For the third straight season the playoffs will be without the participation of the Birmingham Legion. While that means we have to look ahead to 2027 and another new beginning, it doesn’t mean we don’t have some interest in what goes on in the USL Championship for the next month.
The playoffs in fact begin tonight with an unusual schedule; of the 8 games, 5 are tonight and the other 3 on Sunday, with thnohting on Saturday. Here’s a quick look at every game this weekend.
Eastern Conference
Louisville City v. Pittsburgh Riverhounds (Friday, 5:30pm, ESPN+)
Logically, #4 v. #5 should always be the likeliest opportunity for an upset; this is probably not true of this game. Lou City struggled through much of 2026 but did revive later in the season to finish strong. In fact, in our Power Rankings they ended the season at #1. The Riverhounds have been rather erratic as well but have not seen any recent improvement in form. The last few games have been less than impressive, and that includes the win last week over the Legion.
Charleston Battery v. Rhode Island FC (Friday, 6:00pm, ESPN+)
The Battery edged out Detroit City for the #2 spot in the East. In doing so they earned themselves a home game against the underwhelming Rhode Island, a team they beat 2-0 just over a month ago. Rhody’s 2 wins in the last 5 games were 3-1 over Brooklyn FC and 1-0 over Loudoun United.This will be one of the less interesting games this evening.
Tampa Bay Rowdies v. The Miami FC (Friday, 6:30pm, ESPN+)
The Players’ Shield winner against the lowest point-winner in the playoffs looks like a pretty lopsided matchup. However, Miami beat Tampa Bay 2-1 in Tampa earlier this month. A repeat performance seems unlikely but you never know. The Rowdies did win the other two contests this year: 3-2 in the league and 4-1 in the USL Cup. The Legion also needs to watch the Rowdies closely; they were almost as bad as the Three Sparks last year and have achieved a remarkable turnaround.
Detroit City v. Hartford Athletic (Friday, 7:00pm, CBS Sports Golazo Network)
Rounding out the Eastern schedule, this seems on paper to be another home win. Hartford, which looked like a true contender most of the year, sputtered in the final stretch. That includes not repeating as USL Cup champions and a recent 2-3 loss to Brooklyn. Detroit, for their part have been solid all year, and only dropped into 3rd place in the final game against Louisville, which ended 0-0 despite them dominating the full 90 minutes.
Western Conference
El Paso Locomotive v. San Antonio FC (Friday, 8:00pm, ESPN+)
The only Western Conference game tonight. El Paso will be fuming that they gave up the #1 slot in stoppage time of the final game. Moreover, they lost 3 of the last 5 games. San Antonio have stepped it up lately after looking like a marginal team most of the year. This is also a high-scoring team against a strong defensive unit; an upset is very possible here.
Lexington SC v. Colorado Springs Switchbacks (Sunday, 1:00pm, CBS Sports Network)
Another possible upset. The #5 Switchbacks have a decent chance of beating #4 Lexington, having ended the season in our #4 Power Rankings spot, with Lexington being #5. This could be a very lively affair: Colorado Springs has Khori Bennett, who netted 15 goals and Lexington has Philip Goodrum, who bagged 13. Or 14 if you count last week’s own goal.
New Mexico United v. Phoenix Rising (Sunday, 5:00pm, CBS Sports Network)
New Mexico made it to #1 with 1 minute of announced stoppage time left in the season. Phoenix snuck into the playoffs on the back of that Goodrum own goal. There is also only 12 points difference between #1 and #8 in the West, even with that late win. And both teams scored 45 goals in the regular season. This has the potential of being the most entertaining game of the round.
Sacramento Republic v. FC Tulsa (Sunday, 8:00pm, ESPN+)
Last year’s Western Conference champions have not been anywhere near as good this year, especially away from home, with a 4-5-6 record. The Republic have been good but not outstanding. They do, however, share the best record over the past 5 games with Louisville. The final game of the weekend could well be the most predicatble as well.
Back in the Old Country
Birmingham City got a smack in the face last week, losing 0-1 way to Cardiff City. They were totally dominated from whistle to whistle. The second loss of the season dropped them to 7th in the table and 5 points off the lead. Tomorrow they are away again, this time at Lincoln City (7:30am, Paramount+), who are 1 point better than Cardiff. The team will doubtless not approach this one with nonchalance and look to get back on the winning track.
The Ladies got their first win of the season last week, 1-0 over Charlton Athletic. This was hardly a surprise; Charlton are now 0-7-0 on the season. The win also bumped City up to 11th on goal difference. They followed that with a 1-1 draw against crosstown rivals (or hated enemies if you ask any Blues fan) in the League Cup. Villa got the extra point, 6-5 on penalties (they have the same concept as the USL Cup). Villa are 2nd in the group; the Blues are 5th (the top 8 advance to the knockout rounds). This Sunday they are at home to Tottenham Hotspur (8:00am, Paramount+). Spurs are 5th in the table.
