2023 USL Championship Playoffs

Last updated

2023 USL Championship Playoffs
Tournament details
CountryUnited States
DatesOctober 21 – November 12
Teams16
Defending champions San Antonio FC
Final positions
Champions Phoenix Rising FC
Runner-up Charleston Battery
Tournament statistics
Matches played15
Goals scored43 (2.87 per match)
Attendance95,916 (6,394 per match)
Top goal scorer(s) Flag of Haiti.svg Ronaldo Damus
Flag of England.svg Cameron Lancaster
(3 goals each)
All statistics correct as of November 12, 2023.
←  2022
2024 →

The 2023 USL Championship Playoffs (branded as the 2023 USL Championship Playoffs presented by Hisense for sponsorship reasons [1] ) was the post-season championship of the 2023 USL Championship. It was the thirteenth edition of the USL Championship Playoffs. The playoffs began on October 21, and concluded with the USL Championship Final on November 12. [2]

Contents

San Antonio FC were the defending title holders [3] and were eliminated in the Conference Semi-finals by Sacramento Republic FC. [4] Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies were the first teams to clinch a playoff berth which they both achieved on September 3 and subsequently both lost in the first round. [5] Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC won the regular season and were eliminated in the Conference Quarterfinals by Detroit City FC. [6]

The Charleston Battery and Phoenix Rising FC advanced to the Final after failing to make the postseason the previous year. A match Phoenix won after a penalty shoot-out for their first title. [7]

Format

The top eight teams in each conference qualified for the playoffs which was in a single-elimination, fixed bracket format. All playoff matches were streamed live on ESPN+ except the Championship final on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, and Sirius XM FC. [2]

Conference standings

Bracket

Conference Quarterfinals
October 21–22 		Conference Semifinals
October 27–28 		Conference Finals
November 4 		USL Championship Final
November 12
            
E1 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC 0
E8 Detroit City FC 1
E8 Detroit City FC 0
E5 Louisville City FC 4
E4 Memphis 901 FC 1 (4)
E5 Louisville City FC (p)1 (5)
E5 Louisville City FC 1
Eastern Conference
E3 Charleston Battery 2
E3 Charleston Battery 5
E6 Indy Eleven 0
E3 Charleston Battery 2
E7 Birmingham Legion FC 1
E2 Tampa Bay Rowdies 0
E7 Birmingham Legion FC 3
E3 Charleston Battery 1 (2)
W6 Phoenix Rising FC (p)1 (3)
W1 Sacramento Republic FC 1
W8 New Mexico United 0
W1 Sacramento Republic FC 3
W4 San Antonio FC 1
W4 San Antonio FC 1
W5 Colorado Springs Switchbacks 0
W1 Sacramento Republic FC 1
Western Conference
W6 Phoenix Rising FC 2
W3 San Diego Loyal SC 3
W6 Phoenix Rising FC (a.e.t.)4
W6 Phoenix Rising FC (a.e.t.)2
W2 Orange County SC 1
W2 Orange County SC 1
W7 El Paso Locomotive FC 0

Schedule

Conference Quarterfinals

October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)East Memphis 901 FC 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(4–5 p)		 Louisville City FC Memphis, Tennessee
6:30 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: AutoZone Park
Attendance: 3,587
Referee: Elton García
Penalties
October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)East Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC 0–1 Detroit City FC Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
7:00 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Highmark Stadium
Attendance: 6,123
Referee: Sergii Demianchuk
October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)East Tampa Bay Rowdies 0–3 Birmingham Legion FC St. Petersburg, Florida
7:30 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium
Attendance: 5,249
Referee: Matthew Thompson
October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)West San Antonio FC 1–0 Colorado Springs Switchbacks San Antonio, Texas
8:00 PM CDT
Report
Stadium: Toyota Field
Attendance: 7,304
Referee: Alexis Da Silva
October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)West Sacramento Republic FC 1–0 New Mexico United Sacramento, California
7:00 PM PDT
Report Stadium: Heart Health Park
Attendance: 11,569
Referee: Ricardo Fierro
October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)West Orange County SC 1–0 El Paso Locomotive FC Irvine, California
7:30 PM PDT
Report
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium
Attendance: 5,500
Referee: Natalie Simon
October 22, 2023 (2023-10-22)East Charleston Battery 5–0 Indy Eleven Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
4:00 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Patriots Point Soccer Complex
Attendance: 2,972
Referee: Jeremy Scheer
October 22, 2023 (2023-10-22)West San Diego Loyal SC 3–4 (a.e.t.) Phoenix Rising FC San Diego California
7:00 PM PDT
Report
Stadium: Torero Stadium
Attendance: 5,671
Referee: Elvis Osmanovic

Conference Semifinals

October 27, 2023 (2023-10-27)West Sacramento Republic FC 3–1 San Antonio FC Sacramento, California
7:30 PM PDT
Report
Stadium: Heart Health Park
Attendance: 10,619
Referee: Elvis Osmanovic
October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28)East Charleston Battery 2–1 Birmingham Legion FC Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
7:00 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Patriots Point Soccer Complex
Attendance: 2,762
Referee: Elton Garcia
October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28)East Louisville City FC 4–0 Detroit City FC Louisville, Kentucky
7:30 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Lynn Family Stadium
Attendance: 7,959
Referee: Ricardo Fierro
October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28)West Orange County SC 1–2 (a.e.t.) Phoenix Rising FC Irvine, California
7:30 PM PDT
Report
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium
Attendance: 5,500
Referee: Calin Radosav

Conference Finals

November 4, 2023 (2023-11-04)East Charleston Battery 2–1 Louisville City FC Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
7:30 PM EST
Report
Stadium: Patriots Point Soccer Complex
Attendance: 4,438
Referee: Elvis Osmanovic
November 4, 2023 (2023-11-04)West Sacramento Republic FC 1–2 Phoenix Rising FC Sacramento, California
7:00 PM PST
Report
Stadium: Heart Health Park
Attendance: 11,569
Referee: Ricardo Fierro

USL Championship Final

Championship Game MVP: Rocco Ríos Novo (PHX)

Top goalscorers

[8]

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Flag of Haiti.svg Ronaldo Damus San Diego Loyal SC 3
Flag of England.svg Cameron Lancaster Louisville City FC
3 Flag of the United States.svg Russell Cicerone Sacramento Republic FC 2
Flag of Argentina.svg Emil Cuello Phoenix Rising FC
Flag of Poland.svg Dariusz Formella Phoenix Rising FC
Flag of Ghana.svg Prosper Kasim Birmingham Legion FC
Flag of the Philippines.svg Nick Markanich Charleston Battery
Flag of Mexico.svg Arturo Rodríguez Charleston Battery
Flag of Mexico.svg Danny Trejo Phoenix Rising FC
Flag of Sierra Leone.svg Augustine Williams Charleston Battery
Flag of the United States.svg Emilio Ycaza Charleston Battery

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References

  1. ↑ "Playoffs are coming to Heart Health Park on October 21st" (Press release). Sacramento, CA: Sacramento Republic FC. October 1, 2023. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Drama on final matchday as bracket is set for 2023 USL Championship Playoffs". www.uslchampionship.com. USL Championship. October 15, 2023. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
  3. ↑ Torres, Raquel (November 14, 2022). "'Finally everything coming together': Fans revel in San Antonio FC's first USL Championship". /sanantonioreport.org/. San Antonio, TX: San Antonio Report. Archived from the original on September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  4. ↑ Whitaker, Stephen (October 28, 2023). "San Antonio FC has title defense end in semifinal loss at Sacramento Republic" . www.expressnews.com. San Antonio, TX: San Antonio Express-News. Archived from the original on October 29, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  5. ↑ Murray, Nicholas (September 7, 2023). "USL Championship Race to the Playoffs – Sept. 9-10". www.uslchampionship.com. Tampa, FL: USL Championship. Archived from the original on September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  6. ↑ Clark, Christina (October 23, 2023). "Detroit City FC Defeats Pittsburgh in First Round of USL Playoffs". www.hourdetroit.com. Detroit, MI: Hour Detroit. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  7. ↑ Anderson, Jake (November 13, 2023). "Phoenix Rising FC wins USL title in improbable way vs. Charleston Battery". arizonasports.com. Charleston, SC: Arizona Sports. Archived from the original on November 28, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  8. ↑ "2023 USLC Playoff Stats". USL Championship. November 11, 2022.
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