Five New England Soccer Storylines To Follow In 2025
Professional soccer is back soon!
Preseason is just around the corner, so our weekends will soon be spent watching New England soccer. Here are five storylines I’m keeping an eye on.
A Revamped New England Revolution
The Revs have been active since missing the playoffs in 2024, resulting in a new, younger roster.
I’m particularly interested in the backline as the team looks set to start Mamadou Fofana and Brayan Ceballos, two internationals who will partner together for the first time.
I remember the press conference where Curt Onalfo was announced as sporting director. Here, club president Brian Bilello said, “When you think about a sporting director in the position, and what you need to be able to accomplish in there, starting at the youngest [level], he’s done an excellent job with the pro pathway that we’ve built here.
“Then you look at player transactions and bringing players to the club. Curt has played a role with players he’s helped bring to the club, what transactions he was involved with, and we’ve done a really good job – particularly in some of the spaces with international scouting and players.”
The reworked pro pathway just led to Esmir Bajraktarevic being sold to PSV Eindhoven. Peyton Miller is another player who will likely command a significant transfer at some point.
Regarding international signings, Alhassan Yusuf and Luca Langoni have looked the part, albeit in a limited sample size. Yusuf had two assists and a passing accuracy of 91% in seven games (five starts). Luca Langoni collected three goals and two assists in eleven games (nine starts).
The hope is that Fofana and Ceballos will adjust quickly and make an immediate impact like Yusuf and Langoni did.
One final note: the Revs still have some open roster slots and two open U-22 slots. They also now have an open Designated Player slot, though they could go with the U22 model of two DPs, four U22s, and up to $2 million in General Allocation Money.
Rodriguez Comes To Rhode Island FC
RIFC’s first season was magical.
After starting the year with one win in 14 games—and many draws—Rhode Island got on a run and clinched fifth in the Eastern Conference. They then upset Indy Eleven, Louisville City, and Charleston Battery in road games to become the first expansion to make the championship since Sporting KC II did it in 2016.
The final didn’t go their way, as the Colorado Switchbacks defeated RIFC 3-0.
However, in true RIFC fashion, the club immediately made an impact, signing Maxi Rodriquez from Detroit City. The midfielder led Detroit in goals (10) and assists (9) in 2024.
Under head coach Khano Smith, RIFC always looked dedicated and organized, but there were times when the team needed a bit more possession. The championship game highlighted this, as the team looked more comfortable holding the ball once Jack Panyotou, a loanee from the Revs, entered.
Rodriguez, who has a knack for getting on the scoresheet, should help with possession. John Morrissey from Backheeled explained, “Rhode Island looks like a legitimate title favorite, even with a bit of work left to do around the edges.”
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Burke Bringing Stability To Hartford
Between the roster and coaching staff, there’s been a lot of change in Hartford since the team began play in 2019. Brendan Burke, who arrived ahead of the 2024 season, is the sixth official head coach in club history.
Although Hartford missed the playoffs in Burke’s first year, the club improved from 18 points in 2023 to 44 in 2024.
Burke has been part of a turnaround in the past. He took Colorado Springs from a two-win club in 2020 to one that earned two USL Championship playoff berths, a first-ever trip to the Western Conference Final, and an overall record of 30-23-13.
Burke isn’t the only one returning to Hartford next year, as several players are due to continue to call Trinity Health Park their home. The hope is that this stability leads to success, especially since RIFC accomplished so much in year one.
Speaking to Oliver Scholes, Burke said, “I think we're going to benefit from the stability of the much less roster turnover and the people that we have to evaluate to add to the group are far fewer. We're not adding 18-19 guys to the group. You know that we're adding four to six maybe.”
Murphy Builds Inaugural Hearts of Pine Roster
While other New England professional teams are reworking or tweaking, Hearts is building from scratch. So far, I like the pieces they’ve added. Mikey Lopez and Ollie Wright are particularly exciting.
A former first-round MLS draft pick, Lopez has spent the last six seasons with the Birmingham Legion, serving as the club’s first-ever captain. Lopez is a hard worker who is reuniting with Bobby Murphy. One thing to keep an eye on is that the midfielder successfully underwent surgery in January 2024 to repair a ruptured Achilles tendon.
After two seasons with Huntsville City FC of MLS Next Pro, Ollie Wright is heading to Portland. He ended his tenure as the club’s all-time appearances leader (51) and with 15 goal contributions, which was second-most in club history.
I’m curious to see who else Murphy brings in as he shapes the team in his vision. Murphy has said several times that he’s humbled by the opportunity to lead the Hearts. It’s something he doesn’t take lightly.
Also, we’re all excited to see those blue and green jerseys hit the pitch, right?
The Next Chapter In The Rivalry Between Phantoms, Green, and Pioneers
USL League Two was a lot of fun last year, as the Phantoms only had one loss en route to winning the national championship. Led by head coach Alex Ryan, the team featured many talented players, including Taig Healy, Marco dos Santos, and Cooper Nunn.
But the Green and Pioneers, who also made the League Two playoffs, will want to dethrone the Phantoms in 2025.
Green head coach and sporting director Adam Pfeifer mentioned to Sam Minton that his team has only lost four times in all competitions. Three losses were against the Phantoms, including one in the playoffs.
The Pioneers only lost twice in the regular season, once to the Phantoms and once to the Green.
Each team will have new faces this summer, but the soccer should be just as good. Let’s hope that the banter also lives on. We will never forget dos Santos referring to the Green as Social Media FC.