Eastern Conference (USL Championship)
This article relies too much on references to primary sources. (January 2016) |
League | USL Championship |
---|---|
Sport | Soccer |
Founded | January 21, 2015 |
Teams | |
No. of teams | 14 |
Championships | |
Most recent champion(s) | Tampa Bay Rowdies (2nd title) |
Most titles | Louisville City FC (3 titles) |
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in USL Championship soccer.[1]
Current standings[]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Atlanta United 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for the Conference Semifinals |
2 | Birmingham Legion FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Playoffs |
3 | Charleston Battery | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
4 | Detroit City FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
5 | Hartford Athletic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
6 | Indy Eleven | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
7 | Loudoun United FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
8 | Louisville City FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
9 | Memphis 901 FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
10 | Miami FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
11 | New York Red Bulls II | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
12 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
13 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
14 | FC Tulsa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) total wins; 2) total goal differential; 3) total goals scored; 4) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 5) disciplinary points; 6) coin toss or drawing of lots
Members[]
Current[]
Conference Lineups[]
Clubs timeline[]
Conference Member Club moved to Western Conference Former clubs Club playing in different league
‡Orlando City B & Rochester Rhinos went on hiatus after the 2017 season.[2][3]
2015 (12 teams)[]
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- Harrisburg City Islanders
- Louisville City FC
- FC Montreal
- New York Red Bulls II
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Richmond Kickers
- Rochester Rhinos
- St. Louis FC
- Toronto FC II
- Wilmington Hammerheads
Changes from 2014: USL Pro expanded and was rebranded as simply USL; the round robin table was split into two conferences: Eastern and Western.
2016 (14 teams)[]
- Bethlehem Steel FC
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- FC Cincinnati
- FC Montreal
- Harrisburg City Islanders
- Louisville City FC
- New York Red Bulls II
- Orlando City B
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Richmond Kickers
- Rochester Rhinos
- Toronto FC II
- Wilmington Hammerheads
Changes from 2015: Bethlehem Steel FC, FC Cincinnati and Orlando City B were added as expansion franchises;[4] St. Louis FC moved out to the Western Conference.
2017 (15 teams)[]
- Bethlehem Steel FC
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- FC Cincinnati
- Harrisburg City Islanders
- Louisville City FC
- New York Red Bulls II
- Orlando City B
- Ottawa Fury FC
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Richmond Kickers
- Rochester Rhinos
- Saint Louis FC
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Toronto FC II
Changes from 2016: Ottawa Fury FC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies moved in from the North American Soccer League; FC Montreal was disbanded; Saint Louis FC moved back in from the Western Conference;[5] Wilmington Hammerheads FC moved out to the Premier Development League (now USL League Two).
2018 (16 teams)[]
- Atlanta United 2
- Bethlehem Steel FC
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- FC Cincinnati
- Indy Eleven
- Louisville City FC
- Nashville SC
- New York Red Bulls II
- North Carolina FC
- Ottawa Fury FC
- Penn FC
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Richmond Kickers
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Toronto FC II
Changes from 2017: USL was divided into three divisions: Championship, League One and League Two; Atlanta United 2 was added as an expansion franchise; the Indy Eleven and North Carolina FC moved in from the North American Soccer League; the Harrisburg City Islanders were renamed Penn FC; Orlando City B and the Rochester Rhinos went on hiatus; Saint Louis FC moved out back to the Western Conference.
2019 (18 teams)[]
- Atlanta United 2
- Bethlehem Steel FC
- Birmingham Legion FC
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- Hartford Athletic
- Indy Eleven
- Loudoun United FC
- Louisville City FC
- Memphis 901 FC
- Nashville SC
- New York Red Bulls II
- North Carolina FC
- Ottawa Fury FC
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Saint Louis FC
- Swope Park Rangers
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
Changes from 2018: FC Cincinnati disbanded to make way for the MLS franchise;[6] Birmingham Legion FC, Hartford Athletic, Loudoun United FC and Memphis 901 FC were added as expansion franchises; Saint Louis FC and the Swope Park Rangers moved in from the Western Conference; Orlando City B, the Richmond Kickers and Toronto FC II moved out to USL League One; Penn FC and the Rochester Rhinos went on hiatus. They will move to USL League One in 2020.
2020 (17 teams)[]
- Atlanta United 2
- Birmingham Legion FC
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- Hartford Athletic
- Indy Eleven
- Loudoun United FC
- Louisville City FC
- Memphis 901 FC
- Miami FC
- New York Red Bulls II
- North Carolina FC
- Philadelphia Union II
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Saint Louis FC
- Sporting Kansas City II
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
Changes from 2019: Nashville SC moved out to Major League Soccer; Bethlehem Steel FC was renamed Philadelphia Union II; the Swope Park Rangers were renamed Sporting Kansas City II; Ottawa Fury FC was not sanctioned by U.S. Soccer and had their franchise rights sold to Miami FC; Penn FC was disbanded.
2021 (16 teams)[]
Atlantic Division (8 teams)[]
- Charleston Battery
- Charlotte Independence
- Hartford Athletic
- Loudoun United FC
- Miami FC
- New York Red Bulls II
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
Central Division (8 teams)[]
- Atlanta United 2
- Birmingham Legion FC
- Indy Eleven
- Louisville City FC
- Memphis 901 FC
- OKC Energy FC
- Sporting Kansas City II
- FC Tulsa
Changes from 2020: The conference was divided into two divisions, Atlantic and Central; the OKC Energy FC and FC Tulsa moved in from the Western Conference; North Carolina FC moved out to USL League One; Philadelphia Union II was withdrawn by its MLS parent club; Saint Louis FC was disbanded.
2022 (14 teams)[]
- Atlanta United 2
- Birmingham Legion FC
- Charleston Battery
- Detroit City FC
- Hartford Athletic
- Indy Eleven
- Louisville City FC
- Loudoun United FC
- Memphis 901 FC
- Miami FC
- New York Red Bulls II
- Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
- Tampa Bay Rowdies
- FC Tulsa
Changes from 2021: The Atlantic and Central divisions were dropped; OKC Energy FC went on hiatus; Charlotte Independence moved to USL League One; Detroit City FC joined from NISA; Sporting Kansas City II was withdrawn by its MLS parent club and moved to MLS Next Pro.
Eastern Conference Playoff champions by year[]
Bold | USL Champions |
Season | Champions | Score | Runners Up |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | Rochester Rhinos | 1–0 | Louisville City FC |
2016 | New York Red Bulls II | 1–1 (4–3 PK) | Louisville City FC |
2017 | Louisville City FC | 1–1 (4–3 PK) | New York Red Bulls II |
2018 | Louisville City FC | 5–1 | New York Red Bulls II |
2019 | Louisville City FC | 3–1 (AET) | Indy Eleven |
2020 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–1 | Louisville City FC |
2021 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–2 (AET) | Louisville City FC |
Eastern Conference regular season champions by year[]
Bold | USL Regular Season Champions |
Season | Team | Record | Playoffs result |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | Rochester Rhinos | 17–1–10 (+25) | Won USL Championship |
2016 | New York Red Bulls II | 21–3–6 (+40) | Won USL Championship |
2017 | Louisville City FC | 18–6–8 (+27) | Won USL Championship |
2018 | FC Cincinnati | 23–3–8 (+38) | Lost Conference Semifinals |
2019 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC | 19-4-11 (+28) | Lost Conference Semifinals |
2020 | Louisville City FC | 11-3-2 (+16) | Lost Conference Final |
2021 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 23–7–2 (+32) | Lost Championship Final |
See also[]
References[]
- ^ "Expanded USL Unveils 2015 Format". United Soccer League (USL). January 21, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
- ^ Tsujimoto, Ben (November 30, 2017). "Rochester Rhinos to take hiatus from United Soccer League". Buffalo, NY: Buffalo News. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
- ^ "Orlando City B Elects to Forgo 2018 USL Division II Season". Orlando City SC. January 12, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2018.
- ^ "2016 USL Alignment and Format Announced". United Soccer League (USL). January 20, 2016. Archived from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ "USL Announces 2017 Conference Alignment". www.uslsoccer.com. United Soccer League (USL). January 9, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2017.
- ^ "USL Championship Unveils 2019 Conference Alignment". United Soccer League (USL). December 13, 2018. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- USL Championship