Chattanooga FC's pre-season locked in
A breakdown of the opponents and their history against CFC
CHATTANOOGA —- Chattanooga Football Club has confirmed its pre-season schedule and opponents in advance of the 2026 MLS Next Pro season. The schedule sees them welcome four sides to Finley Stadium across four matches, two of which will be behind closed doors. TECCE FC, Birmingham Legion FC, One Knoxville SC, and Georgia Southern are the visitors after a busy off-season in the transfer market.
Chattanooga FC v TECCE FC (Sunday, 25th January at 15:00pm)
Kicking things off will be the visit of the Tecce Football Collective on Sunday 25th January. This is not a soccer club per say, it plays in no league. Rather, it’s a sort of hub that provides training, exposure, and pro and college connections for young players in that nexus between youth, amateur, and pro soccer. In a sense, it’s a kind of agency mixed with an academy that plays friendlies and hosts combines. Based in Columbia, South Carolina, it is closely connected with South Carolina United of USL League Two. As well as visiting Finley, they will also be playing friendlies against Greenville Triumph, South Georgia Tormenta, Red Wolves, and Charlotte Independence of USL League One this pre-season.
This will be the first time CFC has played TECCE FC. The game is closed and fans will not be allowed to attend.
Chattanooga FC v Birmingham Legion FC (Sunday, 8th February at 15:00pm)
The afternoon of Sunday February 8th sees Birmingham Legion come to town in what will be CFC’s first open friendly. Legion began playing in 2019 and competes in the USL Championship. In 2025 they finished bottom of the Eastern Conference, with a 5-13-12 record and a goal difference of -14. This offseason, their Head Coach Mark Briggs departed the organization for a job on the coaching staff of FC Dallas. He was replaced immediately with former New England Revolution boss Jay Heaps, who has been working within the Legion organization since 2018. Haitian international Ronaldo Damus (on loan from GIF Sundsvall in Sweden) was their top scorer in 2025 with 11 goals.
This is the third year in-a-row that Chattanooga and Birmingham have met in pre-season. In 2024, the USL side were 3-0 winners at Finley Stadium in CFC’s penultimate exhibition match before their maiden MLS NEXT Pro season. Last year, Chattanooga were 3-2 winners over Legion in a preseason game played at the latter’s training facility in Alabama. An Ameziane Sid Mohand (retained for 2026) brace and a goal from substitute Robert Screen (recently released) gave CFC the win. Their first meeting, however, was back in 2021 when Birmingham ran out 2-0 winners at BBVA Field, the home of UAB’s soccer program.
The sides have met once in competitive circumstances. In April 2023 a penalty-shootout was all that separated them in the Third Round of the US Open Cup, controversially played in Tuscaloosa. Markus Naglestad (recently released) netted in a 1-1 tie that ended with a Legion shootout win 4 to 3.
The game on February 8th is open only to season ticket holders. It will be Legion’s second pre-season fixture after they host Nashville SC on January 31st. Chattanooga resident Alhassan Alhassan who has played for nearby sides Red Wolves and Kaistorms is among the Legion trialists. Another trialist familiar to some in the Scenic City will be goalkeeper Daniel Gagliardi who played at Finley in the colors of Syracuse Pulse back in the 2022 NISA season.
Chattanooga FC v One Knoxville SC (Saturday, 14th February at 15:00pm)
One Knoxville’s Valentine’s Day visit to Finley Stadium will be the only CFC pre-season match open to the wider public. Following the demise of the NPSL’s Knoxville Force in 2018-19, One Knox first took to the field in 2022, fielding a side in USL League Two. After a successful debut season, they jumped to USL League One from 2023 and last year were crowned champions after beating Spokane Velocity 2-0 at home in the League One Final in November. They also won the Players' Shield after finishing the regular season in first place. Jordan Skelton and Sean Lewis won the league’s best defender and goalkeeper of the year awards respectively and were named to the All-League First Team of the Season.
This is the fourth time CFC and One Knox will contest the Tennessee River Showdown in pre-season. CFC won the first edition of the derby in 2023 thanks to an Olympic goal from captain Alex McGrath. In 2025, the clubs drew 1-1 at Finley Stadium. The visitors scored a penalty before new signing Keegan Ancelin equalized for Chattanooga with his first goal as a professional. A third meeting between the two teams in 2024’s preseason was not completed due to weather conditions.
This game is open to all and tickets can be purchased from CFC’s website HERE.
Chattanooga FC v Georgia Southern (Sunday, 21st February at 15:00pm)
Rounding out the club’s pre-season will be the visit of Georgia Southern Eagles on February 21st in what will be another closed game.
The Eagles are coming off an impressive 2025 campaign, finishing with an overall record of 13-4-1 and a Sun Belt Conference record of 6-3-0. They earned the fourth seed in the SBC tournament and achieved a national ranking for six weeks during the season. The season ended in the Sun Belt Conference tournament quarterfinals with a 3-2 overtime loss to UCF in November. Forward Ricky Louis was a standout player and selected as the second overall pick for FC Dallas in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft. Midfielder Kevin Pierre was a second round pick for NYCFC. Head coach Lee Squires was given a three-year contract extension following the successful season.
To my knowledge, this will be the first time Chattanooga FC and Georgia Southern will have faced one another, but if I am wrong about that, please let me know in the comments below.
I expect the MLS Next Pro schedule for 2026 to drop within the next week meaning that by the time CFC kicks off its pre-season, the lay of the land for the regular season should be known. And while the club has been busy in recruitment, it is my understanding that more signings are still to come as CFC looks to establish a firm roster in advance of the season kick-off.
So, CFC fans should have the full season schedule and possibly new players by the time their side takes on TECCE on January 25th.