We’re really rolling now, all of the outdoor leagues have shifted into 5th gear and are are on the go! This week our writers, podcasters, and guest contributors tell us which games they’ll be watching this weekend and why you should too. From WPSL to USL W; USL League 2, USL League 1, and USL Championship to the USASA National Amateur Cup. We’ve got your Metroplex Prem, San Francisco Soccer Football League and the NPSL too. Let’s get stuck in!

Ben Brannigan Picks…
- I & I FC vs FC Ladera Boys - Metroplex Prem
  - Fri, 05/31 -
    at Willow Springs in Lucas, TX
  - The I&I FC boys are currently in the playoff position and going quite strong too; they’re a very good team to watch and highly recommend you check them out ASAP. The Ladera boys are also doing well this year and have some nice players; they’ll give it their all in this game and this will be worth going to also Friday Night in Lucas.

Dan Vaughn Picks…
- Richmond Ivy vs Christos FC - USL W League
  - Sat, 06/01 - 2:00pm PT / 5:00pm ET
    at City Stadium in Richmond, VA
  - Richmond went on the road to NoVa and got a big 3-1 win. Now they come home with a 3-1 record to take on a 2-2 Christos team. Christos is coming off a massive 11-0 win over Patuxent Football Athletics. Richmond will no doubt be riding high with a big home field advantage as their fans have really been showing up this season. This is the 3 vs 5 in the Mid Atlantic table and could have big ramifications on the rest of the season.

Dan Creel Picks…
- Northern Virginia FC vs Christos FC - USL League 2
  - Sat, 06/01 - 12:00pm PT / 3:00pm ET
    at Segra Field in Loudoun County, VA
  - Both clubs are Mid-Atlantic juggernauts, but are currently sitting third and fourth in the Chesapeake Division. The USL League 2 squads are playing a short-week home-and-home series with Saturday’s match at NoVa and Wednesday’s at Christos. The two matches will go a long way to determine if either team makes a mid-season run at current division leaders, Lionbridge FC.

Ryan Stallings Picks…
- Florida Roots vs Alabama FC South - Gulf Coast Premier League
  - Sat, 06/01 - 4:15pm PT / 7:15pm ET
    at Field 1 Publix Sports Park in Panama City Beach, FL
  - Alabama FC may be new to fielding a mens side, and new to the GCPL, but they’ve long shed any assumptions of suffering the rookie season struggles. The Montgomery side has yet to lose in their freshman campaign, taking points on the road from Pensacola then winning outright, and emphatically, against both Mobile Bay rivals 3-0 (vs AFC Mobile) and 3-2 (vs Union 10 FC). They return to the Florida Panhandle this weekend to take on their nearest competition in the East conference standings in Panama City Saturday night.
    It’s safe to say that Florida Roots have found their level now fully vested in GCPL play. After wallowing in the NPSL in past seasons, the Roots have hit their stride concentrating their efforts in the Gulf Coast competition. So far the Panama City lads have beaten both Pensacola and Union on the road, and with just a narrow 1-0 defeat to Sowegans being no more than small speedbump so far in the season the Roots could overtake Alabama for the the east conference lead with win at Publix Sports Park.
    The victor here, if there is one, will have the inside track on both the eastern conference and the league through week four.

John Howard-Fusco Picks…
- TLH Reckoning vs Palm City Americanas - USL W
  - Sat, 06/01 - 1:00pm PT / 4:00pm ET
    at Gene Cox Stadium, Tallahassee FL
  - The records go out the window when the Reckoning meet up with the Angry Eagles. Well, ok - this is the first time they are facing each other. And truth be told, I love this matchup because it’s between my favorite team moniker and my new favorite crest. But, TLH could use a W-I-N with only a draw to show for in the last four games. I don’t expect Palm City and that eagle to be the generous type.

Ben Brannigan Picks…
- Lima Soccer Academy vs North Texas Aztecs - Metroplex Prem 2
  - Sat, 06/01 - 4:30pm CT / 5:30pm ET
    at Gateway Field #4 in Fort Worth Texas
  - The LSA Boys are in the playoff picture right now and will be looking to keep that in place. The Aztecs will be looking to keep improving like they have been doing since they entered the league, this has a dark horse game of the week vibe in MPL2 - Check it out if you’re around FW on Saturday afternoon.

Dan Vaughn Picks…
- Annapolis Blues FC vs DMV Elite FC - NPSL
  - Sat 06/01 - 4:00pm PT / 7:00pm ET
    at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
  - Annapolis has something special going on, finding fans in a way we’ve never seen before in amateur soccer. The team is loved and is paying its fans back by winning. After kicking off the season with a dominant 12-0 win, the Blues are now 3-0 and cruising. They’ll face DMV Elite this week, who are coming off a 8-0 win of their own last week. This is the Annapolis home opener and the stadium will be rocking!

Ryan Stallings Picks…
- Clarkstown SC vs Rhode Island Rogues FC - WPSL
  - Sun, 06/01 - 2:00pm PT / 5:00pm ET
    at Albertus Magnus HS in Bardonia, NY
  - It’s rare to find a top national top ten matchup this early in any lower league season, but the WPSL is more inadvertently generous than most, with the scheduling gifting audiences with #4 Rhode Island Rogues paying a visit to #8 Clarkstown SC. The Rogues have raided their previous two opponents at near auto-pilot, casting both New York Shockers and Merrimack Valley Hawks aside in 4-1 and 5-1 defeats. Clarkstown’s season only started last week, on the road to New York Force. The travel was for both business and pleasure as Clarkstown came, scored four goals, conceded none and conquered the Force in relative ease.
    We’ll see if two sides accustomed to scoring four plus goals in their matches can continue the pace when facing each Saturday night in Bardonia, New York. Whoever leaves Albertus Magnus High School the victor will be the assumed leader in the Northeastern Conference for the rest of the season and certainly control their own destiny going forward.

Dan Creel Picks…
- Forward Madison vs Lexington Sporting Club - USL League 1
  - Sat, 06/01 - 3:00pm PT / 6:00pm ET
    at Breese Stevens Field in Madison, WI
  - Lexington has only picked up one point in their last four league matches and is sitting ninth in the table. For a team that was an offseason favorite to win the league title, Lexington needs positive momentum from their play in the league cup to bleed into the league competition. But they are facing a Madison team that has yet to lose in league play and has shored up many of the issues they were prone to last season.

Michael Battista Picks…
- JM United FC vs Azteca FC (Colorado) - USASA Region IV Amateur Cup, Semifinal
  - Sat, 06/01 - 11:00am PT / 2:00pm ET
    at Sandstone Ridge Park in North Las Vegas, NV (updated location)
  - The first of four teams to qualify for the National Amateur Cup, the top competition in the U.S. Adult Soccer Association, will be decided this weekend in Las Vegas. J.M. United FC is one of those teams that is just fun to learn about. They play in the Utah Adult Soccer League, are affiliated with USL League Two’s Salt City SC, and are officially named after Jersey Mike’s Subs because the team’s coach also owns a few stores. The team beat Boise Alpha FC last round, 4-1. They will face Azteca FC from Colorado, a well known name in amateur circles. Azteca has played in multiple U.S. Open Cup tournaments, including this past year’s where they lost to Colorado Rapids 2 in the First Round. The team advanced in Round 1 via forfeit before beating Colorado’s Timbers SC, 4-0. The winners of Saturday’s semifinal matches will play on Sunday to crown the USASA Region IV Amateur Cup champion. That team will play for the national cup with the three other regional champs and a spot in the 2025 U.S. Open Cup.

Dennis Pope Picks…
- Temecula FC vs FC Arizona - USASA Region IV Amateur Cup, Semifinal
  - Sat, 06/01 - 8:30am PT / 11:30am ET
    at Sandstone Ridge Park in North Las Vegas, NV (updated location)
  - It seems like Temecula FC has endured a long wait for this National Amateur Cup, the top competition in the U.S. Adult Soccer Association, after the Southern California-based club advanced past San Francisco’s Olympic Club in the quarterfinal round via forfeit. One of the stronger sides in NISA Nation’s Southwest Region over the past two seasons, the Quails are facing off against an old NPSL nemesis for the first time since 2019. FC Arizona can finish no better than second in the three-team NPSL Southwest Conference (let’s be real) and are hunting for hardware any way it can. The club beat University of New Mexico Club Soccer 4-0 in the quarterfinals but will have a much tougher time against the tournament’s SoCal representative.

Ryan Stallings Pick…
- El Farolito FC vs Napa Valley 1839 FC - NPSL
  - Sat, 06/01 - 6:00pm PT / 9:00pm ET
    at Matthew Boxer Stadium in San Francisco, CA
  - The NPSL conference with a head start on everyone else in the league in terms of schedule sees its two leaders circling for their second match already this season. It may be the second meeting, but this game feels like the rubber match of the season in the Golden Gate, as El Farolito sits atop the table on point per game, but four points behind Napa Valley 1839. However, the two matches in hand are in El Farolito’s catch Napa Valley, UNLESS the 39ers can snag a valuable three points to extend their lead with a win in sure to be an electric atmosphere at San Francisco’s Boxer Stadium Saturday night.

Josh Duder Picks…
- SF City FC vs Davis Legacy - USL League 2
  - Sat, 06/01 - 11:30am PT / 2:30pm ET
    at Matthew Boxer Stadium in San Francisco, CA
  - SF City FC have a double-header in the City this weekend - their USL League Two squad are in 6th in the NorCal Division and are set to host Davis Legacy this Saturday at historic Matthew Boxer Stadium. Legacy are above City by 3 points on the table and it's not too soon for both teams to see this as a “must win.” The League Two season flies by and before they know it they could find themselves out of it.

Josh Duder Picks…

Josh Duder Picks…
- SF City FC vs SF Italian FC - San Francisco Soccer Football League
  - Sun, 06/02 - 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET
    at Beach Chalet Field 4 in San Francisco, CA
  - SF Italian sit behind Olympic Club at the top of the SFSFL table by just 1 point and a win could see them go top, depending on how Olympic Club handles SF Glens. While City are back in 6th, it's not too late to make a run at the playoffs with about 9 weeks left in the season - find your way out to Boxer for the first team and the Beach Chalet Fields for their second squad to complete the double-header.

by the Protagonist Staff