Later that night, the San Diego Flash will play host to the D3 Pro League's Stanislaus United Cruisers in USL's first 2001 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup qualifier, which will be the first-ever interleague Open Cup qualification match. We continue to adjust the schedule and work with the calendar to maximize the number of weekend games we can deliver to the fans. The weekends are the obvious times to get the whole family out together for a fun time at a USL game. Americans are looking for more activities they can do together as families.
Weekends provide our clubs with the time windows needed to present a quality event.
All seven teams in the conference topped USL's strength of schedule ranking for 2001 with the expansion Portland Timbers receiving arguably the most difficult A-League schedule. The Timbers and promoted Charlotte Eagles, who will square off in Portland Aug. 24, open their first seasons in the A-League two weeks after the official start. Charlotte will play host to Atlantic Division champion Charleston Apr. 21 at Memorial Stadium. The Eagles will play Charleston in three of their first four games in a tough schedule for the first half of the season. Portland, however, will open its inaugural season on the road, facing the El Paso Patriots Apr. 28 and Utah and Northern Nevada of the D3 Pro League in Open Cup qualifiers May 5 and 6, respectively.