SEATTLE, WASH. – The United Soccer League on Monday unveiled the home openers for all 35 clubs in the USL Championship, with Tacoma Defiance hosting Reno 1868 FC at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma on Friday, March 6. The match will kick off Defiance’s third campaign in Tacoma. The 2020 season marks the league’s 10th anniversary season. Kickoff times will be announced at a later date.
Tacoma has won its last two home openers, including a 2-1 victory over Portland Timbers 2 in its inaugural match at Cheney Stadium in 2018 in front of a sellout crowd of 6,049. In its 2019 home opener, Tacoma earned a 1-0 victory over Rio Grande Valley FC behind a goal from Alec Diaz and a cleansheet from Trey Muse in his first career professional contest.
In a series of key announcements last January at a press conference inside Cheney Stadium, the Tacoma Rainiers and Seattle Sounders FC unveiled the long-awaited new brand for the organizations’ United Soccer League club: Tacoma Defiance. Tacoma’s professional soccer side now officially bears the name of its hometown, while proudly paying homage to the city’s maritime roots and deep sense of civic identity. The Tacoma Defiance is led by second-year Head Coach Chris Little, who guided Tacoma to a 8-19-7 mark in his first season. The club ended its season on a five-match unbeaten streak, including two wins in its final two home contests.
