Hooligan Soccer
·4 Maret 2025
USL Championship Preview – West Part 1
USL Championship Preview – West Part 1 | OneFootball
Below we’re covering six teams from the USL Western Conference, moving geographically from west to east.
Monterey Bay FC
- Founded: 2021
- Home Field: Cardinale Stadium (6,000 capacity)
- 2024 Season: 8W – 10D – 16L. Finished 11th in the Western Conference; 22nd overall.
- Notable Figures: Assistant coach Ramiro Corrales is a native of the nearby Salinas valley, and played for the San Jose Earthquakes in the inaugural MLS season in 1996. Defender Nico Gordon plays for the nation of Monserrat. He spent last season with Dallas FC’s affiliate North Texas SC, who won the USL League 1 title.
- Offseason Moves: Two big departures include: last season’s top goal scorer Tristan Trager (traded to Orange County SC) and Walmer Martinez, who was the first player signed to the club back in 2021.
- First Match: Travel to San Antonio on March 8th. They have five straight losses in five games against them.
Oakland Roots SC
- Founded: 2018
- Home Field: Oakland Coliseum (15,000 capacity)
- 2024 Season: Finished 7th in the Western Conference; 17th overall.
- Notable Figures: Goalkeeper Paul “The Wall” Blanchette was a fan favorite and noted for epic one-on-one saves. Icelandic international Óttar Magnús Karlsson won the 2022 Golden Boot with the Roots (but, alas, was only on a one-year loan).
- Offseason Moves: The biggest move was home field, leaving Pioneer Stadium in Hayward for the legendary Oakland Coliseum. This is a big step for the club. They also just traded icon Johnny Rodiguez, who’d been with the club since their inception, to Las Vegas Lights for a reported club record transfer fee. Given their scoring woes last season, it’s unclear who will step up to fill these shoes.
- First Match: They travel south to play Orange County SC. This is a long-standing rivalry, with ten match-ups in the past four years.
Sacramento Republic
- Founded: 2012. This makes them one of the oldest clubs in the USL.
- Home Field: Heart Health Park (11,500 capacity)
- 2024 Season: W13 – 10D – 11L. Finished 5th in the Western Conference; 11th overall. They were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Las Vegas Lights in penalties after a 0 – 0 draw.
- Notable Figures: Rodrigo López, team captain, is on his third stint with the club in his 20 year career. Republic made it to the finals of the 2022 Open Cup, but lost to Orlando City.
- Offseason Moves: Top scorer Keiran Phillips’ loan expired at the end of the 2024 season, but the 2023 winner Russell Cicerone is still there. They shored up the defense with Ryan Spaulding, signed from the New England Revolution.
- First Match: They host New Mexico United on March 8th.
Orange County SC
- Founded: 2010 (as the Los Angeles Blues)
- Home Field: Championship Soccer Stadium (5,000 capacity)
- 2024 Season: 13W – 7D – 14L. Finished 6th in the Western Conference; 14th overall.
- Notable Figures: Newly signed forward Lyam MacKinnon was the 2024 USL League 1 Player of the Year with Greenville Triumph, who also set records for fastest hat-trick and most goals in a game.
- Offseason Moves: They have eight new players (three forwards, three defenders, two midfielders) to join the ten players who remained at the end of 2024. This makes the squad a little thin, so expect to see some more signings before the March 8th season start.
- First Match: They will host the Oakland Roots on March 8th at 7:30pm PT. OCSC have the slight edge in this fierce rivalry game with 5W – 1 D – 4L.
Las Vegas Lights
- Founded: 2017
- Home Field: Cashman Field (9,300 capacity)
- 2024 Season: 13W – 11D – 10L. Finished 4th in the Western Conference; 10th overall. Qualified for the playoffs for the first time in club history, and made a strong run all the way to the Conference Final, losing to eventual winners Colorado Springs Switchbacks.
- Notable Figures: Dolly and Dotty, two llamas, are the mascots of the team. On the field, midfielder Valentin Noel, who led the Lights with 11 goals and 7 assists, is returning along with 13 other players from last season. That’s some welcome continuity in a league where roster turnaround is frequent and large.
- Offseason Moves: Luring Johnny Rodriguez from the Oakland Roots was a shrewd play, strengthening your own attack while weakening your opponents. The team also revamped their coaching staff, bringing on Antonio Nocerino, a Serie A and Italian national team veteran. Fourteen players remain from 2024, joined by nine other newcomers (5 defenders, 2 midfielders, 2 attackers – incl. Rodiguez).
- First Match: It’s an inter-conference battle as they host the Tampa Bay Rowdies. They are 0 – 4 against them, so fingers crossed.
Phoenix Rising
- Founded: 2014
- Home Field: Wild Horse Pass Stadium (10,000 capacity)
- 2024 Season: 11W – 9D – 14L. Finished 8th in the Western Conference; 19th overall. They just squeaked into the final playoff spot with a game in hand, and fell in the first round to New Mexico United 2 – 1.
- Notable Figures: Former player Didier Drogba still has an ownership stake in the club.
- Offseason Moves: The club did a refresh on the defense, bringing in three new players: Americans Collin Smith & Ryan Flood, and Ireland’s Harvey Neville. Their two leading contributing attackers, Dariusz Formella and Rémi Cabral, have stuck around. They’ll be supported by a pair of new midfielders: Haiti’s Carl Fred Sainté and Ghanaian Hope Avayevu.
- First Match: They host FC Tulsa at 6:00pm on March 8th. Their record against them is 6W – 2D – 2L.
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