Weekend Results
Legion's new low; Huntsville clinches a playoff spot
Birmingham Legion FC
Image credit: istock; Birmingham might be headed for the spoon
Birmingham has secured a new low for the club's history. Their 1-2 road loss against Indy Eleven put a massive dent in their slim chances to make the playoffs, and also guaranteed that they'll hit their lowest point total for a season. As a refresher, 2024 was the first season that Legion failed to make the playoffs, with 45 points from 13 wins, 6 draws, and 15 losses. To be totally fair for 2025, I'll include Jagermeister results, as the Cup matches basically replaced regular season matches for scheduling. For 2025, Legion has 7 wins, 11 draws, and 11 losses, and would have 32 points if the Jagermeister results were factored in. With five games remaining, if Birmingham runs the table (they won't), they would squeak ahead of last year. As it stands in actual league play (sitting on 22 points), they're guaranteed to have their worst season ever. The question now is whether they'll end up holding the wooden spoon for 2025. It could come down to the match against Miami on October 19.
Sunday's loss to Indy Eleven followed a familiar path. Birmingham got a great goal early in the first half from a free kick by Peter-Lee Vassell, and took a 1-0 lead into halftime. Vassell and Legion had a good first half, although neither team showed much creativity. Second half adjustments by Indy saw Vassell disappear from the action, and Indy broke down Birmingham's defense twice within five minutes. Legion would make four substitutions late to try to get a spark, but to no avail. Notably, Tyler Pasher got his first minutes since being injured against Rhode Island on Aug 20.
Huntsville City FC
Image credit: MLS NextPro
Huntsville fans, take a bow and a deep breath. The Boys in Blue put together a 1-0 win over Orlando City 2, and have secured a spot in the playoffs for the first time in team history. Chicago and Chattanooga also lost, so Huntsville leapt back over them into fourth place. They two more games left, both at home, and can hopefully build some momentum to carry into the playoffs for a run.
UPSL
FC Birmingham 2-2 Dalton United. FCB is still looking for their first win of the Fall, but a draw against Dalton is always a good result.
FC Atlanta 4-2 UMA FC II. UMA is scoring goals, but also conceding too many. They'll need to tighten up.
Columbus Knight Eagles 0-5 Augusta Arsenal. Augusta appears to be for real, with 11 goals scored, and 0 conceded in two games. Columbus will look to bounce back next week.