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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 19

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 07/14/25, 5:00PM EDT

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Scoreboard pressure could ramp up for Battery, LouCity over race for Players Shield, and scale up performances

As it stands, Louisville City FC and the Charleston Battery are putting up two of the best regular seasons in USL Championship history.

Through 16 games, LouCity is averaging 2.31 points-per-game. That’s ahead of its pace when it won the Players’ Shield a season ago, clocking in at a 2.23ppg rate.

Ironically, the Battery are a shade ahead of the 2024 pace, currently sitting at 2.24ppg through 17 games having edged ahead of Louisville with their 2-1 win on the road against New Mexico United on Saturday night. Both clubs currently rank in the Top 10 points-per-game seasons in league history.

And as big as their showdown on August 9 at Lynn Family Stadium is going to be, it’s the other games that surround it and the run-in to the end of the regular season that could raise things to another level.

The Battery’s victory – off Rubio Rubín’s first goal for the club – in New Mexico was big, primarily because it kept the pressure on LouCity to keep winning. Even with the number of games these sides have left to play between now and the end of October, it’s not hard to imagine there may not be many dropped points between now and then.

That’s the mindset the Battery and LouCity continue to bring, game-in and game-out.

“At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how you win, three points on the road against the number one team in the Western Conference is a statement,” said Battery Head Coach Ben Pirmann on Saturday. “We had a player get injured in warmups, our flights were delayed, the game was delayed, everything seemed to be working against us. But, we kept our heads down and focused on ourselves. All 18 guys were locked in and ready to help the team win, and that’s what it’s all about.”

As each club accumulates victories, the pressure on the other is going to ramp up.

That could see both LouCity and the Battery reach even greater heights.

Here are this week’s rankings.

Biggest Movers

8 SAC 8 NC

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Louisville City FC
(11-1-4)
Week 20: vs. TUL
Last Week:
1		 They’re in different stages of the year, but Louisville City putting on a good display against Spanish club C.D. Leganés is a positive, especially with the number of Academy players that got to see action.
2 Charleston Battery
(12-3-2)
Week 20: vs. MIA
Last Week:
2		 The Battery moved into first place in the East with victory in New Mexico. As big as their showdown with LouCity’s going to be, putting together a string of victories will amplify the pressure in a Players’ Shield race.
3 FC Tulsa
(7-3-4)
Week 20: vs. MB; @ LOU
Last Week:
3		 The Scissortails going from in complete control against Las Vegas to potentially losing at home before pulling out all three points was a heck of a ride on Saturday night. Great persistence to see it through.
4 San Antonio FC
(8-5-3)
Week 20: ---
Last Week:
4		 San Antonio is starting to find a way late in games. They’ve scored 10 of their 23 goals in the final half-hour after Luke Haakenson’s stoppage-time winner against the Rowdies.
5 Sacramento Republic FC
(6-4-5)
Week 20: vs. LEX 		8
Last Week:
13		 Sacramento’s won three in a row in the league, scoring seven and conceding none. Three of their next four league games are at home, time to make a push for top spot.
6 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(6-6-3)
Week 20: @ DET
Last Week:
6		 The Hounds haven’t won after conceding first in almost two years after conceding a late equalizer against Loudoun on Sunday evening. It’s a good point, overall, but a missed opportunity.
7 Indy Eleven
(5-5-5)
Week 20: @ NC		 2
Last Week:
9		 Indy has won four of its last six outings in the league, and more importantly its recorded shutouts in all four of those results. It’s a good improvement on the leakiness the side was showing early in the season.
8 El Paso Locomotive FC
(6-5-5)
Week 20: vs. PHX		 1
Last Week:
7		 Locomotive’s losing a bit of steam after consecutive defeats. This week's game against Phoenix Rising FC is a chance to play spoiler in the USL Jägermeister Cup and try to get back on track.
9 New Mexico United
(8-6-1)
Week 20: --- 		1
Last Week:
8		 A night of what-ifs for New Mexico after Luiz Fernando’s late chance hit the crossbar instead of the back of the net. A week off before the decisive USL Jägermeister Cup showdown against San Antonio on July 26 could be useful.
10 Loudoun United FC
(8-5-3)
Week 20: vs. OAK
Last Week:
10		 Loudoun United’s gained a league-high 14 points from losing positions this season. With the team winless in its last four games, that’s not necessarily a great thing, but it shows the resolve and game-changers the side has.
11 Phoenix Rising FC
(6-5-5)
Week 20: @ ELP		 3
Last Week:
14		 Rising didn’t produce an explosive performance in Oakland, but you can’t deny the excellent quality of both the goals by Ihsan Sacko and Charlie Dennis. Important result to stay above the playoff line and break the recent downturn.
12 Birmingham Legion FC
(4-7-6)
Week 20: vs. COS		 6
Last Week:
18		 Legion’s heads could have dropped due to the chances they missed prior to North Carolina FC. Instead, they stuck with it and turned things around impressively. Huge win for their confidence.
13 North Carolina FC
(7-6-2)
Week 20: vs. IND		 8
Last Week:
5		 Tough sledding against difficult opponents over the past three weeks for NCFC. They’re still in the top four in the East, at least.
14 Lexington SC
(4-6-6)
Week 20: @ SAC		 2
Last Week:
12		 Lexington deserved its point against Miami on Cory Burke’s late equalizer, but we’ve got to ask where that level of quality was in the first half when they were thoroughly outplayed?
15 Miami FC
(5-7-3)
Week 20: @ CHS		 4
Last Week:
11		 Honestly, it was a bit of a shame for Rafael Martell’s debut in the Championship coming on for Bill Hamid at halftime to end the way it did. The 21-year-old made a couple of good stops to earn his side a point.
16 Las Vegas Lights FC
(5-8-3)
Week 20: @ OC
Last Week:
16		 The Lights have lost all seven games in which they’ve conceded first in the Championship this season. That was so close to changing in Tulsa, admirable fightback only to let the game get away.
17 Oakland Roots SC
(5-9-2)
Week 20: @ LDN		 2
Last Week:
15		 A week after winning a game they probably shouldn’t have, Roots lost a game they deserved better from. Only putting one shot on target was the problem, the finishing had to be sharper.
18 Hartford Athletic
(3-7-3)
Week 20: vs. TBR; @ RI		 5
Last Week:
23		 Great road win for Hartford in Detroit, even if they could have made it less tension-ridden if Michee Ngalina had converted from the penalty spot. They could be within range of the playoff positions in short order with a two-game week ahead.
19 Monterey Bay FC
(6-7-4)
Week 20: @ TUL		 5
Last Week:
24		 Monterey Bay was full value for its victory, to the delight of Kelpie and the Cardinale Stadium crowd. Really important win in a playoff six-pointer.
20 Orange County SC
(5-7-2)
Week 20: vs. LV		 3
Last Week:
17		 OCSC continues to be a conundrum. The underlying numbers are solid, but the results aren’t consistent enough.
21 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(3-10-2)
Week 20: @ HFD		 1
Last Week:
20		 The Rowdies couldn’t capitalize on their chances and let the winner get away late against San Antonio. It shows the work Dominic Casciato has ahead of him to get this side in contention.
22 Rhode Island FC
(4-8-4)
Week 20: vs. HFD		 3
Last Week:
19		 RIFC’s attacking problems continued against Indy. At least JJ Williams was back on the field as a second-half substitute, he could be pivotal over the second half of the season.
23 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(3-6-6)
Week 20: @ BHM 		1
Last Week:
22		 The Switchbacks got a weekend off and didn’t lose ground in the playoff race. That’s a positive, at least.
24 Detroit City FC
(5-6-5)
Week 20: vs. PIT		 3
Last Week:
21		 Le Rouge have won only five points from their last eight league games, fewest in the league. It’s a surprise to see this defense allowing goals so consistently.

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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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