Players with the Best Potential in USL Championship 2026

The highest-potential players in USL Championship in 2026, ranked on Field Insider.

Best goalkeepers in USL Championship Best defenders in USL Championship Best midfielders in USL Championship Best attackers in USL Championship Most in-form players in USL Championship Top-scoring players in USL Championship

At a glance

S. Ngoma of Birmingham Legion is the standout for raw talent across players in USL Championship, with a Field Insider Rating of 41, and C. Jennings has been the form player this season, grading 36.1.

The numbers a scout watches are the year-on-year jumps: S. Anderson has improved his Season rating most, up +19.3 on last season. Those are the players whose trajectory is bending upward fastest.

By our market-value index, J. Torres of Charleston Battery is the most valuable name in this group at 8.1.

Loudoun United · 24/25→25/26

Most improved

S. Anderson+19.3SsN

Hartford Athletic · 24/25→25/26

50 players · ranked by best potentialCustomise →

	Player	Team
1	S. Ngoma Centre-forward	Birmingham Legion	21	587.5%	411.7%
2	N. Scardina Central midfielder	Rhode Island	25	8	4014.7%
3	A. Watts Defensive midfielder	Loudoun United	26	1842.9%	363.2%
4	J. Torres Attacking midfielder	Charleston Battery	25	31	36
5	H. Avayevu Attacking midfielder	Phoenix Rising	24	25	35
6	R. Serrano Centre-forward	Louisville City	24	24	35
7	Abdellatif Aboukoura Attacking midfielder	Loudoun United	22	33	35
8	M. Myers Centre-forward	Charleston Battery	25	29	34
9	C. Smith Full-back	Phoenix Rising	22	113400%	345.8%
10	H. Landry Defensive midfielder	Charleston Battery	25	27	34
11	Finn Sundstrom Full-back	North Carolina	19	14	34
12	B. Willey Central midfielder	Sacramento Republic	19	13	34
13	I. Paul Centre-forward	Monterey Bay	24	20	336.7%
14	T. Calheira Centre-forward	FC Tulsa	24	24±0%	334.9%
15	N. Benalcazar Central midfielder	Orange County SC	25	227133.3%	332.7%
16	E. Bartlow Centre-back	Tampa Bay Rowdies	26	747.8%	337.1%
17	J. Akpunonu Centre-back	Charleston Battery	24	13	3311.6%
18	S. Anderson Full-back	Hartford Athletic	24	23551.4%	3315.9%
19	S. Smart Centre-back	Las Vegas Lights	22	14	33
20	C. Hegardt Attacking midfielder	Orange County SC	24	12	3215.7%
21	K. Tingey Centre-back	Oakland Roots	26	10	32
22	B. Diallo Defensive midfielder	FC Tulsa	23	17	32
23	O. Damm Full-back	FC Tulsa	23	20	32
24	Nick Firmino Central midfielder	Lexington	25	214000%	326.5%
25	A. Sanchez Central midfielder	Rhode Island	24	14	32
26	J. Hernández Attacking midfielder	San Antonio	25	242937.5%	3232.3%
27	M. Vargas Central midfielder	New Mexico United	25	17	328.4%
28	F. Daroma Central midfielder	Colorado Springs	25	21	32
29	T. Davila Attacking midfielder	Louisville City	26	21	32
30	S. Suber Centre-back	Pittsburgh Riverhounds	25	27	32
31	Jansen Wilson Centre-forward	Louisville City	25	15	32
32	W. Leggett Centre-forward	Charleston Battery	25	10	31
33	G. Nigro Full-back	Tampa Bay Rowdies	26	24	31
34	R. Avila Centre-forward	El Paso Locomotive	26	15	3114.4%
35	Ramiz Hamouda Centre-back	Birmingham Legion	18	5	31
36	W. Cabrera Centre-forward	Charleston Battery	26	32	31
37	A. Dalou Centre-forward	FC Tulsa	26	10	30
38	Evan Davila Central midfielder	Louisville City	24	4	30
39	F. Nodarse Centre-back	Rhode Island	25	22	30
40	R. Bidois Centre-forward	Loudoun United	24	11	30
41	N. Gordon Centre-back	Monterey Bay	24	561.8%	3050%
42	J. LaCava Centre-forward	New Mexico United	25	8	30
43	R. Damus Centre-forward	Birmingham Legion	27	3024.2%	3013.4%
44	B. Mines Attacking midfielder	Hartford Athletic	26	1169.2%	3028.9%
45	P. Barnes Central midfielder	Pittsburgh Riverhounds	25	10	30
46	A. Rocha Central midfielder	Colorado Springs	25	7	30
47	D. Pierre Full-back	FC Tulsa	25	10	30
48	K. Yao Centre-back	Rhode Island	26	18	3014.5%
49	K. Hernández-Foster Central midfielder	Detroit City	24	11100%	2924.4%
50	Joel Garcia Centre-back	Monterey Bay	24	2	29