-2. Not a good night for the expansion teams. Additionally, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds – the Legion’s next home opponent – played a delayed US Open Cup game against local League Two team Steel City, winning 2-1 but needing a red card advantage to get there. All 5 of those Championship teams have a game over the weekend, meaning that there are a maximum 12 games to choose from for your watching pleasure. Here are our picks:
New Mexico United v. Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Saturday, 2:00pm, ESPN+)
New Mexico have only played 2 games so far but they are the only team left without at least 1 point. That’s a somewhat surprising start for a generally strong team. Conversely, the Switchbacks have looked good in the short campaign to date. This could be a turning point for the home team. If not, well, there’s always the Schadenfreude aspect.
Tampa Bay Rowdies v. Loudoun United (Saturday, 6:30pm, CBS Sports Golazo Network)
The Rowdies have been very good in 2 games and are one of only three perfect teams (the other are Louisville City and the Charleston Battery) remaining. Loudoun have been meh but are the Legion’s next opponent. They got a massive 10-save performance from Adam Beaudry to draw 0-0 with Miami last week. This will be a far tougher test and a good chance to scout.
Oakland Roots v. Orange County (Saturday, 7:00pm, ESPN+)
Both teams in this one may be overperforming so far. The Roots in particular are unaccustomed to sitting top of the table but that is where they find themselves. Neither team has recorded a loss, so potentially something could break here.In any event, this North v. South all-California affair should be entertaining.
San Antonio FC v. Lexington SC (Sunday, 3:00pm, CBS Sports Golazo Network)
The only Sunday game on the schedule should be well worth your attention. The Texans and Kentuckians are both very solid teams, the only loss between them being Lex’s 1-2 tight defeat to Louisville in the opening week. Yes, it’s another Western Conference game, but that doesn’t mean you should skip it.
Back in the Old Country
The Blues pretty much put an end to their promotion playoff chances last week with an utterly lackluster 0-1 loss to lowly Charlton Athletic. With just 7 games left they are 11th and 10 points adrift of the playoff spots. That’s a pretty tall order.
They have this week off before the final push, so there’s not much to report on. With the recent run of poor results, calls for manager Chris Davies’ head have become louder again. At this point nothing will likely happen on that front but for sure the offseason will generate some soul-searching.
