Club News

The United Soccer League unveiled today the most expansive linear television schedule in its history, featuring top clubs from the USL Championship facing off on ESPN networks.

USL Championship’s linear television schedule features El Paso Locomotive twice on ESPN Deportes when the Locos takes on its Copa Tejas rival Austin Bold FC on June 3 and OKC Energy FC on October 24.

The remainder of Locomotive games will stream live on ESPN+, giving fans a front-row seat through the 2021 USL Championship season.

“This is the biggest and brightest platform we’ve ever had for our league,” said USL Executive Vice President Court Jeske. “We are thrilled at the wide selection of games, clubs, and landmark moments that will appear on national television this season. It’s a special thing for our league to be able to showcase our clubs and cities across the USL Championship and League One on ESPN’s networks in addition to streaming an incredible schedule on ESPN+.”

The Championship season will culminate on Sunday, November 28 as the 2021 USL Championship, set to be broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2. The contest between the Eastern and Western Conference Title-winners will also air on ESPN Deportes, with kickoff scheduled at 6:30 p.m. MT.

2021 USL on ESPN TV Schedule

• April 30 – Phoenix Rising FC vs. San Diego Loyal SC, 8 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• May 6 – Rio Grande Valley FC vs. San Diego Loyal SC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• May 15 – Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Phoenix Rising FC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• May 16 – Greenville Triumph SC vs. Union Omaha, 2 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• June 3 – Austin Bold FC vs. El Paso Locomotive FC, 7 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• June 15 – Indy Eleven vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• June 23 – Miami FC vs. Birmingham Legion FC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• July 3 – San Diego Loyal SC vs. Sacramento Republic FC, 12 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• July 10 – Oakland Roots SC vs. Las Vegas Lights FC, 8 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• July 17 – Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC vs. San Antonio FC, 12 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• July 21 – San Antonio FC vs. New Mexico United, 7:30 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• August 10 – Memphis 901 FC vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• September 7 – Hartford Athletic vs. Louisville City FC, 5 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• September 8 – Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC vs. Real Monarchs SLC, 7 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• September 30 – Hartford Athletic vs. Charlotte Independence, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• October 3 – Louisville City FC vs. New Mexico United, 1 p.m. MT, ESPN2
• October 7 – Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Charleston Battery, 6p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• October 24 – El Paso Locomotive FC vs. OKC Energy FC, 6 p.m. MT, ESPN Deportes
• November 28 – USL Championship Final, 6:30 p.m. MT, ESPN or ESPN2 / ESPN Deportes

EL PASO, Texas – April 5, 2021 – El Paso Locomotive FC has signed Midfielder Diego Luna from the prestigious Arizona Barca Residency Academy, the club announced today. Luna’s signing is pending league and federation approval.

“Diego is highly rated across the country and has been on the radar of many MLS teams,” said Head Coach and Technical Director Mark Lowry. “For him and his family to choose El Paso as his home is a great feather in the cap for the Club. We believe we have the best environment to push Diego and develop him to reach his ceiling, which we believe is a very high one. The hard work begins now for Diego, and we look forward to going on this journey with him.”

“It’s super enjoyable being here,” started Luna. “The special thing is that I had opportunities from other clubs, and it makes it that much more special. I could have picked other clubs, but I picked El Paso because of the environment, the staff, the way they play. There was something about El Paso – from the club to the staff. The environment spoke to me and I wouldn’t want it any other way, to be honest.”

Luna, 17, highlights Locomotive goals of welcoming and building the talent of the future generations of soccer players. A stand-out player in one of Barca’s best Academy teams, Luna played at the Palo Alto Soccer Club as a kid prior to signing with the San Jose Earthquakes Academy at the age of 12. During his time with the Earthquakes, Luna took home the Surf Cup trophy while also partaking in various youth tournaments such as the Dallas Cup and the generation adidas Cup while being selected for the generation adidas Elite Soccer Program. At 15, Luna made the move to the Barca Residency Academy, coming into his own as one of the brightest stars for the future of U.S. Soccer.

Luna brings with him international camp experience, having been called up to multiple camps with United States Youth National Team U-14 and U-17 sides.

Player Information
Name: Diego Luna
Pronunciation: DEE-aygo LOO-na
Position: Midfielder
DOB: September 7, 2003
Height: 5’8”
Weight: 188lbs.
Hometown: Redwood City, California
Last Club: Barca Residency Academy

El Paso Locomotive FC’s roster as it currently stands headed into the 2021 USL Championship season, listed alphabetically by position, is below:

Goalkeepers (1): Logan Ketterer

Defenders (7): Matt Bahner, Éder Borelli, Andrew Fox, Mechack Jerome, Macca King, Niall Logue, Yuma

Midfielders (7): José Aguinaga, Louis Herrera, Diego Luna, Dylan Mares, Bryam Rebellón, Nick Ross, Richie Ryan

Forwards (3): Aidan Apodaca, Leandro Carrijo, Luis Solignac

El Paso Locomotive is currently working on additional player announcements for the 2021 season and will announce the renewals and new signings once they are confirmed.

Join El Paso Locomotive FC when it returns to action for its third season in the USL Championship on May 8, 2021, against New Mexico United at Southwest University Park! Sign up to the Locomotive ticket waiting list to receive priority in purchasing individual tickets or lock in your seats for the 2021 season by visiting https://www.eplocomotivefc.com/seasontickets or calling/texting 915-235-GOAL.

El Paso Locomotive passed the halfway point on its preseason journey to the 2021 USL Championship season with a 0-1 loss against Major League Soccer side LA Galaxy in Tucson, Arizona on Saturday.

The El Paso side came out of the gate strong, making quick work with passing and runs against the LA Galaxy defense. In the opening 10 minutes, Locomotive dominated possession in the opposing half, creating key chances with a pass through the defense from midfielder Dylan Mares that found Forward Aidan Apodaca while minutes later, Midfielder Nick Ross sent a low cross towards the center. In what turned out to be the story of the game, the LA Galaxy defense came up strong, making massive saves to keep Locomotive out of goal.

The creativity of El Paso Locomotive continued to shine throughout the 90-minute preseason scrimmage, as Los Locos out dribbled their opponents with back heel passing and fast feet. In the end it was one late blunder on the backline that led to an opening for LA Galaxy in front goal after a cutback pass put a goal into the top right corner. Goalkeeper Logan Ketterer would let that be the one and only for LA Galaxy however, making back-to-back saves just before the ref called for the final whistle.

The two sides ended the scrimmage with a mock penalty shootout, which saw Locomotive convert all but one shot while the Galaxy sent Ketterer the wrong way to take the penalty shootout win 5-3.

With four out of eight games on the preseason slate in the books, Lowry and his Locomotive squad is set for another quick turnaround on a busy week, returning to Tucson take on USL League One side, FC Tucson on Wednesday.

In early June 2020, El Paso Locomotive FC introduced its Youth Soccer Club, boasting teams ranging from Under-13s to Under-18s. Each team features the best and brightest of kids across the Borderland, shining a spotlight on what the future has to offer from El Paso. From the start of the Locomotive 2021 preseason at the beginning of March, the talent that has been building in the Locomotive Youth Soccer Club has been showcased on the training ground and the preseason friendlies against New Mexico United and FC Juarez.

Training and playing alongside a professional team is an experience and opportunity that many young soccer players have never had until now. Experiencing the professional level drills culminating in minutes played against a high-caliber team, provides the youth of El Paso a unique opportunity to advance their skills on the pitch. It’s a symbiotic relationship between the first team and the youth club that is showing off the hotbed of soccer that lives in El Paso.

“Finally, in El Paso, we have this pathway between the Youth club and the professional team,” shared Director of Locomotive Youth Soccer Bob Bigney. “For promising players to get this experience in the past they had to leave town and go to other teams. Now they can get this experience whether that’s just to be around the pro team and watch them train, be invited to jump into the training or to work their way onto the team, that opportunity is there for them right here in their hometown.”

For just over three weeks, three talented young players have joined Locomotive in their training sessions with each young player making an appearance in the 2-1 victory over New Mexico United and the 1-2 loss against FC Juarez. Edwin Villareal (18), Jaime Villagomez (18), and Joel Maldonado (17) have all made the most of their opportunity in growing their talent on the pitch, and it’s something that Head Coach and Technical Director Mark Lowry has taken notice of.

“They’ve been training with us for three weeks now,” began Lowry. “Every day in preseason they have come in, worked hard, and shown commitment. They’ve grown as players already. We have seen the massive elevation in their game just by being around the first team.”

From the start of preseason, Edwin, Jaime, and Joel, alongside Youth Soccer Goalkeepers Mario Castillo and Kevin Pena, have been studying underneath the pros, learning and improving. They each have relished in the opportunity to get a taste of what it is like to be a professional soccer player, not only improving their skills in their own backyard but fueling their dreams further to play at the professional level. Bigney and Lowry have both noted they have seen how excited and thrilled the kids are to have this opportunity and as Bigney notes, the pros are welcoming to the experience as well.

“Credit goes to a lot of the guys on the first team who help make these kids feel comfortable,” began Bigney. “Guys like Yuma and Richie, who have been at clubs that traditionally bring up youth players, are really welcoming of the kids and that makes them feel comfortable. When they feel comfortable, they play better, feel like they are part of the team and it helps with the overall experience.

It helps with the training and better training makes for a better team. It keeps them sharp but also these young guys are pretty quickly saying ‘I want to take your spot and I’m going to work hard to try and take your spot’ and that’s the kind of competition that you need.”

Though these young players have the mentality and spirit to try and turn heads, they still recognize they have a long way to go.

“It’s been a pleasure to get this opportunity from the Locomotive coaching staff and Bob for giving me a chance to practice in the first place,” said Joel Maldonado. “It’s different from anywhere else I’ve gone. I still have a lot to learn but honestly, I look forward to coming in here every day to learn and train with the first team.”

Joel knows there is a great young soccer community in El Paso and that the Locomotive Youth Soccer club offers a good opportunity with chances to learn in the first team, to be around difficult environments, and pave a new way for the El Paso youth soccer community into the professional levels. It starts young with good levels and unique opportunities to play with and against professional teams such as FC Juarez.

“Having the chance to play in these preseason games aren’t token gestures of two or three minutes in a game,” said Mark Lowry. “They have had to go out there and compete in difficult environments – in New Mexico it was fans around the field and windy conditions. We are just trying to win a game and play well. All three of the youth kids went in and did fantastic. It just means that El Paso, the community, and the Youth Soccer in El Paso has a bright future.”

“The hard work feels like it’s paying off,” concluded Joel. “Just like Mark says, you have to keep working hard, be the best at the top and keep chasing the dream. In the beginning, I was nervous, but as soon I touch the ball, I know I have to show what I’ve learned here with Locomotive. It has been an honor to play in both games.”

Leading up to El Paso Locomotive’s third campaign in the USL Championship, the Locomotive Youth Soccer Club will continue to be invited to trainings, preseason friendlies, and to help elevate the team. Bob Bigney, Mark Lowry, the first team, and the Youth Soccer Club are putting in work to build and raise the level of soccer across the Borderland, truly putting meaning behind “El Paso has a bright future.”

El Paso Locomotive FC fell 1-2 against its Borderland sister club FC Juarez just south of the border on Wednesday in a preseason friendly. Midfielder Chapa Herrera recorded the lone Locomotive goal in the first half, before Juarez scored two unanswered in the second half to clinch the win.

“The first half was great,” began Head Coach and Technical Director Mark Lowry. “There was good fitness from the guys, FC Juarez showed up and was a very good team, and it made for a very enjoyable very competitive game. There were some tackles out there and neither team wanted to lose but that’s the best way to play, to develop the relationship across the Borderland, and for us to develop our preseason progress. I’m disappointed not to win, that’s always the case, but all-in-all a really good game.”

Locomotive kicked off the preseason game on the front foot, dominating in possession and passing, paying off in early attempts on goal through Forward Leandro Carrijo and Midfielder Dylan Mares. On the opposite end, Goalkeeper Logan Ketterer and his backline held off any Juarez attack to keep the game level. Just past the half-hour mark, Los Locos found the breakthrough through Herrera, who cleaned up a shot by Mares that was deflected out by the Juarez ‘keeper.

Going into the second half, Coach Mark Lowry began to play new faces for his squad, putting in trialists throughout the match that included some Locomotive Youth Soccer Club hopefuls. Throughout the half, Locomotive was able to put in solid chances towards goal thanks to a strong pairing of Forwards Aidan Apodaca and Luis Solignac with support from Herrera and a trialist, but the Locos attack was unable to find the insurance goal needed. In the end, the experienced Juarez side slipped in two goals to take the advantage unanswered, clinching the preseason win for the Bravos.

El Paso Locomotive continues its preseason set of games on Saturday when it plays a rematch against FC Juarez.