USL Championship Power Rankings: El Paso Locomotive rise, Louisville City drop & more

Is there such a thing as peaking too early? The USL postseason typically rewards the hot hand, and 2026 has felt like a season uniquely dense with runs of sizzling form. Tampa Bay dominated the opening weeks, briefly faltered, and found their title-contending level. In the West, Orange County looked like they’d join the party, but they’ve tailed off; in their stead, New Mexico, El Paso, and Charleston have all risen to the occasion.

We’ll see where things land when the proverbial clock chimes midnight at the end of October. For now, unpredictability continues to reign. Who looked like a contender in Week 26, and what defined the week that was? I’m ranking every team in the Championship to find out.

1. El Paso Locomotive

Trending: +3

Result: 2-1 win v. Pittsburgh, 4-1 win v. Loudoun

In psychology, the idea of the “flow state” describes the sense of absolute immersion in an activity. Your focus is unbroken, time seems like it’s moving differently, and all actions come naturally. The El Paso Locomotive are in the midst of a five-week run of unbroken flow, and they’re showing no signs of snapping out of it.

That the Locomotive look imposing even when they’re rotating their lineup is evidence of that form, and it showed on Wednesday night against Pittsburgh. Nico Cardona – a natural center back – didn’t miss a beat, replacing forward-turned-wingback Jimmy Farklarun in the starting set. Noah Dollenmayer, who’s a quality USL contributor that’s struggled to earn starts, was revelatory to Cardona’s inside and scored the match’s winning goal.

Tactically, El Paso’s 5-2-3 press was ready-made to shut down the Riverhounds’ elbowing three-at-the-back build shape. Bolstered by a high back line, the Locomotive didn’t allow a single shot for the first 53 minutes of the match. Meanwhile, an offense driven by Gabi Torres and Amando Moreno’s two-man game up the left was as slick as ever. El Paso briefly trailed despite their dominance, and it’s a testament to their confidence that they never wavered on the way to a comeback win.

If Wednesday was a testament to El Paso’s fortitude, Saturday’s match against Loudoun was a victory lap. The Locomotive ran up five shots, 0.7 xG, and a 1-0 lead in the first five minutes of play; by halftime, Rubio Rubin had notched a hat trick.

Rubin has scored plenty of beautiful goals this season, but his efforts against United were grittier in nature. Both of the first two goals were essentially rebounds. In each case, El Paso worked directly up the left, served in, and created a deflection. In each case, Rubin came good. Paired with the (now-standard) unrelenting press, the Locomotive were utterly assured from start to finish. No team in the USL is making it look so easy.