Legion FC Faces Crucial Cup Clash with Forward Madison FC

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – On the heels of a trying defeat at home last weekend, Birmingham Legion FC coach Mark Briggs lamented on the lack of intensity his squad showed in front of his home crowd. Part of that disappointment was because it signified the end of a good run of form for the Three Sparks, but another part was because Briggs was well aware that another important home match was on the immediate horizon.

Heading into a home showdown this Saturday against Forward Madison FC for the final match of group play in the 2025 USL Jagermeister Cup, the task is simple for Birmingham — win and move on to the knockout phase.

“We need to realize that this is the first playoff game of the year,” Briggs said. “We’ve got to make sure that we turn up and we don’t freeze in that. We need to embrace the moment and perform at the level that we know we can perform at.”

Should Legion FC pull out a victory in regulation against Madison, it is guaranteed to advance to the quarterfinal match, whether that’s as one of the two second-place wild card teams or as the Group 3 winner, if Indy Eleven fall at FC Tulsa in regulation or on penalties. If Legion FC were to lose or go to penalty kicks on Saturday, then a whole host of advancing scenarios open up that heavily depend on numerous outside results.

With so many possibly outcomes, Briggs notes that it can be easy to get bogged down by it all with an incorrect mindset, which is why training this week has been more insular than past weeks. The intensity has also been ratcheted up a notch following a poor performance in 1-0 loss to Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC to mark the third consecutive match that Legion FC was held scoreless at Protective Stadium.

“There was consequences (in training) for how the team performed this week,” noted Briggs. “Hopefully they won’t want those consequences again. The response has been good and the attitude in the sessions this week have been good. So let’s see what happens. It’s no use training good and then turn up on Saturday night and not produce. Once we cross that white line, I don’t want to be screaming and shouting at them, I want to see a group of guys that have been caged up all week and be ready to let go at kickoff.”

When Briggs and Legion FC do cross the white line on Saturday, they will have some familiar faces staring at them on the other side.

Prior to joining Forward Madison FC in 2023, head coach Matt Glaeser twice served on Briggs’ coaching staff, first at Real Monarchs in 2017 and then at Sacramento Republic FC, with the two remaining close friends. On top of that, Legion FC has loaned forward Lucca Dourado and midfielder Temi Ereku to the Wisconsin-side this season. In fact, Dourado has scored a goal in two of Madison’s last three matches, including the decider in a 1-0 win over South Georgia Tormenta FC on Wednesday.

So this weekend’s tilt will see two identical styles matching up, featuring players that know each other’s tendencies, setting the stage for an interesting tactical chess match.

“We sent Lucca and Temi to Madison because they have a good head coach and play similar to how we play,” Briggs explained. “That will be an added motivation tomorrow, because they will want to come in and show me that they deserve to play here. It’s something that we will have to handle as a group because, that’s a very good team we’re facing.”

Follow Along 
For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow the Legion FC Match Center and @bhmlegion on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.