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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 23

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 08/11/25, 5:00PM EDT

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Hartford Athletic is picking up steam and looking like a playoff contender

If you considered Hartford Athletic’s underlying numbers, there was always the potential for what we’ve seen transpire in the past two weeks.

The chances were there. The goals? Not quite.

But if you saw the broad smile across Head Coach Brendan Burke’s face on Saturday night as his side put up another stellar attacking display in a 4-1 victory against Birmingham Legion FC, you’d know how things have changed.

Overall, Hartford ranks third in the USL Championship in Expected Goals this season, but over the past two-and-a-half months they’ve been the most consistent attacking team in the league. In their past 10 outings, they’ve posted a 22.82xG mark, easily the best per 90 minutes in the league, only rivaled by FC Tulsa (19.45xG).

There’s a combination of factors that have gone into this. Finally, Michee Ngalina is looking like the player that won the 2022 USL Championship Young Player of the Year award again. Back to full fitness, the Congolese winger is doing bits of everything in attack with a goal and two assists in the past three games.

On top of that, Mamadou Dieng backing up his stellar first season with the club. With five goals in the past three games, the 21-year-old is now Hartford’s all-time leading goalscorer and could be rapidly closing the gap to Loudoun United playmaker Abdellatif Aboukoura for this year’s Young Player of the Year award.

While it took until this week for Hartford to move above the playoff line, they’re now a 90% chance to reach the postseason per John Morrissey’s playoff odds at USLTactics.com.

It’s taken longer than expected, but we’re now seeing the team we were expecting when Burke took on this project, and it’s been well worth waiting for.

Here are this week’s rankings.

Biggest Movers

6 LEX 8 NM

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Louisville City FC
(13-1-5)
Week 24: @ MIA		 1
Last Week:
2		 Jansen Wilson’s goals were big, but Taylor Davila was outstanding in controlling the center of the park for LouCity against Charleston. Outstanding performance.
2 FC Tulsa
(11-3-5)
Week 24: @ HFD		 2
Last Week:
4		 If Tulsa hadn’t shown so consistently that they can come back from a deficit we’d be worried, but we think that’s a habit Head Coach Luke Spencer wants the team to drop.
3 Sacramento Republic FC
(8-4-6)
Week 24: vs. OAK
Last Week:
3		 Hearing Jimmy Conrad wax lyrical about Rodrigo Lopez was one of our favorite things this weekend. The veteran continues to shine as Republic FC continues to rise.
4 Charleston Battery
(13-4-2)
Week 24: @ PIT		 3
Last Week:
1		 Charleston will want to shake off last Saturday’s loss, but it’s not going to be easy headed to another tough road environment in Pittsburgh.
5 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(7-6-6)
Week 24: vs. CHS
Last Week:
5		 The Hounds were good value for their point against Orange County given their second-half performance, but we needed to see that level of pressure sooner.
6 Orange County SC
(7-7-3)
Week 24: @ COS
Last Week:
6		 Orange County has still only lost once to Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC all-time. All things considered, that’s a very good point to take away from Highmark Stadium.
7 North Carolina FC
(9-7-2)
Week 24: vs. DET		 1
Last Week:
8		 North Carolina hadn’t rallied for a league victory this season until Saturday night. Good time to make it happen to jump into third place in the East.
8 Hartford Athletic
(6-8-4)
Week 24: vs. TUL		 2
Last Week:
10		 Hartford and Mamadou Dieng have caught fire over the past three games. Ten goals for the team and five for the Senegalese forward have the team flying.
9 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(6-6-6)
Week 24: vs. OC		 3
Last Week:
12		 Three consecutive league wins and four straight in all competitions, the Switchbacks have figured some things out. Suddenly, a top-four spot isn’t out of question.
10 San Antonio FC
(8-6-4)
Week 24: vs. LEX		 1
Last Week:
9		 SAFC continues to move along positively, but it’s going to look at Saturday as a missed opportunity. The signs are good, but they need to find another gear.
11 El Paso Locomotive FC
(7-5-6)
Week 24: vs. MB		 4
Last Week:
7		 Boom to bust in attack for El Paso over the past two weekends. They had easily enough chances to take victory in Miami but weren’t able to convert.
12 Loudoun United FC
(8-7-4)
Week 24: vs. IND		 1
Last Week:
13		 On one hand, Loudoun’s tied for the fewest points in the league over its past eight games (6). On the other, it’s still in fourth place and earned a decent road point against Rhode Island.
13 Lexington SC
(5-7-7)
Week 24: @ SA		 6
Last Week:
19		 Lexington’s show us up to flip a six-game undefeated streak into a four-game winless streak in double-quick time. They can’t have any complaints about how Friday’s trip to Colorado Springs turned out.
14 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(5-11-2)
Week 24: vs. PHX
Last Week:
14		 The Rowdies’ opening goal was beautifully constructed and finished, and Charlie Sharp will be kicking himself for missing out on a potential equalizer. Disappointing result, but not all bad.
15 Oakland Roots SC
(6-10-2)
Week 24: @ SAC		 1
Last Week:
16		 Roots continue to get good marks for the way they’re playing and the identity Benny Feilhaber has given this side. It’s not going to matter if they can’t hit the net consistently.
16 Detroit City FC
(6-7-6)
Week 24: @ NC		 5
Last Week:
21		 Le Rouge deserved their victory against Indy Eleven, but they need to get Darren Smith going again. No goals since May 31 overall, and none in the Championship since May 3.
17 Rhode Island FC
(5-9-6)
Week 24: ---		 5
Last Week:
22		 A four-point week and a pair of shutouts for Koke Vegas are a step in the right direction. The attack’s got to pick up, though, as 15 goals in 20 games just isn’t enough.
18 Indy Eleven
(5-8-5)
Week 24: @ LDN		 3
Last Week:
15		 Three consecutive defeats in league play and the Boys in Blue are below the playoff line. There’s too much talent here for that to be the case.
19 New Mexico United
(8-8-1)
Week 23: vs. LV		 8
Last Week:
11		 Four consecutive league defeats is the longest losing streak in club history, but the way the defense has fallen apart in the past two games is concerning.
20 Birmingham Legion FC
(4-9-7)
Week 24: ---		 3
Last Week:
17		 Credit to Sebastian Tregarthen for coming out with some credit from Saturday night. There wasn’t much else to be had from a dismal performance.
21 Phoenix Rising FC
(6-7-6)
Week 24: @ TBR		 3
Last Week:
18		 Costly mistakes and a lack of attacking punch adds up to a defeat on the road in Lexington. What was up with Hope Avayevu being out of the starting lineup?
22 Monterey Bay FC
(6-10-4)
Week 24: @ ELP		 1
Last Week:
23		 There were positives from MBFC this week, but no points. As tight as the race for the playoffs is going to be, the club’s six points from the last eight games is the wrong direction.
23 Las Vegas Lights FC
(5-10-4)
Week 24: @ NM		 1
Last Week:
24		 Getting a point out of Devin Rensing’s first game is a start for the Lights. They’re going to need to pick up the pace to get back into the playoff picture.
24 Miami FC
(5-8-4)
Week 24: vs. LOU		 4
Last Week:
20		 Bill Hamid had to come through to earn Miami a point against El Paso, but that’s seven games without a win in league play. Also, a seventh red card, the most in the league this season.

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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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