2021 USL League One season

The 2021 USL League One season was the third season of USL League One. The regular season began on April 10 and ended on October 30, 2021. The playoffs was held from November 6 to 20, 2021.

North Carolina FC joined the league for this season, after leaving the USL Championship in what the team called a "strategic move" to enhance its youth development pathway.

Greenville Triumph SC were the defending champions on both regular season and playoffs. Union Omaha took both titles to won their first League One regular season and championship titles.

Teams

ClubCityStadiumCapacityHead coachMLS associateJersey manufacturerJersey sponsor Chattanooga Red Wolves SC Chattanooga, Tennessee CHI Memorial Stadium 5,000 Jimmy Obleda AdidasTranscard Fort Lauderdale CF Fort Lauderdale, Florida DRV PNK Stadium 19,000 Darren PowellInter Miami CFAdidas Forward Madison FC Madison, Wisconsin Breese Stevens Field 5,000 Carl CraigChicago Fire FCHummelDairyland Insurance Greenville Triumph SC Greenville, South Carolina Legacy Early College Field 4,000 John Harkes HummelScansource New England Revolution II Foxborough, Massachusetts Gillette Stadium 20,000 Clint PeayNew England RevolutionAdidasUnitedHealthcare North Carolina FC Cary, North Carolina Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park 10,000 John Bradford AdidasWakeMed North Texas SC Arlington, Texas Choctaw Stadium 48,114 Eric QuillFC DallasAdidasAdvoCare Richmond Kickers Richmond, Virginia City Stadium 22,611 Darren Sawatzky AdidasUkrop's South Georgia Tormenta FC Statesboro, Georgia Eagle Field at Erk Russell Park 3,500 Ian Cameron AdidasOptim Healthcare Toronto FC II Toronto, Ontario Grande Sports WorldOsceola County Stadium BMO Training Ground Various Mike MuñozToronto FCAdidasBMO FC Tucson Tucson, Arizona Kino Sports Complex 3,500 Jon Pearlman Puma Union Omaha Papillion, Nebraska Werner Park 9,023 Jay Mims NikeXCancer

Managerial changes TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyIncoming managerDate of appointmentForward Madison FC Daryl ShoreMutual separationOctober 27, 2020 Carl CraigDecember 1, 2020Fort Lauderdale CF Jason KreisMutual separationMarch 16, 2021 Darren PowellMarch 16, 2021FC Tucson John GalasMutual separationJune 30, 2021 Jon PearlmanJune 30, 2021

League table

Results table

Color key: Home Away Win Loss DrawClubMatches12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728Chattanooga Red Wolves(CHA) NTX NEW FTL RIC TRM TUC NCA GVL OMA TUC TRM NTX GVL MAD NCA NTX OMA TOR FTL NTX GVL NCA NEW RIC NCA TOR GVL MAD1–0 2–2 2–1 2–1 0–1 3–2 3–2 1–1 1–1 2–2 2–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 4–1 1–1 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–1 3–1 0–1 0–1 3–2 1–2 0–0 1–2Fort Lauderdale CF(FTL) NEW TRM NTX RIC OMA TUC CHA NEW MAD NCA TOR TOR TOR TUC RIC MAD NCA GVL TUC TRM CHA TUC TRM GVL OMA TRM NTX TOR0–1 1–0 2–4 2–1 0–2 5–1 1–2 0–1 2–2 2–1 2–2 1–2 2–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 2–3 2–0 0–4 4–2 0–0 0–3 2–2 0–1 1–4 4–4 0–1 2–1Forward Madison FC(MAD) TUC NCA OMA TRM FTL OMA RIC NEW GVL NEW NTX OMA FTL CHA TRM TOR NTX NCA RIC TOR GVL NEW RIC NEW RIC OMA TUC CHA1–1 1–0 1–0 3–1 2–2 1–2 0–0 0–2 2–2 1–0 1–4 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–1 2–2 1–1 0–1 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–1 0–1 0–1 2–3 2–1 2–2 2–1Greenville Triumph SC(GVL) RIC NTX NCA OMA TRM NTX NCA TRM MAD CHA NEW NCA TRM CHA TOR TRM FTL RIC TUC TOR CHA TUC MAD FTL OMA NEW CHA NCA1–0 4–0 2–1 1–1 1–0 0–3 2–1 1–3 2–2 1–1 3–0 0–0 2–3 1–1 0–0 1–3 0–2 0–2 1–2 3–0 1–0 3–3 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 2–0New England Revolution II(NEW) FTL RIC OMA CHA FTL RIC OMA MAD NTX MAD GVL TOR TUC TOR NCA RIC TRM TUC TRM NCA RIC CHA MAD TOR MAD GVL NTX TOR1–0 0–3 0–1 2–2 1–0 2–3 2–4 2–0 3–0 0–1 0–3 1–0 2–4 1–0 3–0 2–2 1–1 1–2 1–1 1–4 3–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–4 0–1North Carolina FC(NCA) GVL MAD RIC TUC FTL GVL CHA RIC TOR TRM TOR RIC FTL NEW CHA NTX MAD RIC OMA NEW CHA NTX TOR CHA TUC OMA TRM GVL1–2 0–1 0–0 1–2 1–2 1–2 2–3 2–1 0–0 0–0 2–4 4–0 3–2 0–3 1–4 0–4 1–0 0–0 0–3 4–1 1–3 0–1 0–3 2–3 2–0 1–4 1–0 0–2North Texas SC(NTX) FTL GVL CHA TRM TOR TOR GVL TUC NEW RIC MAD CHA OMA TUC NCA CHA MAD OMA TUC CHA TRM OMA NCA TUC RIC FTL NEW OMA4–2 0–4 0–1 2–1 1–2 1–1 3–0 0–0 0–3 2–3 4–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 4–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 0–2 2–2 1–0 2–0 1–2 1–0 4–1 1–1Richmond Kickers(RIC) NEW GVL FTL TRM NCA CHA NEW MAD OMA NCA NTX FTL NCA TRM TUC TOR NEW GVL NCA MAD NEW TOR CHA MAD NTX MAD OMA TUC3–0 0–1 1–2 2–0 0–0 1–2 3–2 0–0 1–1 1–2 3–2 1–1 0–4 2–2 1–0 1–2 2–2 2–0 0–0 0–1 1–3 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 3–2 0–2 2–4Tormenta FC(TRM) FTL OMA TUC RIC NTX GVL MAD CHA TOR TOR GVL TOR TOR NCA CHA GVL RIC GVL MAD NEW FTL NEW NTX FTL OMA FTL TUC NCA0–1 0–2 3–1 0–2 1–2 0–1 1–3 1–0 1–0 1–0 3–1 1–3 1–2 0–0 1–2 3–2 2–2 3–1 1–2 1–1 2–4 1–1 2–0 2–2 0–4 4–4 1–3 0–1Toronto FC II(TOR) NTX TUC NTX OMA TUC TRM TRM FTL FTL TRM FTL TRM NEW NCA NEW GVL RIC MAD CHA GVL OMA MAD RIC NCA NEW CHA FTL NEW2–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–1 0–1 2–2 2–1 3–1 1–2 2–1 0–1 4–2 0–1 0–0 2–1 2–2 0–0 0–3 1–2 1–1 0–1 3–0 1–0 2–1 1–2 1–0FC Tucson(TUC) TRM MAD FTL TOR NCA TOR CHA NTX OMA FTL CHA NEW OMA RIC NTX OMA FTL GVL NEW NTX FTL GVL OMA NTX NCA TRM MAD RIC1–3 1–1 1–5 2–1 2–1 1–1 2–3 0–0 0–1 2–1 2–2 4–2 1–2 0–1 0–2 0–1 4–0 2–1 2–1 1–1 3–0 3–3 1–0 0–2 0–2 3–1 2–2 4–2Union Omaha(OMA) TRM FTL NEW GVL MAD TOR MAD NEW RIC TUC CHA MAD TUC NTX TUC CHA NTX NCA TOR NTX TUC TRM FTL GVL NCA MAD RIC NTX2–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 2–1 4–2 1–1 1–0 1–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 0–1 0–0 3–0 2–1 2–2 0–1 4–0 4–1 0–1 4–1 1–2 2–0 1–1

Playoffs The 2021 USL League One Playoffs (branded as the 2021 USL League One Playoffs presented by TwinSpires for sponsorship reasons) was the post-season championship of the USL League One season.

Bracket

Schedule Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

Championship Game MVP: Damià Viader (Union Omaha)

Attendance

Average home attendances Ranked from highest to lowest average attendance.

Team Union Omaha 14 46,013 3,884 2,405 3,287 Forward Madison FC 14* 35,896 3,607 1,529 2,761 Greenville Triumph SC 14 33,373 4,027 1,536 2,384 Richmond Kickers 14 29,094 3,212 1,126 2,078 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC 14 25,512 2,149 1,508 1,822 North Carolina FC 14* 21,286 4,084 996 1,637 Tormenta FC 14 16,869 2,045 635 1,205 FC Tucson 14 13,825 1,556 654 988 North Texas SC 14 11,883 2,212 550 849 New England Revolution II 14* 1,965 500 100 151 Fort Lauderdale CF 14* 0 0 0 0 Toronto FC II 14* 0 0 0 0 Total 168 235,716 4,084 100 1,721 |note=*Fort Lauderdale CF and Toronto FC II had all their matches behind closed doors. Forward Madison FC New England Revolution II and North Carolina FC Had 1 game not reported.

Regular season statistical leaders Top scorers RankPlayerClubGoals1 Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond Kickers182 Marios LomisGreenville Triumph SC143 Greg HurstUnion Omaha134 Shaan HundalFort Lauderdale CF11 Marco MicalettoTormenta FC6 Evan ConwayUnion Omaha10 Juan GalindrezChattanooga Red Wolves SC8 Azaad LiadiTormenta FC9 Charlie DennisFC Tucson10 Shak AdamsFC Tucson8 Mitchell CurryFort Lauderdale CF Garrett McLaughlinToronto FC II

Hat-tricks Player Club Against Result Date Greg HurstUnion OmahaNew England Revolution II4–2 (H)June 12, 2021 Marios LomisGreenville Triumph SC0–3 (A)July 4, 2021 Garrett McLaughlinToronto FC IINorth Carolina FC2–4 (A)July 18, 2021 Gio CalixtroFC TucsonFort Lauderdale CF0–4 (A)August 22, 2021 Charlie DennisFC TucsonGreenville Triumph SC3–3 (A)September 19, 2021 Evan ConwayUnion OmahaTormenta FC0–4 (A)October 1, 2021 Azaad LiadiTormenta FCFort Lauderdale CF4–4 (A)October 10, 2021 Evan ConwayUnion OmahaNorth Carolina FC4–1 (H)October 16, 2021

Notes (H) – Home team(A) – Away team

Top assists RankPlayerClubAssists1 Ricky RuizChattanooga Red Wolves SC102 Devin BoyceUnion Omaha8 Charlie DennisFC Tucson4 George AcostaFort Lauderdale CF75 Conor DoyleUnion Omaha6 Kobe FranklinToronto FC II Luca Mayr-FältenTormenta FC Jake RozhanskyNew England Revolution II9 Mitchell CurryFort Lauderdale CF5 Kalil ElMedkharNorth Texas SC Jay Tee KamaraNorth Carolina FC Azaad LiadiTormenta FC Damià ViaderUnion Omaha

Clean sheets RankPlayerClubClean sheets1 Akira FitzgeraldRichmond Kickers102 Jake McGuireNorth Carolina FC9 Rashid NuhuUnion Omaha4 Joe RiceNew England Revolution II85 Paul ChristensenGreenville Triumph SC76 Pablo JaraTormenta FC5 Dallas JayeGreenville Triumph SC Tim TrilkChattanooga Red Wolves SC9 Phil BrenoForward Madison FC4 Wallis LapsleyFC Tucson Richard SánchezNorth Texas SC Colin ShutlerNorth Texas SC

Individual awards AwardWinnerTeamReasonGolden Boot Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond Kickers18 goals (league record)Golden Glove Rashid NuhuUnion Omaha9 shutouts, 0.75 goals against averageAssist Champion Ricky RuizChattanooga Red Wolves SC10 assistsGoalkeeper of the Year Akira FitzgeraldRichmond Kickers10 shutouts, 89 saves, 72.1 save percentageDefender of the Year Damià ViaderUnion Omaha6 goals, 5 assists, 58 key passesCoach of the Year Jay MimsUnion OmahaWon regular season titleYoung Player of the Year Noah AllenFort Lauderdale CF2,430 minutes, 35 interceptions, 28 key passesMost Valuable Player Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond Kickers18 goals; 85 shots; 40 shots on targetGoal of the Year Devin BoyceUnion Omahavs FC Tucson in the playoffsSave of the Year Joe RiceNew England Revolution IIvs Greenville

All-league teams First team Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards Akira Fitzgerald (RIC) Kobe Franklin (TOR) Jason Ramos (CHA) Ryan Spaulding (NEW) Damià Viader (OMA) Marco Micaletto (TRM) Aaron Molloy (MAD) Ricky Ruiz (CHA) Greg Hurst (OMA) Marios Lomis (GVL) Emiliano Terzaghi (RIC)

Second team Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards Rashid Nuhu (OMA) Noah Franke (TUC) Brandon Fricke (GVL) Abdi Mohamed (GVL) Connor Tobin (MAD) Devin Boyce (OMA) Charlie Dennis (TUC) Aaron Walker (GVL) Evan Conway (OMA) Shaan Hundal (FTL) Gibran Rayo (NTX)

Monthly awards MonthPlayer of the MonthGoal of the MonthSave of the MonthCoach of the MonthReferences Player Club Position Player Club Position Player Club Coach ClubApril / May Marios LomisGreenville Triumph SCForward Derek GebhardForward Madison FCForward Dallas JayeGreenville Triumph SC Carl CraigForward Madison FCJune Juan GalindrezChattanooga Red Wolves SCForward Edison AzconaFort Lauderdale CFMidfielder Joe RiceNew England Revolution II Jay MimsUnion OmahaJuly Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond KickersForward Juan GalindrezChattanooga Red Wolves SCForward John BradfordNorth Carolina FCAugust Aaron MolloyForward Madison FCMidfielder Antonio CarliniToronto FC IIMidfielder Rashid NuhuUnion Omaha Jimmy ObledaChattanooga Red Wolves SCSeptember Damià ViaderUnion OmahaDefender Nicky HernandezNorth Texas SCMidfielder Joe RiceNew England Revolution II Jon PearlmanFC TucsonOctober Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond KickersForward Zacarías MoránRichmond KickersMidfielder John HarkesGreenville Triumph SC

Weekly awards Player of the Week Week Player Club Position 1 Sean O'HearnNew England Revolution IIDefender 2 Juan Pablo MonticelliRichmond KickersDefender 3 Thibaut JacquelNorth Texas SCForward 4 Marios LomisGreenville Triumph SCForward 5 Damià ViaderUnion OmahaDefender 6 George AcostaFort Lauderdale CFMidfielder 7 Garrett McLaughlinToronto FC IIForward 8 Connor TobinForward Madison FCDefender 9 Nil VinyalsRichmond KickersMidfielder 10 Greg HurstUnion OmahaForward 11 Juan GalindrezChattanooga Red Wolves SCForward 12 Jay Tee KamaraNorth Carolina FCMidfielder 13 Emiliano TerzaghiRichmond KickersForward 14 KazuNorth Texas SCDefender 15 Garrett McLaughlinToronto FC IIForward 16 Robert KristoNorth Carolina FCForward 17 18 Damian RiveraNew England Revolution IIForward 19 Ricky RuizChattanooga Red Wolves SCMidfielder 20 Gio CalixtroFC TucsonForward 21 Shak Adams 22 Aaron WalkerGreenville Triumph SCForward 23 Nazmi AlbadawiNorth Carolina FCMidfielder 24 Charlie DennisFC TucsonMidfielder 25 Nicky HernandezNorth Texas SCForward 26 Evan ConwayUnion OmahaForward 27 Azaad LiadiTormenta FCForward 28 Evan ConwayUnion OmahaForward 29 Bernard KamungoNorth Texas SCMidfielder 30 Abdi MohamedGreenville Triumph SCDefender