Republic FC searching for Sacramento’s first title in 11 years as playoffs begin
The USL playoffs begin on Sunday for Sacramento Republic FC, who are looking to bring a league championship to the region for the first time since the club’s inaugural campaign in 2014. They’ll host Orange County S.C. at 6 p.m. at Heart Health Park.
“There’s real excitement,” manager Neill Collins said before training Friday. “As a club, we expect to be in the playoffs. As a coach, these players at the level that they are, they expect it.”
Collins was hired last offseason with high expectations to replace Mark Briggs, the former manager who led the group to three straight playoff appearances but never won a trophy. The hope was that Collins would put Sacramento over the top after being named the USL Coach of the Year with the Tampa Bay Rowdies in 2021 and coming to Republic FC with the fifth-most wins in league history (94).
But Collins is still looking for his first league championship, which appears within reach as Sacramento begins postseason play as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with a regular season record of 13-9-8. Republic will host their California state rival Orange County SC, the No. 7 seed in the playoff bracket. It will take three wins to get out of the Western Conference and a fourth to take the title.
Starring for Republic FC on Sunday will be midfielder Rodrigo “RoRo” Lopez who announced his retirement from the club last week after being the team’s first signing 11 years ago. The team recognized Lopez in its regular season finale last Saturday, a 1-0 loss to Miami FC.
Lopez, who played seven of his 22 seasons in Sacramento, scored 45 goals in 167 appearances and has the most assists in club history with 49, including a team-leading six this season.
“This city means, a lot to me, this community, this organization,” Lopez told reporters after the match against Miami. “Hopefully I can finish this with a championship. There’s nothing I want more than that. ... Someone’s going to have to drag me off this field.”
Lopez’s final postseason run will be a motivating factor for his team, Collins said, but not the only one.
“I think the players here have a such an amount of respect for RoRo. I think he’s earned that,” Collins said. “But I also think in football, like in life, these things happen and you get on with it. They want to achieve. They want to achieve for themselves, they want to achieve for the club. But (it’s) a nice side note. ... ‘Let’s do that.’ But we’re all very motivated. Because the minute we play any competitive thing, we want to win. The playoffs even more.”
Sunday’s postseason match will mark the fourth time Republic FC (13-8-9) and Orange County (10-11-9) have played this year. Sacramento won on Oct. 1, avenging a 1-0 defeat in Southern California in the Jagermeister Cup on June 28. Orange County won their first matchup, 2-1, on April 12.
The match will be televised on CBS Sports Network and tickets are available online and ranged from $25 to $220 as of Friday afternoon.
This story was originally published November 1, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
