USL Championship Confirms 2026 Season Structure
Published on December 10, 2025 under United Soccer League Championship (USL) News Release
The USL Championship announced Wednesday the competition structure for the 2026 season, with 25 clubs set to begin their pursuit of a place in the 2026 USL Championship Playoffs when the regular season kicks off on Sat., March 7.
The 34-week regular season campaign will conclude on October 24, with the postseason kicking off the following weekend.
The 2026 USL Championship regular season will see the league split into Eastern and Western Conferences with 13 teams in the Eastern Conference and 12 teams in the Western Conference. Joining Charleston in the Eastern Conference are expansion clubs Brooklyn FC and Sporting Jacksonville SC for the new season.
Each club in the Eastern Conference will play 24 or 25 games against in-conference opposition, and 5 or 6 games against Western Conference opposition to complete a 30-game regular season schedule. Each club in the Western Conference will play 24 games against in-conference opposition, and six games against Eastern Conference opposition to complete a 30-game regular season schedule.
The 2026 USL Championship season will be the third in the league's four-year broadcast agreement with CBS Sports, with games also set to air nationally on ESPN Networks, CBS Sports Network, CBS Sports Golazo Network, ESPN+ and TUDN. A full broadcast schedule will be announced following the release of the 2026 USL Championship schedule.
2026 USL Championship Playoffs
At the conclusion of the regular season, the top eight teams in each conference will qualify for the 2026 USL Championship Playoffs, which will kick off on the weekend of Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2026.
The USL Championship Playoffs will remain a single-elimination and fixed bracket format. The postseason will conclude with the 2026 USL Championship Final on the CBS Television Network between Nov. 20 and Nov. 22, 2026, with more details to be announced in the coming weeks.
2026 USL Championship Conference Alignment
Eastern Conference
Birmingham Legion FC
Brooklyn FC
Charleston Battery
Detroit City FC
Hartford Athletic
Indy Eleven
Loudoun United FC
Louisville City FC
Miami FC
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
Rhode Island FC
Sporting Club Jacksonville
Tampa Bay Rowdies
Western Conference
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
El Paso Locomotive FC
Las Vegas Lights FC
Lexington SC
Monterey Bay FC
New Mexico United
Oakland Roots SC
Orange County SC
Phoenix Rising FC
Sacramento Republic FC
San Antonio FC
FC Tulsa
United Soccer League Championship Stories from December 10, 2025
- Lyam MacKinnon Back in Black & Orange for 2026 - Orange County SC
- MBFC Signs Nico Gordon to New Multi-Year Deal - Monterey Bay FC
- Miami FC Announces the Return of Defender Daltyn Knutson - Miami FC
- USL Announces Competition Structure - Sacramento Republic FC
- USL Championship Confirms 2026 Season Structure - USL
- Ben Pirmann Signs Contract Extension as Battery Head Coach - Charleston Battery
- San Antonio FC Signs Defender Akeem Ward - San Antonio FC
- Rowdies Bring Aboard Forward Evan Conway for 2026 - Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Lexington SC Lands Midfielder Luís Felipe on Multi-Year Deal - Lexington Sporting Club
- Hartford Athletic Bolsters Defense with Signing of Matt Real for the 2026 Season - Hartford Athletic
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