The Lights start their 2026 USL Championship season at Orange County in a match that promises to be electric
Match: Las Vegas Lights FC at Orange County SC
When: Saturday, March 7
Where: Championship Soccer Stadium, Irvine, CA
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. PT
How to Watch: 5DRVtv 5.4, ESPN+
A new USL Championship season is finally upon us, and the stakes couldn’t be any higher.
2026 is the most important year in American soccer history and capitalizing on the unique opportunity that hosting the World Cup brings about is the main objective for leagues and clubs alike.
For the Lights, the 2026 season represents a chance at redemption. After an underwhelming 2025 where the team fell short in all competitions, Sporting Director Gian Neglia and Head Coach Devin Rensing have worked hard in the offseason to build a competitive squad with the appropriate mix of experience, youth, quality, and grit.
The club has reinforced itself on all fronts to be competitive and aspire to silverware, focusing on roster depth and tactical variability.
The first opponent to test the “new” Lights? Orange County SC.
Let’s dive a little deeper.
California Dreaming. Or California Nightmares.
The Lights and Orange County faced each other three times last season: twice for the Championship, and once for the USL Cup. The Lights won two matches: one at home by a close margin thanks to a Nighte Pickering last-minute golazo (1-0), and once away with Rory O’Driscoll, Christian Pinzon, and Johnny Rodriguez leaving their mark on the scoresheet (3-1).
In both team’s final showdown, Orange County blasted past the Lights’ defense with a clear 4-0 victory that set the tone for both teams’ rest of the season.
Keys to the Match
However, things are different now, at least on paper. What needs to happen for the Lights to leave Championship Soccer Stadium with three points? Here are the keys to tonight’s match.
Defensive Solidity Squared
The Lights played four friendly matches during preseason, keeping clean sheets in three of them. If this is a sign of things to come, then we’re about to witness a drastic improvement in the team’s defensive functioning.
The Lights possessed the second worst goal against metrics in the West, conceding a whopping 50 goals in 30 matches (1.7 goals against per match), only two short of the Oakland Roots.
This triggered changes in the squad build for 2026. Experienced center backs Aaron Guillen and Benjamin Ofeimu joined the Lights’ ranks, and young defender Nate Jones signed on a permanent deal, joining young veteran Elias Gartig to make up one of the most solid and versatile center back arsenals in the league.
The wings were also significantly upgraded, with Nyk Sessock, Themi Antonoglou, Jahlane Forbes, and Blake Pope reinforcing the full back and wing back positions, joining outstanding talent Shawn Smart.
Goalkeeper Jared Mazzola is also set to become a factor in the upcoming season. After having shined for Sacramento in the 2025 USL Cup, Mazzola will lead the Lights’ defense with his leadership and clutch saves.
If all of the Lights’ signings adapt promptly to Devin Rensing’s high-press, rapid ball-recovering system, then the team’s defense will be up to task and three points in California are within reach.
Time to Score
The Lights were an anemic team going forward last season, scoring only 23 goals in 30 matches for 0.76 goals per match. No team had lower offensive output in the entire league.
But things are looking drastically different this season, as Devin Rensing has a squad at his disposal that offers him many alternatives going forward.
With new signings Kyle Scott and Abraham Okyere, the Lights have deep-lying playmakers that can service forwards from a distance with precise long balls and intricate passing. With the arrival of Ben Mines and the recovery from injury of both Christian Pinzon and Edison Azcona, the team has options for dynamism on the wings.
With the signing of experienced forwards Manuel Arteaga, Handwalla Bwana, and Oalex Anderson to play alongside Johnny Rodriguez and Nighte Pickering, Vegas has a strong attacking sector with players that possess different playing styles and attributes.
This adaptability and versatility along the attacking front makes the Lights’ offense one of the most dangerous in the league. If they turn their on-paper potential into a reality, then outscoring the opposition is almost certainly assured.
Experience
Young, promising players are always a nice to have. But experience is worth its weight in gold in the USL Championship.
The 2025 Lights squad was talented: there’s no doubt about it. But, it was too young to perform adequately whenever the going got tough.
Now, Gian Neglia and Devin Rensing have built a deep squad with an adequate mix of veteran leadership and youthful audacity, combining the best of both worlds in one of the finest rosters in Lights’ history.
Players like Aaron Guillen, Marc Ybarra, Kyle Scott, Manuel Arteaga, Ben Mines, Ben Ofeimu, and Oalex Anderson have already proven their worth in this league, and they have now joined the Lights to bolster their up-and-coming project.
This experience will come in handy this Saturday, when the Lights will face a rather young Orange County side that tends to feed itself from its youth ranks and promising signings.
If it comes down to that experience and veteran presence, then the Lights have an advantage and can potentially snatch three points at Championship Soccer Stadium.
But let there be no doubt: achieving victory will be… Gnarly.
