RICHMOND, VA - (Tuesday, January 15, 2008) – The 2008 USL Second Division regular season schedule was recently announced, with the Richmond Kickers kicking off their 15th Anniversary on Saturday, April 19th.  The Kickers will host the Western Mass Pioneers to open the regular season at 7:00 pm at the University of Richmond Stadium. 

The Kickers will compete alongside Bermuda Hogges, Charlotte Eagles, Cleveland City Stars, Crystal Palace Baltimore, Harrisburg City Islanders, Western Mass Pioneers and Wilmington Hammerheads and newcomers Real Maryland FC and Pittsburgh Riverhounds, who return from a one-year hiatus.  Playing a 20-game season, the Kickers will face each team home and away once.  Rounding out the regular season schedule will be three matches each against regional rivals Wilmington Hammerheads and Charlotte Eagles.  

The Kickers will take home field advantage at the University of Richmond Stadium (just off the Downtown Expressway) for the entire 2008 home season.  Nine of the Kickers 10 regular season home games will be played on Saturday evenings, with all 10 matches kicking off at 7:00 p.m.  The only exception will fall on Friday, August 1st when the Kickers host the Wilmington Hammerheads. 

Playoffs
The top six clubs will advance to the postseason which will consist of teams seeded three through six playing a single-game elimination round midweek. The winners of the First Round will advance to the Semifinal Round the following weekend versus the top two clubs, who received byes. The teams will not be re-seeded after the first round, pitting the regular season champion against the winner of the 3-v-6 match-up and the number two seed against the 4-v-5 winner. The Semifinal winners advance to the USL-2 Championship match on Saturday, August 23. The 2008 season will mark the first time since 2004 that more than four clubs will advance to the playoffs.

Tickets
Again in 2008, general admission tickets for regular season home games will be $12/adults and $7/youth ages 3-17.  Order tickets in advance via RichmondKickers.com or present a Ukrop’s Valued Customer Card at the gate and receive a $2.00 discount per ticket.  New this season, the Kickers have introduced an innovative season pass program.  For the first time in franchise history, the Kickers have restructured the season ticket packages to offer an affordable and convenient single pass, which includes admission to every 2008 regular season home game.  Alleviate the hassle of season tickets and enjoy all of the Kickers Pro, Future (PDL) and Destiny (W-League) regular season home games for the best possible pricing with a 2008 Adult Pro Pass ($55), Youth Pro Pass ($20, ages 3-17), All-Access Pass ($90) or Family Pass ($119).  Click HERE to purchase regular season tickets and season passes!  

15th Anniversary
The 2008 season marks the 15th anniversary for the Richmond Kickers who have been a member of the United Soccer Leagues family since 1993.  Over the past 15 seasons, Richmond has qualified for post-season play 12 times, including six Championship appearances.  The Kickers reached the title match in 2007 for the fourth time in the past six seasons, narrowly missing their second consecutive league title after nine rounds of penalties.  Richmond’s five previous league Championship appearances (1995, 1996, 2002, 2005, 2006) include winning the Premier League title in 1995, a shoot-out loss to Seattle in the USL First Division final in 2005 and taking the USL Second Division crown in 2006. 

The USL professional league is a two-tiered system modeled after many of the historic professional leagues around the world and is comprised of the USL First Division and USL Second Division.  The USL Second Division serves as the base of the professional structure and the regional focus allows professional soccer to thrive in smaller markets, while providing a premium brand of soccer and an exciting level of competition. 

2008 RICHMOND KICKERS PRO SCHEDULE

DAY	DATE	OPPONENT	TIME
Saturday	April 19	WESTERN MASS PIONEERS	7:00 pm
Friday	April 25	@ Charlotte Eagles	7:00 pm
Sunday	May 4	@ Crystal Palace Baltimore	4:00 pm
Saturday	May 17	@ Western Mass Pioneers	7:30 pm
Saturday	May 24	CHARLOTTE EAGLES	7:00 pm
Saturday	May 31	WILMINGTON HAMMERHEADS	7:00 pm
Tuesday	June 3	@ Charlotte Eagles	7:00 pm
Friday	June 6	@ Harrisburg City Islanders	7:05 pm
Saturday	June 14	BERMUDA HOGGES	7:00 pm
Saturday	June 21	HARRISBURG CITY ISLANDERS	7:00 pm
Saturday	June 28	@ Cleveland City Stars	7:00 pm
Sunday	June 29	@ Pittsburgh Riverhounds	7:05 pm
Friday	July 4	@ Real Maryland FC	4:00 pm
Sunday	July 6	@ Bermuda Hogges	3:00 pm
Saturday	July 12	PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS	7:00 pm
Saturday	July 19	CLEVELAND CITY STARS	7:00 pm
Saturday	July 26	REAL MARYLAND FC	7:00 pm
Friday	August 1	WILMINGTON HAMMERHEADS	7:00 pm
Saturday	August 2	@ Wilmington Hammerheads	7:30 pm
Saturday	August 9	CRYSTAL PALACE BALTIMORE	7:00 pm

Home games in BOLD, played at UR Stadium (just off the Downtown Expressway).

Click here for a complete USL Second Division schedule.