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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 1

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 03/10/25, 5:00PM EDT

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Loudoun United starts the season off strongly again, now it needs to maintain that pace

If you were working off recent USL Championship opening-game trends, Loudoun United’s victory against Birmingham Legion FC on Saturday night wouldn’t have come as a surprise.

After all, that’s been a forte of Head Coach Ryan Martin’s sides of late.

Loudoun’s 3-1 victory, powered by a goal and assist apiece by Abdellatif Aboukoura and Zach Ryan, moved the side to 3-0-1 in its opening game of the season going back to the start of the 2022 campaign.

What’s more, this was a convincing display. Despite conceding less than two minutes on Jake Rufe’s set piece opener for the hosts, Loudoun quickly leveled things up on a set piece goal of their own by Jacob Erlandsson and then took control of the game.

The visitors held more possession, made substantially more forays into the attacking third (76-47) than the hosts, and were rewarded by goals either side of halftime.

“The ability for us to really dominate the game for long stretches and capitalize on our efforts made me incredibly proud of them,” said Martin. “It paid off with three points and our first ever win down here in Birmingham.”

The challenge in recent years for Loudoun hasn’t been how the club has started, but how it’s finished. Last year’s bid for a first postseason berth faltered down the stretch as the side won only twice in its last 11 games, leaving the side six point adrift of the top eight.

If United can finish the way it starts this year, it could prove a crucial turning point for the club.

Here are the rest of this week’s rankings.

Birmingham Legion FC Charleston Battery Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Detroit City FC El Paso Locomotive FC Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven
Las Vegas Lights Lexington SC Loudoun United FC Louisville City FC The Miami FC Monterey Bay F.C. New Mexico United
North Carolina FC Oakland Roots SC Orange County SC Phoenix Rising FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Rio Grande Valley FC Sacramento Republic FC
San Antonio FC Tampa Bay Rowdies FC Tulsa

On The Move

6 LDN 8 LV

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Louisville City FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @ BHM		 1
Last Week:
2		 Saturday’s showdown with Charleston proved every bit as tightly-fought as expected. Coming away with three points – however it was earned – was a great start for the reigning Players’ Shield holder.
2 Rhode Island FC
(0-0-0)
Week 2: @ CHS		 1
Last Week:
3		 We’ll get our first look at Rhode Island this week as it heads to Charleston to begin its Eastern Conference title defense. The Battery will be a strong test of RIFC’s credentials as it moves into Year 2.
3 Sacramento Republic FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: --- 		3
Last Week:
6		 Republic FC might have played the second half up a player, but it was equally as effective in creating chances before and after the break with Lewis Jamieson and Russell Cicerone showing an impressive early chemistry.
4 Charleston Battery
(0-1-0)
Week 2: vs. RI
Last Week:
4		 Juan David Torres’ default mode is set to shoot. The Colombian topped the league with eight shots in Week 1, but the Battery were stymied overall by LouCity’s excellent scrambling defensively in the penalty area.
5 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: vs. DET		 4
Last Week:
1		 The Switchbacks almost pinched a victory on the road in El Paso, but our concerns about the attacking punch weren’t allayed. Aside from Marco Micaletto’s penalty kick, the side only generated 0.21 Expected Goals on four shots.
6 New Mexico United
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @ LV		 1
Last Week:
5		 It’s never fun to lose the opening game of the season, but there was a lot to like about United’s play before it went down to 10 players late in the first half. We’re looking forward to seeing more of that.
7 Indy Eleven
(0-0-0)
Week 2: @ MIA
Last Week:
7		 The Boys in Blue head to Miami this week to kick the season off. They’ll be looking to put in at least as impressive a display as Detroit City did this weekend.
8 Orange County SC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: vs. LEX 		3
Last Week:
11		 We really liked what we saw from OCSC’s midfield triangle, and the combination of Ryan Doghman and U.S. youth international Pedro Guimaraes on the left was excellent. Great start to the campaign.
9 Detroit City FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @ COS		 3
Last Week:
12		 Le Rouge took care of business in solid fashion in Miami. This week’s trip to Colorado Springs should give us a better idea of where the side stands in the bigger picture.
10 San Antonio FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: vs. PIT		 3
Last Week:
13		 San Antonio gave Carlos Llamosa a win in his first game at the helm, maybe could have added a couple more goals as well and held Monterey Bay without a shot on target before a club-record home opener crowd. That’ll work nicely.
11 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: @ SA		 1
Last Week:
10		 You can’t help but feel for Beto Ydrach, making such a crucial mistake on his professional debut. At least Augustine Williams capitalized on a similar error to get the Hounds a nice road point.
12 Lexington SC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @ OC 		3
Last Week:
15		 Lexington checked all the boxes in its USL Championship debut. Great opening goal, solid defensive display, excellent atmosphere. Plenty to build on as they head to Orange County this week.
13 North Carolina FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: vs. LDN 		1
Last Week:
14		 NCFC probably deserved its draw against Pittsburgh, but ceding that much possession at home with a midfield that should thrive with the ball at its feet was a bit of a surprise.
14 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @ TUL		 5
Last Week:
9		 What a calamity for the Rowdies. They probably deserved something from their trip to Las Vegas, but couldn’t find their finishing boots, putting only one shot on target and hitting the woodwork once out of 15 second-half shots.
15 Loudoun United FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: @ NC 		6
Last Week:
21		 We liked what we saw out of Loudoun United this weekend, and 20-year-old Abdellatif Aboukoura put down a marker for his campaign. More of that, please.
16 Las Vegas Lights FC
(1-0-0)
Week 2: vs. NM 		8
Last Week:
8		 The Lights got handed a gift to earn victory against the Rowdies, but the rest of their display raised some concerns. It’s one thing to cede possession, but there wasn’t much attacking thrust overall.
17 FC Tulsa
(1-0-0)
Week 2: vs. TBR 		3
Last Week:
20		 Tulsa played an excellent first half in Phoenix and then showed some defensive quality to make it stand up. That’s the sort of fight and spirit Head Coach Luke Spencer is looking to instill in his squad.
18 El Paso Locomotive FC
(0-0-1)
Week 2: vs. PHX		 4
Last Week:
22		 It would have been harsh on Locomotive to not get something out of its contest against Colorado Springs. The cross, set-up and finish that led to Andy Cabrera’s equalizer was terrific and gave the home crowd something to feel good about.
19 Phoenix Rising FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @ ELP		 3
Last Week:
16		 Rising dominated possession in the second half against Tulsa but wasn’t able to find a real cutting edge in the final third. Plenty for Head Coach Pa-Modou Kah to think about.
20 Birmingham Legion FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: vs. LOU 		3
Last Week:
17		 We voiced our concern about Legion’s defense in this space last week. This weekend’s performance didn’t to anything to allay that, giving up a weekend-high eight shots on target.
21 Hartford Athletic
(0-1-0)
Week 2: ---		 3
Last Week:
18		 Hartford wasn’t bad in the first half, but it couldn’t figure out a way back into the game after the break. Facing a Lexington side with something to prove was a trickier assignment than expected.
22 Oakland Roots SC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: @ MB		 3
Last Week:
19		 We were looking for defensive improvement from Roots this season. Shipping four goals to Orange County to start things off wasn’t ideal.
23 Monterey Bay FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: vs. OAK
Last Week:
23		 Monterey Bay straight up does not have a good time against San Antonio. The last time MBFC failed to register a shot on target, it also came against the men in black.
24 Miami FC
(0-1-0)
Week 2: vs. IND
Last Week:
24		 The only way is up for Miami, which registered only four shots an 0.20xG against Detroit City FC. There’s a long way to go, too.

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Tag(s): Power Rankings  San Antonio FC  CO Spring Switchbacks  Orange County SC  Phoenix Rising FC  Sacramento Republic FC  FC Tulsa  Charleston Battery  Louisville City FC  Pittsburgh Riverhounds  Tampa Bay Rowdies  Las Vegas Lights FC  Birmingham Legion FC  North Carolina FC  Indy Eleven  El Paso Locomotive FC  New Mexico United  Loudoun United FC  Hartford Athletic  Miami FC  Oakland Roots SC  Detroit City FC  Monterey Bay FC  Rhode Island FC  Lexington SC 

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