Even as the rest of the footballing world and the country of America get ready for the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in just under a week, MLS Next Pro and Union II are rolling on with their 2026 season as if nothing else is happening. Chris Harmon's men will be heading out on the road Friday night as they take on Eastern Conference leaders Crown Legacy.
Chris Harmon and his Union II side will be looking to get back into winning ways after losing on the road in their last game last Friday evening. Union II headed out across the northern border to face Toronto FC II in a season series decider, as the two had already faced off twice this season, with both teams taking one game each via 1-0 scorelines.
Union II fell to Revolution II in midweek MLS Next Pro action.
Image Provided / Philadelphia Union II
With a new interim head coach in charge, Chris Harmon, and several lineup decisions to make due to injuries and the ongoing MLS Next Cup, Union II were hoping to build on their win in their previous game against Toronto. Unfortunately for Coach Harmon, his team went 1-0 down just before halftime, with the hosts doubling their advantage just after the halftime break thanks to a Tristan Blyth goal.
A goal of the season contender from Matheus De Paula, who now has two goals in his last two games, pulled one back for Union II, but they fell to a 2-1 loss and now look to rebuild in a tough game on the road.
Chris Harmon will still have a lot of selection headaches when it comes to his starting XI in this game on Friday evening. Andrew Rick is away with the USMNT as a training goalkeeper for their World Cup campaign, and then both Kellan LeBlanc and Jordan Griffin are away with the US U18's Men's National Team for a training camp in Spain.
After going a man down early, Philadelphia Union II couldn't find a goal against New England Revolution II.
Image Provided / Philadelphia Union II
The hosts of the game on Friday evening, Crown Legacy FC, are the current standings leaders for the Eastern Conference. They currently hold a two-point lead over 2nd-place Red Bull New York and are coming off a 2-2 draw with New England Revolution, a game in which they lost the shootout 4-3.
Their last game against New England was back in late May, so they've had a two-week break and come into the game in poor form, having won only one of their last five, a 5-1 hammering of the bottom team, Inter Miami II. Crown Legacy has scored 36 goals in this campaign, which is over double the 15 that Union II has to its name, meaning Union II's top defense will be put under huge pressure in this one.
Philadelphia Union II played its first-ever home match at the WSFS Bank Sportsplex against New England Revolution II.
Image Provided / Philadelphia Union II
The two sides have yet to meet this season, but they did meet twice last season, with Union II taking both games comfortably. Their first meeting was back in June of last year, when Union II won 3-0 at Subaru Park, and in the return fixture in July of last year, Union II won 4-0. Chris Harmon will be hoping to pick up his first managerial win as Union II Head Coach as easily as Ryan Richter did against Crown Legacy last season.
The game is scheduled for a 7 pm ET kickoff time at the Sportsplex at Matthews in North Carolina. The game will be streamed live worldwide, for free, on both the MLS Next Pro website and the OneFootball platform.
