Leesburg, VA (October 16, 2026) — Loudoun United FC continues its road stretch this Sunday with a trip to Alabama to take on Birmingham Legion FC. Kickoff is set for 5:00 p.m. ET at Dunnavant Valley Fields as the Red-and-White look to bounce back from Wednesday’s defeat to Rhode Island FC and secure three points in their final road match of the regular season.
The Matchup
Loudoun enters Sunday’s match following a 1-0 loss to Rhode Island FC on Wednesday. The Red-and-White found themselves trailing early after Rhode Island opened the scoring in the third minute. Despite the early setback, Loudoun worked to find a way back into the match, maintaining possession and creating opportunities throughout both halves. Rhode Island was reduced to 10 men in the 78th minute, giving Loudoun a man advantage for the closing stages. However, the Red-and-White were unable to capitalize on their chances, leaving Rhode Island empty-handed.
Birmingham Legion FC comes into Sunday’s matchup following a 1-0 road victory over Sporting JAX on Wednesday. Birmingham got the lead in the 37th minute, and they held on through the second half to secure all three points and a clean sheet. Birmingham will look to build on that performance as it returns home for another important matchup in the final stretch of the regular season.
Sunday will mark the third meeting between Loudoun and Birmingham this season, with the previous two encounters ending in draws. The sides first met on April 4 at Segra Field, where Loudoun fought back twice to earn a 2-2 draw. The teams met again on June 20 at Protective Stadium, with Abdellatif Aboukoura putting Loudoun ahead in the 67th minute before Birmingham found the equalizer in the 89th minute to secure a 1-1 draw.
With just two matches remaining in the regular season, Loudoun will look to finish its road campaign on a positive note before returning to Segra Field for its season finale on October 24. After coming away without a goal in Rhode Island, the Red-and-White will aim to turn their opportunities into goals against a Birmingham side coming off a shutout victory.
Thoughts from the Club
Head Coach Anthony Limbrick on the team’s mentality heading into the final stretch of the season and what it will take to secure a result against Birmingham Legion FC:
“The players are really honest players. They work hard, they want to win, and we showed that against Miami. Even the other night against Rhode Island, where we lost a narrow game 1-0, we might not have been at our best, but from start to finish, the work rate, desire, and effort were all there. These players are always playing for something, whether it’s contracts for next season, finishing the season strong, individual statistics, or playing for each other. They’re a very close group, and I really feel like they’re putting their best foot forward. There’s always something to play for, and we want to go and win a game of football. Birmingham are probably in the same boat as us, so I think it could be an entertaining game with plenty of action. We’ve scored goals against them, and they’ve scored goals against us. They’ve got really good movement in and around the box, with quick combinations and runners off the ball, so we have to be careful of that. I think we can get at them on the counterattack. We scored a counterattacking goal against them last time, so we’ll be looking to break quickly, play vertically, and penetrate. But overall, it’s more about us, what we need to do to win the game, and taking the game to them.”
Notes
Bolu Akinyode is two appearances away from reaching 300 career appearances across all USL competitions.
Abdellatif Aboukoura is one goal away from tying Zach Ryan for the most all-time goals in Loudoun United FC history across all competitions.
How Can I Follow the Match?
Sunday’s USL Championship match against Birmingham Legion FC kicks off at 5:00 p.m. ET at Dunnavant Valley Fields and will be streamed on ESPN+.
Follow Loudoun United FC
To keep up with news and information on the team, follow @loudoununitedfc on X and Instagram.
