The full schedule for the 2025 USL Championship season, League One season and the group stage of the 2025 USL Jägermeister Cup were released on Thursday, setting the course for the campaign that kicks off in early March across both leagues.

With the expansion of the USL Jägermeister Cup for its second edition to include all 38 teams across the Championship and League One, there’s another wrinkle to the schedule – one League One fans will already be familiar with that Championship fans will get the chance to enjoy for the first time.

But while there are some notable group stage games featuring Championship clubs, the biggest intrigue before the knockout stage may lie in the games that pit Championship and League One clubs head-to-head.

We’ve picked out one game for all 14 League One teams set to compete in the tournament starting next April, and why you should tune in.

April 25 – North Carolina FC vs. Charlotte Independence

The opening game of the 2025 Jägermeister Cup will not only be a renewal of the Dogwood Derby, but marks the first time NCFC and the Independence will have met since the 2023 USL League One Final, which North Carolina claimed in a penalty shootout after an action-packed 120 minutes across regulation and extra time. Some of the key figures for North Carolina from that Final like Oalex Anderson, Rafa Mentzingen and Mikey Maldonado could be in action this time around as the Independence begin their bid to advance to the knockout stage for a second consecutive year.

April 26 – Forward Madison FC vs. Indy Eleven

Despite their relative proximity – at least by American soccer standards – the opening weekend clash between Forward Madison FC and Indy Eleven will mark the first official meeting between the clubs as they square off at Breese Stevens Field. There’ll be at least one somewhat familiar face awaiting the Boys in Blue, too, with Flamingos captain Mitchell Osmond having previously spent two seasons with Indy in the 2019 and 2020 campaigns. After Madison made its home one of the toughest to visit in 2024 – going 10-1-6 across the League One regular season, playoffs and Jägermeister Cup – the Flamingos will be aiming to make their homefield advantage count against the 2024 U.S. Open Cup Semifinalists.

April 26 – Westchester SC vs. Rhode Island FC

Westchester SC enters its inaugural season with some smart kits, a Head Coach in Dave Carton who knows the USL League One landscape, and celebrity ownership in New York Jets quarterback Tyrod Taylor. So, who better to square off against for your first potential taste of USL Championship competition than Rhode Island FC, a side that was at the exact same point this time last year before putting together one of the best expansion seasons in the league’s history. The defending Championship Eastern Conference title holders will be expected to carry the day here with a strong returning squad led by Head Coach Khano Smith, but it should be a good measuring stick for Carton’s crew as well.

April 26 – Birmingham Legion FC vs. Chattanooga Red Wolves SC

Legion and the Red Wolves have become familiar foes over the past two seasons, squaring off in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. On both occasions, Birmingham has held the upper hand, but after sweeping to a comfortable 4-1 win when the sides met for the first time in 2023, last year’s affair was far more dramatic. Chattanooga twice took the lead at the University of Montevallo Soccer Stadium through Leo Folla and Ricky Ruiz, only for Legion’s Stefano Pinho to end up stealing the show. His four-goal night – including a pair of tallies in extra time – led Birmingham to a 4-2 victory and place in the Fourth Round. Hopefully we’ll get something similar in terms of drama here.

April 26 – One Knoxville SC vs. FC Tulsa

If not for the USL Jägermeister Cup’s tiebreaker system – which puts goals scored at the first tiebreaker for wild card teams – One Knoxville SC could have been in last year’s Semifinals. The side finished with 15 points in the group stage – the most of the three second-placed sides – but their eight goals left them on the outside and Union Omaha into the knockout stage. That says a lot about the task facing FC Tulsa, though, as they head to Knoxville’s new home of Covenant Health Park where recently-installed Head Coach Ian Fuller will be eager to build on last year’s playoff berth and defensive success, which saw One Knox conceded the fewest goals in the League One regular season and earn a fifth-place finish in its second campaign in the professional ranks.

April 30 – Las Vegas Lights FC vs. AV ALTA FC

Las Vegas Lights FC’s turnaround under new owner Jose Bautista and its retooled technical staff and on-field talent was one of the biggest stories in the USL Championship in 2024, and there’s no question the Lights have their sights set on even bigger success next year. That could include taking aim at winning the Jägermeister Cup as it vies with a collection of California rivals that include League One expansion side AV ALTA FC, who will be led by Head Coach Brian Kleiban and led by former United States international Miguel Ibarra, with the Lancaster, Calif. native recently unveiled as the club’s first signing. AV ALTA has big plans of its own, including its home at a renovated Lancaster Municipal Stadium, and the Lights may need to be wary in this midweek clash.

May 31 – Charleston Battery vs. Greenville Triumph SC

The South Carolina clubs have developed a healthy if respectful series over the years, regularly playing in preseason, but the last time they squared off in official competition was in the U.S. Open Cup in 2019 when the Battery took a 2-1 win behind goals from genuine blast from the past Ian Svantesson. Both teams have gone on to their successes in their respective leagues since then with Greenville’s growth set to reach a new level with plans to open their own soccer-specific stadium in a couple of years. In terms of on-field quality, this could be one of the most entertaining games of the group stage with Triumph’s addition of Ropapa Mensah the obvious replacement for departing League One Player of the Year Lyam MacKinnon.

May 31 – Richmond Kickers vs. North Carolina FC

If you judge solely by proximity, it feels like there should be a bit of a rivalry between the Richmond Kickers and North Carolina FC with the clubs separated by just two-and-a-half hours via I-85. That’s never really come to pass with the two sides having shared the same league for only four seasons in total – the 2018 USL Championship campaign and the three seasons in which NCFC competed in USL League One before its move back into the second-tier last season. North Carolina held the upper hand in that three-year run, going 5-2-3 when the sides met in League One, but after their late-season surge in 2024 the Kickers appear to be heading in a positive trajectory going into the new year. This clash at City Stadium should be big for both clubs.

May 31 – Miami FC vs. FC Naples

Bringing new matchups and potential rivalries together is part of the fun of the USL Jägermeister Cup, and this is the sort of game that encapsulates that spirit. Yes, we’re going to dub the series between the USL Championship’s Miami FC and League One’s Naples FC the Alligator Alley Derby, named for the stretch of I-75 that connects Naples on the west coast of Florida to Miami on the southeast coast. With Miami FC looking at a full rebuild this offseason and Naples constructing its inaugural roster under Head Coach Matt Poland, both teams have plenty ahead of them this offseason. This game will be a marker for how far they’ve progressed.

June 28 – South Georgia Tormenta FC vs. Charleston Battery

There’s almost a mirror image between the series between the Charleston Battery and South Georgia Tormenta FC and that between the Battery and Greenville Triumph in that the sides have been regular preseason foes over the past five years. The difference? Tormenta and the Battery’s recent Open Cup tussles that have produced some memorable contests and results. Two years ago, Tormenta claimed victory as former Battery player Arthur Bosua scored the only goal at Patriots Point. This year, the sides met again when an MD Myers hat trick lifted the Battery to a 3-2 victory in extra time. We’re hoping for something similarly dramatic when the sides meet just across the Georgia state line.

June 28 – Rhode Island FC vs. Portland Hearts of Pine

Of the five expansion clubs entering League One in the 2025 season, Portland Hearts of Pine might have made the biggest impression so far, with their kit launch and ticket sales grabbing plenty of attention across social media. That makes Hearts of Pine’s trip to face Rhode Island FC not just the start of a great rivalry in the northeast, but a battle between two potential hipster darlings of the North American soccer scene. Add in the meeting’s going to be at RIFC’s sparkling new venue at Tidewater Landing and you’ve got a must-see game between two teams eager to make their mark on a national level.

June 28 – Texoma FC vs. Phoenix Rising FC

In terms of consistency on the field, and notwithstanding the club’s remarkable 2023 USL Championship title run, Phoenix Rising FC’s last few years haven’t lived up to the golden era of the late 2010s when the side was setting records and getting national buzz for its success. But Rising is still one of the clubs that no matter how its season is going will always generate a little bit extra from opponents, and League One newcomer Texoma FC is going to be no exception. Led by Adrian Forbes, the former Head of Coaching & Player Development at Luton Town FC, the side from Sherman, Texas has great branding and its own celebrity ownership. We’ll see if that adds up to a Texas-sized surprise here.

July 26 – Spokane Velocity FC vs. Sacramento Republic FC

In broad terms, it’s hard to have envisioned a more successful inaugural season in USL League One than the one Spokane Velocity FC put together. Head Coach Leigh Veidman’s side qualified for the playoffs and then made a dream run to the Final before falling to Union Omaha. Year 2 has even more promise, and the arrival of one of the Championship’s perennial powers in Sacramento Republic FC should be a highlight at ONE Spokane Stadium. With Republic FC still seeking its first silverware since it won the USL Championship title in 2014, this is a tournament Sacramento should be targeting for success. The final weekend of the group stage could be a moment of truth for both.

July 26 – Union Omaha vs. El Paso Locomotive FC

At this point, it’s almost destiny. Put them in a draw together, Union Omaha and El Paso Locomotive FC will somehow be put together, so far to the detriment of Locomotive. You see, these teams have a history. In the past two editions of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, they’ve been drawn to face each other, and Omaha has come out on top each time – including via a penalty shootout in 2024. Add to that Locomotive’s historic struggles in America’s national tournament – it’s gone 0-4 against League One opposition all-time – and that makes this final group stage game one in which the visitors might need to make a statement.