With Leagues Cup 2025 now firmly in the rearview mirror, FC Cincinnati march on into the MLS league play with a vital home fixture at TQL Stadium this Sunday by playing host to eastern conference foes Charlotte FC. The Orange and Blue sit second in the Supporters’ Shield table, down a point to Philadelphia Union, and with nine games to play every match at home will be vital to chasing another trophy.
Fortunately for FCC, this Sunday’s match represents the first of six home games down the stretch, presenting an opportunity to play the most important matches of the season at home. The first test though is Charlotte, who come in as winners of their previous four MLS matches but will be missing some key pieces due to injury and suspension.
But one of Charlotte’s key attributes is their depth, so no matter who takes the field this Sunday, FC Cincinnati will be prepared to take on a motivated Charlotte squad.
“I think the biggest difference is personnel that's not available, unfortunately, with (Pep) Biel getting hurt and (Ashley) Westwood [on yellow card suspension], those are key pieces for them,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said Saturday ahead of the match. “You always want to see teams at full strength, that's kind of always how we look at it and those are very good players and pieces for their team. But they have depth so you're seeing guys like (Eryk) Williamson and (Djibril) Diani stepping in the midfield. I think the wingers with (Wilfried) Zaha, (Liel) Abada, (Kerwin) Vargas, they've got speed, they've got one-v-one attackers. (Idan) Toklomati has done an excellent job in his minutes, and obviously, after they transferred (Patrick) Agyemang. So the depth is there for them to still be a strong team.
“What we expect, as far as the game, I think, you can see there's consistency in how they play with and without the ball. So in that case, it's a matter of going out and being able to understand what we're going to see and find ways to succeed within it."
Sunday at TQL Stadium, along with the weekend as a whole, FC Cincinnati will also be celebrating the 10th anniversary of the club forming with a series of celebrations and testimonials. On Saturday the club hosted the FCC3 race from Nippert Stadium to TQL Stadium where alumni staff and the public gathered. Prior to the match Alumni members will march with the Supporters Groups to bring the energy to the 6 p.m. kickoff. And after the match FC Cincinnati will host an Alumni game with two teams made up of FC Cincinnati players from days past.
The Anniversary weekend presents an opportunity to not only reflect on where FCC is now, but how far the club has come.
“It's always nice to remember the history of the club, whether it's players, whether it's years. Obviously the USL years were very strong years for FC Cincinnati, and memorable ones, as far as Nippert, as far as the teams, Open Cup run, and a lot of those players will be back. So it's good to recognize the early years,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said of the festivities. “It's been, certainly, a pleasure to be a part of this team and see improvements, to be able to win a trophy and be hungry to try to win more. So I think the club is in a good place, and we're hoping to continue to move forward in a way where we're talking about in years time, more success, and a lot of the players that I've been fortunate to coach be a part of being recognized in a similar fashion to the guys that will return.”
FC CINCINNATI vs Charlotte FC – Sunday, August 10, 2025 – 7:30 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
Watch/Stream (English/Spanish): MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
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Versus Charlotte FC
FC Cincinnati look to snap a three-match winless streak against Charlotte FC. The Orange and Blue have dropped consecutive matches against the Crown, dating back to last July’s 3-1 loss at TQL Stadium and a 2-0 defeat at Bank of America Stadium earlier this season.
All-time, FC Cincinnati is 2-3-2 against Charlotte FC but have fared far better at home than on the road, earning a 2-1-0 record (6 goals for, 3 against) at TQL Stadium compared to a 0-2-2 record on the road (3 goals four, 7 against).
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
The Home Stretch – Six of FC Cincinnati’s nine remaining matches in the 2025 MLS Regular Season will be at TQL Stadium. The Orange and Blue are 7-2-2 (.727) at home in MLS play this season. Five of the six remaining home matches, including Sunday night, come against teams who enter Matchday 28 above the Eastern Conference playoff line: Charlotte FC (August 10), New York City FC (August 23), Philadelphia Union (August 30), Nashville SC (September 13) and Orlando City (September 27).
49 with 9 to go – FC Cincinnati seek to claim a second Supporters’ Shield in three seasons (2023), entering Matchday 28 one point off of Philadelphia Union’s 50 points. At 15-6-4 (49 points), FCC are one of nine clubs with more than 40 points as the chase for the Shield continues. In 2022, when FC Cincinnati clinched their first MLS Cup Playoff berth in club history, the Orange and Blue finished the season with their current 2025 total, 49 points (12-9-13). That tally earned FC Cincy the No. 5 seed, just four points off No. 4 New York Red Bulls, who FCC was eliminated in the single legged Round One at Red Bull Arena that season.
The 12,382 Minute Man – FC Cincinnati fourth-year goalkeeper Roman Celentano is 81 minutes away from matching Luciano Acosta’s club record minutes-played record (12,381). Acosta and Celentano are two of five players in FC Cincinnati history, in all competitions, to have played 10,000+ minutes for the team (Hagglund, Kubo, Nwobodo).
Celebrate 10 years, come on – Nearly 10 years to the day, on August 12, 2015, FC Cincinnati launched as a USL club playing at the University of Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium. Smashing success on and off the field led FCC’s meteoric rise from a third division club to perennial Major League Soccer contender.
Sunday’s match comes as part of a weekend full of celebration of 10 years of FCC. Following the game, a Postmatch Alumni Friendly will take place featuring over 25 early club legends. For more information on the weekend, visit Page 4 or FCCincinnati.com.
SCOUTING Charlotte FC (12-11-2, 38 Points, 7th in the Eastern Conference)
Charlotte FC come to TQL Stadium in a bit of a flux with some real highs and lows over the last two months. Winners of their last four in league play, Charlotte was quickly eliminated from Leagues Cup with losses to FC Juarez and Chivas Guadalajara leaving them in a tough place to close out the tournament. Prior to their four game winning streak, Charlotte had gone four games winless and lost three of them outright.
The Dean Smith coached side has been quality in its moments this season, but with some radical twists and turns in results that have made them hard to pin down. So while they are seventh in the conference, they are just six points back of a top four spot in the East.
The North Carolina club is also in a bit of a flux from a roster standpoint as the club will be coming to Cincinnati with some questions in the team. While famed Ivory Coast and former Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha remains a threat for the team, Charlotte transferred one of its bright young stars in Partrick Agyemang to EFL Championship side Derby earlier this window and leading goal scorer and assist giver Pep Biel will be unavailable for the match with an injury he sustained during Leagues Cup.
Kristijan Kahlina is also always a name to watch in every Charlotte FC match as the goalkeeper has defined himself as one of the best shot stoppers in MLS since arriving in 2022. The Croatian keeper joined the club ahead of their inaugural season and has made 112 starts in league play since, and in 2024 Kahlina was named Goalkeeper of the Year in MLS for allowing just 37 goals in 34 appearances and earning 12 clean sheets. This season he has made 23 starts with six clean sheets and 83 saves.
Part of the core of what makes Charlotte a tough club to play though is the defensive core they bring to the field. Captain Ashley Westwood starts the defensive core in the midfield but the tandem of USMNT regular Tim Ream and breakout young star Adilson Malanda may be the marquee of the group. Malanda and Westwood lead the team in minutes played having appeared for full 90’s in all 25 games this season. Malanda’s play the last two seasons have put him on the radar of several European clubs of late. Also, with Biel out, Charlotte used Westwood as an attacking midfielder in their 2-0 win over CF Monterrey to close out the tournament, which could introduce questions as to who would be responsible on the more defensive side of the ball.
Charlotte FC also recently announced the signing of defender Harry Toffolo from Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League. Toffolo, a left back, joined on a free transfer after three years in the Premier League with Forrest. It is unclear if the 29-year-old would be available for Sunday’s match but if he was he would likely take over for young Canadian defender Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, who is currently on loan to Charlotte from CF Montréal.
Dean Smith took over the club in 2023 after a decade of managing in England including time in the Premier League with Aston Villa. He was also the manager of Leicester City, Norwich City, Walsall and Brentford before coming stateside. Most often Smith has deployed his side in a 4-3-3 formation this season, with one midfielder slightly more advanced than the other two but underneath a trio of center forward and two wide forwards.
