UNIONDALE, N.Y. – The Long Island Rough Riders men’s and women’s teams will kick off their respective seasons with a doubleheader at Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale, N.Y. on Sunday, May 19.
The women will begin their USL W League campaign against the Westchester Flames at 3 p.m., while the men will embark on their USL League 2 season, welcoming New Jersey Copa FC at 6 p.m.
Both squads will play 12 matches during the 2024 season, six at home, six on the road.
“This is the third consecutive year we’ve been able to start the season at home in front of our fans, which we believe is quite an advantage,” Rough Riders General Manager Tanner Sands said. “We’re just excited to start engaging with our fans again and get the teams on the field. We believe we have a very competitive group, both on the men’s and women’s side. We’re excited to get the fans back and get the players in front of them and get the season on its way.
“We believe we have two great teams on the men’s and women’s sides and are excited to share that with the soccer community on Long Island. We are once again bringing the best young talent across the United States and world to Long Island. We’re excited to be able to host six games both on the men’s and women’s sides this summer and hopefully integrate the top-level soccer on Long Island and can show that this is a platform for living out your dreams.”
The May 19 matches are the first of four doubleheaders at Mitchel.
On Wednesday, June 19, the men will welcome the Westchester Flames at 4:30 p.m., while the women will face Paisley Athletic at 7 p.m.
On Wednesday, June 26, the women will take on AC Connecticut at 6 p.m., followed by the men against Staten Island Athletic Sporting Club at 8 p.m.
On Sunday, June 30, the teams will meet the Cedars Academy sides in their respective league encounters. The women will play at 3 p.m., the men at 6 p.m.
In other women’s matches, Long Island will host the Manhattan Soccer Club on Wednesday, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. and Morris Elite SC on Sunday, June 23 at 3:30 p.m.
The men welcome the Hudson Valley Hammers on Sunday, June 9 at 4:30 p.m. and the Manhattan Soccer Club on Wednesday, June 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $15 and $12 for children under 12.
Playoffs in both leagues will begin in July.
The Rough Riders Women’s full schedule can be found here:
The Men’s slate of matches can be found here:
Both teams are coming off superb 2023 seasons in which they participated in the postseason.
The Riders women finished second in the Metropolitan Division with a 10-1-1 record, while outscoring their opposition, 43-13.
The Long Island men captured the Metropolitan Division title with a 12-1-1 mark. They conceded only nine goals while scoring 44 times.
The Rough Riders will host several special theme nights and day during the season. They will be announced in the coming weeks.