Charlotte travels to Birmingham this Saturday for a pivotal Group G matchup with heavy playoff implications
BIRMINGHAM, AL (Sept. 9, 2020) – While it may feel like the 2020 USL Championship season just restarted, the regular season is scheduled to wrap up in just over three weeks. Birmingham Legion FC still lead Group G, Charlotte has a solid grip on second place, and the final playoff spot from the group, North Carolina FC are clinging to their playoff hopes, and Memphis 901 FC are looking to finish the season strong.
Birmingham Legion FC has completed exactly three quarters of its 16 regular season matches, racking up six wins, two losses, and four draws while building a four-point lead at the top of Group G. The club has 22 points on the season and is sporting a plus-11 goal differential, and both totals are good for third-best in the Eastern Conference. FiveThirtyEight.com lists Legion FC’s odds of making the playoffs at 97%, and the club’s ‘Magic Number’ stands at 10. Each club’s magic number is the combination of its own points earned and its opponents’ points dropped. For instance, without playing, if Memphis knocks off NCFC tomorrow, BHM and CLT’s magic numbers each drop by three.
The Charlotte Independence are currently on 18 points, but also hold a game in-hand over Legion FC, having five left to play this season. This Saturday’s BHMvCLT match at BBVA Field is vital for both sides, as Birmingham could take a commanding seven-point lead, or Charlotte could jump to within one point of first place in the group. FiveThirtyEight has CLT’s playoff odds at 72% and its Magic Number stands at 14.
Get your tickets for this Saturday’s 6:30pm kickoff between Legion FC and Charlotte HERE.
North Carolina FC have the potential to play spoiler with their in-state rivals, despite having just 10 points this season, due to having two matches in-hand on Charlotte. A super condensed September schedule may make things hard for NCFC, but with seven games left to BHM’s four and CLT’s five, NC has the opportunity to make up ground on the second playoff spot in Group G. FiveThirtyEight has North Carolina’s playoff odds currently at 31%, but every match is crucial. NCFC plays Memphis twice this week and dropping either of those games would tank its playoff hopes.
Memphis 901 FC have little else to play for during the run-in to complete the 2020 season besides pride, and playing spoiler to team’s like North Carolina, as it just has seven total points with six matches remaining. After winning just once in 10 games, FiveThirtyEight puts 901 FC’s playoff odds at less than 1%.
The 2020 USL Championship Playoffs are setup World Cup-style, where the top two teams from each group advance, and, in the South, the winner of Group G will face the second-place team in Group H, and vice versa. Currently, the Tampa Bay Rowdies are in first place in Group H, as well as overall in the Eastern Conference, with 27 points, and the Charleston Battery sit comfortably in second, on 21 points. TBR’s chances of making the playoffs sit at greater than 99%, and Charleston’s odd are currently 98%.
The first round of the playoffs is scheduled for the weekend of October 9-11, and as it currently stands, BBVA Field would play host to BHMvCHS. The two clubs have faced off once this season, with Birmingham winning 2-1 in Charleston on July 19th.
Legion FC’s final four matches of the season are Saturday, Sept. 12 at home vs. Charlotte, Wednesday, Sept. 16 at Miami FC, home again Saturday, Sept. 26 vs. North Carolina, and wraps up Saturday, Oct. 3 at Memphis. Get tickets for the 12th and 26th at bhmlegion.com/tickets, by emailing tickets@bhmlegion.com, or by calling the Legion FC Ticket Office at 205-791-7145. All four matches will air locally on My68 and on ESPN+.
Follow @bhmlegion on social media or download the Legion FC app in from the App Store or Google Play for news on the upcoming USL Championship playoff bracket and schedule.
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