The Southern Derby is a fan-based U.S. professional soccer cup competition between

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

(USLC) teams based in the South-Atlantic region of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

.). It was founded in 2000. The Southern Derby trophy is currently held by the

Charlotte Independence Charlotte Independence is an American soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina that plays in the USL League One, the third tier of the American soccer pyramid. The Independence currently play their home games at American Legion Memorial ...

. The Southern Derby was created by the fans of the teams involved to promote a friendly competition and rivalry along the clubs involved and encourage fans to travel to away matches. The Southern Derby is perhaps the first cup competition of its kind in American professional soccer. It is common in nature with other fan cup competitions which originated in the

United Soccer Leagues United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

such as the

Cascadia Cup The Cascadia Cup is the name of the trophy created in 2004 by supporters of the Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, and Vancouver Whitecaps, which is awarded each season to the best soccer team in the Pacific Northwest. The cup is named for the ...

, the James River Cup, and the

Voyageurs Cup The Voyageurs Cup (french: Coupe des Voyageurs) is the domestic trophy for professional soccer in Canada, awarded to the best men's and women's clubs in the country. The Cup was conceived and commissioned by fans of the Canada men's nationa ...

. It is also similar to

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

trophy competitions such as the Atlantic Cup, the Brimstone Cup, the

Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup The Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup is a Major League Soccer (MLS) series between FC Dallas and the Columbus Crew . The series is named after the late Lamar Hunt, who was one of the league's early major investors and a key supporter of American soccer. Ini ...

, the Rocky Mountain Cup, and the

Texas Derby The Texas derby is a soccer rivalry (derby) between the Houston Dynamo FC and FC Dallas, recognizing the best club in the state for the season until 2021 when Austin FC joined MLS. The two squads play a series of games with the series winner tak ...

Southern Derby Commemorative Cup

The Southern Derby Commemorative Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the winner of the Southern Derby. The trophy consists of a wooden base attached to a silver-plated, two-handled cup. The inscription on the base of the trophy reads The Southern Derby: Founded A-League Season 2000 in Atlanta, Charleston, & Raleigh by those who love the Game. The cup was purchased through funds raised by the supporters club of the inaugural three clubs involved in the competition. The Fans own Southern Derby Commemorative Cup which is loaned each year to the holders of the Southern Derby.

Current Clubs

Charleston Battery The Charleston Battery are an American professional association football, soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are one of the oldest continuously operating professiona ...

History

The first edition of the Southern Derby was contested in 2000 between the

, the

Atlanta Silverbacks The Atlanta Silverbacks FC were an American professional soccer club based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1998 as Atlanta Ruckus, the club played in many leagues over the years before folding after the 2015 season. The team played its home game ...

, and the Raleigh Capital Express with Raleigh winning the inaugural competition. The Raleigh Capital Express folded before the 2001 season and the

Charlotte Eagles The Charlotte Eagles are an American professional soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1991, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games at ...

were invited to replace Raleigh in the cup competition. Charlotte won the trophy in their first year in the contest. The Eagles would continue to compete in the contest in 2002 and 2003 with Atlanta and Charleston winning the competition those years, respectively. At the end of the 2003 season, Charlotte moved to the

USL Second Division The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ( ...

leaving the Southern Derby to be played between only Charleston and Atlanta. The Silverbacks won the title outright in 2004 and 2006 and split the title with Charleston in 2005. In 2007, the

Carolina RailHawks North Carolina FC is an American professional soccer team in Cary, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh. Founded in 2006, the team plays in USL League One, the third tier of the American league system. The team has played its home games a ...

(based in

Cary, North Carolina Cary is a town in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Raleigh–Cary, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the 2020 Census, its population was 174,721, making it the seventh largest muni ...

and now known as North Carolina FC) joined the

USL First Division The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010. During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system b ...

and was invited to take up Raleigh's original spot in the competition. Carolina went undefeated in their 2007 Southern Derby campaign capturing the cup in their inaugural season. The RailHawks successfully defended their title in 2008 and through two seasons had beaten Charleston a remarkable 6 times in 6 games (4 Southern Derby fixtures). With the Silverbacks taking a hiatus in 2009, the 2009 edition of the Southern Derby Cup was a home-and-away competition between the

and the Carolina RailHawks contested on May 9 and July 11. Both Charleston and Carolina shared honors in the 2009 Southern Derby Cup. In 2010 with the Carolina RailHawks joining the NASL and Charleston dropping to USL2, the Carolina fans decided to allow the Charleston Battery to continue with the tradition of the Southern Derby Cup with the Charlotte Eagles as opposed to it sitting idle. Charleston won the Southern Derby Cup in 2010. The 2011 Southern Derby featured both Charlotte and Charleston once again and added the Wilmington Hammerheads to the competition. The winner was decided on the last match of the Southern Derby Dates, which happened to be the Charleston vs. Charlotte match on Fox Soccer Channel. Charleston won the 2011 Southern Derby match. With their return to the United Soccer League (now known as the USL Championship) in 2018, North Carolina FC (formerly the Carolina RailHawks) rejoined the competition alongside former rivals the Charleston Battery and newly minted cross-state opponents the Charlotte Independence. 2020 saw the Charlotte Independence supporter's group Jack's Militia opt-out of the Southern Derby. Due to Covid, the Charleston Battery and North Carolina FC played a "one and done" version of the contest. The Charleston Battery won the single match, 3–0. In 2021, North Carolina FC self-relegated to USL League 1 leaving Charleston and Charlotte to contest for the Cup once again. With the emergence of the new Charlotte Independence supporters group, the Mecklenburg Reserves, the rivalry was once again back on. The winner of the 2021 Southern Derby Cup will be played over two legs, the first at Charleston Battery's home pitch, Patriots Point on July 23 and the second leg in Charlotte's home stadium, Memorial Stadium on October 16. The

won their first Southern Derby in 2021, splitting the games with Charleston, but outscoring Charleston 5–3 on aggregate goals.

The Rules

Rules for the 2020 Southern Derby Cup were changed due to COVID-19. The single match between the Charleston Battery and North Carolina FC will be a one and done competition. In the case of a draw, the teams shall be declared co-champions and the Charleston Battery will retain physical control of the Cup as the 2019 champions. *The system of play shall be the league system, with each team playing two matches (home/away) against each of the teams. *The Matches composing the Southern Derby will normally be the last home and away matches of each team during the regular season unless otherwise negotiated by the members of the respective supporters club prior to the start of the season. *Points will be awarded on the 3-1-0 systems. 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss. Overtime wins are treated like regulation wins an awarded 3 points. *The winner of the Southern Derby shall be the team having the greater number of points obtained in all the designated Derby matches. *If two or more teams are equal on the basis of the above criteria, the tie-breaker shall be determined as follows: **Goal difference in all the Derby matches. **Greater number of goals scored in all Derby matches. **Greater number of points obtained in all Derby matches between the teams concerned. **Goal difference resulting from all Derby matches between the teams concerned. **Greater number of goals scored in all the Derby matches between the teams concerned.

Southern Derby Winners

*2000: Raleigh Capital Express *2001:

*2002:

*2003:

*2004:

*2005:

and

(co-champions) *2006:

*2007:

*2008:

*2009:

and

(co-champions) *2010:

*2011:

*2012:

*2013:

*2014:

Wilmington Hammerheads Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017. History ...

*2015:

*2016:

*2017:

*2018:

North Carolina FC North Carolina FC is an American professional soccer team in Cary, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh. Founded in 2006, the team plays in USL League One, the third tier of the American league system. The team has played its home games a ...

*2019:

*2020:

*2021:

Southern Derby Commemorative Cup

Current Clubs

History

The Rules

Southern Derby Winners

Current Results

Standings

Matches

Past Results

See also

External links