One Knoxville Sporting Club is an American soccer team based in Knoxville, Tennessee, that competes in USL League One, the third tier of the United States soccer league system. The team plays their home matches at Covenant Health Park, a multi-use stadium designed for soccer and baseball, alongside the Knoxville Smokies, a minor league baseball team for the Chicago Cubs.
History
USL League Two
The club was initially unveiled as Knox Pro Soccer starting as a semi-professional USL League Two club with the goal to eventually move to the professional USL League One in the future. The official name for the team, One Knoxville Sporting Club, was announced on July 15, 2021. The official crest for the team, designed by artist Matthew Wolff, was unveiled on August 19, 2021. Mark McKeever was appointed as the club's first ever head coach on January 13, 2021.
The team made their USL2 debut on May 14, 2022 hosting Asheville City SC, where they were defeated by a score of 2–1 in front of 2200 spectators. They recorded their first victory in their next match on May 17, defeating the Tri-Cities Otters by a score of 1–0. In their inaugural season, they won the South Central Division, with an 11–1–2 record, advancing to the playoffs. After winning their first two playoff rounds, the club was defeated by North Carolina Fusion U23 in the South Conference Finals (league quarterfinals).
USL League One
On October 20, 2022, it was announced that the club would move up to the fully professional level, joining USL League One. The club also announced that all of the team's 15 home games would by played at Regal Stadium, home of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers.
The club announced their first professional signing on December 12, 2022, forward Ilija Ilić, who will also serve as assistant coach.
The club scored its first ever professional win with a 2–1 victory over Lexington SC. Midfielder Jimmie Villalobos scored the team's first ever professional goal.
On April 26, 2025, One Knoxville SC set the record for largest home attendance for a USL1 club across all competitions with 6,378 fans in attendance for a match against FC Tulsa in the opening round of the USL Cup.
On October 25, 2025, One Knoxville SC won its first-ever USL1 regular-season championship, receiving the USL1 Players’ Shield.
On November 16, 2025, One Knoxville SC won their first-ever USL1 league title, marking the club's first major trophy. They defeated Spokane Velocity FC 2-0 in front of a record 7,500 fans at Covenant Health Park.
On April 15, 2026, in the round of 32 of the 2026 U.S. Open Cup, One Knoxville SC upset D.C. United, a team in the MLS, the highest tier of American professional soccer. This marks the 3rd time in history a USL1 team has beaten an MLS team.
Women's team On March 8, 2025, the club announced the addition of a women's team, which would complete in its inaugural season in the USL W-League beginning that year. Simon Duffy, the women's soccer coach at Carson-Newman University, was hired to lead the new women's soccer team.
Stadium
During their inaugural season as a club in 2022, they used temporary homes through local high school and colleges, specifically Austin East High School, Knoxville Catholic High School, and Maryville College.
Regal Soccer Stadium (2023-24)
During their first 2 seasons of being in USL League One, they played at Regal Soccer Stadium, home of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers' soccer program. The stadium has a capacity of 3,000 fans. The club achieved their attendance record against Lexington SC, where 2,512 fans attended on March 18, 2023.
Covenant Health Park (2025-present)
Since the 2025 season, the team has played at Covenant Health Park alongside the Knoxville Smokies, a minor league baseball team. The stadium was designed to convert between soccer and baseball and includes a retractable pitcher's mound.
Supporters The Scruffs are an independent supporters group for One Knoxville. The group's name is a reference to Scruffy City, a commonly used nickname for Knoxville from the 1982 World's Fair.
Rivalries
The Battle of the Barrel (Lexington SC) Lexington SC and One Knoxville joined USL League One as expansion sides together in 2023. The rivalry stems from the Kentucky–Tennessee rivalry as Lexington is home to the University of Kentucky and Knoxville is home to the University of Tennessee. The rivalry name comes from the old name for the matchup between Kentucky and Tennessee in college football where a beer barrel trophy was presented to the winner.
The reported trophy for the winner on aggregate score at the end of the USL1 season is "a full-size whiskey barrel and a bottle of bourbon from a distiller located in the losing club's locale." Despite this, neither fan group has yet to see such a prize as of the start of the 2024 season. SeasonDateCompetitionStadiumHome teamResultAway teamGoal scorersAttendanceSeriesRef2023March 18USL1Regal Soccer StadiumOne Knoxville SC2–1Lexington SC(KNX) Villalobos , Keegan (LEX) Smart 2,512KNX 1–0–0May 27Toyota Stadium (Kentucky)Lexington SC1–1One Knoxville SC(LEX) Brown (KNX) Keegan 2,282KNX 1–1–0August 18Regal Soccer StadiumOne Knoxville SC1–0Lexington SC(KNX) Kelly-Rosales 2,522KNX 2–1–02024March 23USL1One Knoxville SC2-0Lexington SC(KNX) Castro Jr (Kelly-Rosales) Ritchie (Ballard)1,975KNX 3-1-0June 8USL Jägermeister CupOne Knoxville SC2-0Lexington SCCrisler (Johnson) Ross (Ritchie)1,955KNX 4-1-0August 10USL Jägermeister CupToyota Stadium (Kentucky)Lexington SC0-0 5-3One Knoxville SCThe match ended in a 0–0 draw. Lexington won the penalty shoot-out 5–3 for the extra point in the Central Group standings1,173KNX 4-2-0
Smoky Mountain Series (Asheville City SC) As members of USL League Two and of the league's South Central Division, the two clubs created a rivalry called the Smoky Mountain Series. The series was won by head-to-head matches, with the tiebreaker being aggregate score. One Knoxville SC won the 2022 Smoky Mountain Series from a 4-3 aggregate win. Since One Knoxville SC has promoted to USL League One, there is no way for these teams to meet again except the U.S. Open Cup, which happened in 2024 and 2026. SeasonDateCompetitionStadiumHome teamResultAway teamAttendanceSeriesRef2022May 14USL2Austin East High SchoolOne Knoxville SC1–2Asheville City SC2,200ACSC 1–0–0June 21Memorial StadiumAsheville City SC1–3One Knoxville SC?Tied 1–1–02024March 202024 U.S. Open CupGreenwood FieldAsheville City SC0–2One Knoxville SC1,115KNX 2–1–02026March 312026 U.S. Open CupAsheville City SC1–1(3-2 Pens)One Knoxville SC?KNX 3–1–0 Although the men no longer regularly participate in the rivalry, the rivalry has continued onto the women's side. With the expansion of One Knoxville SC to USL W League, the clubs are now divisional rivals. SeasonDateCompetitionStadiumHome teamResultAway teamAttendanceSeriesRef2025May 14USLWCovenant Health ParkOne Knoxville SC0–1Asheville City SC?ACSC 1–0–0June 21Greenwood FieldAsheville City SC2–0One Knoxville SC?ACSC 2–0–02026May 23Asheville City SCTBDOne Knoxville SCTBDJune 3Maryville College Soccer FieldOne Knoxville SCTBDAsheville City SCTBD
Players and staff Current roster
Club management Coaching staffFront office
Record Men's team SeasonLeagueRegular SeasonPlayoffsU.S. Open CupUSL Cup2022USL21411123410341stConference FinalsNot Eligible—2023USL132911123639388thDid Not QualifySecond round2024229852418395thQuarterfinalsSecond roundGroup stage20253016954326571stChampionsThird roundGroup stage2026201145342237TBDTBDRound of 16TBD
Women's team SeasonLeagueRegular SeasonPlayoffs2025USLW143181220107th, South CentralDid Not Qualify2026USLW10234111394th, South CentralDid Not Qualify
Honors USL League One Regular Season Players' Shield: 2025
USL League One Playoffs Champions: 2025
References
External links