For the final time this season, it’s matchday in the Magic City.

Birmingham Legion host Miami FC at 4 p.m. to round out their home schedule. The Three Sparks will have one more game on the road next week before drawing the curtain on the 2025 season.

This will be the team’s first game since their elimination from the playoff race became official. Their opponent, Miami, are the only other team to also be out of contention.

“When you’re out, in a strange way the shackles come off a little bit,” Mark Briggs said.
“The pressure’s not there anymore. There’s a little more energy, so to speak.”

There is no denying the 2025 season will be one to forget for the Three Sparks, with their lowest points tally already guaranteed (excluding the shortened COVID-19 season in 2020). However, the last three games have seen an uptick in form, and most notably a defensive improvement.

That turnaround culminated in the team’s first win in over two months last time out against Loudoun United, before taking a break last week with a bye.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Briggs said. “I think the win was refreshing for everyone. Staff, players, front office, everyone associated with the club. That win was something we had been waiting a long time for. So the energy’s quite good and we’re hoping to finish off the season in a positive manner.”

Ironically, Miami are in a similar position. The Florida side has also shown better form in recent weeks, with a close-fought battle with Louisville City — the repeat Players’ Shield winners — in their last outing, and a win of their own the week before that.

Miami will be desperate to avoid back-to-back finishes as the worst team in the USL Championship. A win at Protective would move them level on points with the Legion, with both sides facing a tough road trip in the final week of the regular season.

For Legion, it’s a chance to avoid that “wooden spoon” award. After defeating Miami earlier this season, the Black and Gold have a chance to sweep the series and avoid that dreaded bottom spot.

“A lot of [pride] comes into it,” Briggs said. “There’s that scenario, and then there’s the scenario where you want to end the season on a positive note at home. We want to try and end the season positively, so it brings a positive outlook, a positive energy for next year.”

The bye week will have given a chance for some of Birmingham’s injured players to recover, though a few names are confirmed out for the season.

Kameron Lacey and Moses Mensah always faced a fight on their hands to return for 2025 after suffering severe injuries earlier in the season and will not be back in time, while Sebastian Tregarthen is also done after breaking his arm in the North Carolina FC game. Samuel Shashoua is still struggling with a heel injury but could yet feature in these final games, and Sebastián Saucedo was back in training over the break after dealing with a stop-start injury-disrupted season since joining midseason.

A few other players have small issues that could keep them out of the Miami game, with final decisions on their availability to be made today ahead of kick-off.

Birmingham Legion host Miami FC at 4 p.m. this afternoon at Protective Stadium.

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