February 11, 2025
By Daniel Cohen
The following list indicates each team’s strength of schedule for 2025, based on their opponents’ win percentages from last season.
As an example, the opponents for LA’s 12 games this season had a combined 62-76 record (.449) in 2024—this combined record accounts for multiple games against individual opponents (San Diego finished 4-8 last year, so since LA plays them four times this year, we’re counting it as a combined 16-32 record towards their total opponent record).
The above method does not take into account home-away splits, nor does it account for any offseason additions or projected records.
Listed from toughest schedule to easiest:
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Oregon Steel - .608
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Atlanta Hustle - .602
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Carolina Flyers - .579
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Detroit Mechanix - .567
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Salt Lake Shred - .561
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Houston Havoc - .547
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Toronto Rush - .545
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Oakland Spiders - .535
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Philadelphia Phoenix - .532
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Montreal Royal - .519
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Vegas Bighorns - .513
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San Diego Growlers - .511
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Austin Sol - .510
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Colorado Summit - .500
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DC Breeze - .500
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Pittsburgh Thunderbirds - .500
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New York Empire - .496
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Seattle Cascades - .488
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Minnesota Wind Chill - .487
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Chicago Union - .484
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Madison Radicals - .484
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Indianapolis AlleyCats - .481
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Boston Glory - .480
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Los Angeles Aviators - .449
Winners
Boston Glory
Second-easiest schedule
Boston’s coming off a franchise best season after winning their first ever playoff game, and they’re in a great spot to make another run at the East Division crown. Between Montreal, Philly and Toronto, they have seven games this year against opponents that finished under .500 in 2024, and they have zero out-of-division games. Five games against DC and New York won’t be easy, but given their success against East’s best last year, making the playoffs for a third straight season shouldn’t be a problem for this Glory squad.
Chicago Union
Tied for fourth-easiest schedule
Chicago’s been retooling this offseason and is coming into the year with one of their most talented rosters in team history, so it feels a bit unfair that they come in with the fourth-easiest schedule. Their toughest tests will come in two games against the reigning champs plus a home out-of-division game against Atlanta, but their other nine games will come against opponents that all endured at least five losses in 2024. A big help to their schedule is the three games they’ll play against Detroit; Madison and Minnesota, the Central’s two other playoff teams from a year ago, will play Detroit twice each.
Colorado Summit
Tied for ninth-easiest schedule
In 2024, Colorado had the third hardest schedule and the result was a fourth place finish in the West Division, as they missed the playoffs for the first time since becoming a franchise in 2022. While it’s not a super easy schedule this year, they’ll face significantly fewer interdivisional opponents in 2025 compared to last season; they have a lone Texas road trip to Austin and Houston—two teams that finished with a combined 12-13 record last year—but otherwise face only West Division foes.
Losers
Atlanta Hustle
Second-toughest schedule
Let’s face it, Atlanta clearly loves a good challenge. In 2023, they had the second-toughest schedule. In 2024, they had the fourth-toughest. They’re again back in the top five thanks to another great slate of interdivisional showcases to complement their rivalry games against Carolina. Taking on Salt Lake the first week of the season could be the best game of opening weekend, and then a month later the Hustle will head to Minnesota and Chicago on a Central Division double header road trip. It wouldn’t be an Atlanta Hustle schedule without four Carolina matchups on the slate, sure to be must-watch games after Carolina ended the Hustle’s Championship Weekend hopes in last year’s division title game.
Carolina Flyers
Third-toughest schedule
Carolina and Atlanta are always going to be up there in strength of schedule rankings due to their top billing rivalry, though both teams also seek out plenty of interdivisional challenges. Like Atlanta, Carolina has three out-of-division games on the slate: home against DC in Week 3, then a Philly and Pittsburgh road trip in Week 6. Maybe not quite as daunting as Atlanta’s Central Division double header, but Carolina did drop a game to Philly in 2023 and Pittsburgh showed plenty of fight last year when they took down the eventual champions in Minnesota. Tough schedules for the South’s two favorites just means that much more fine tuning for the postseason and can’t-miss action whenever these two meet.
Salt Lake Shred
Fifth-toughest schedule
Salt Lake will face Atlanta (one seed in last year’s South Division playoffs), Colorado twice (.667 win percentage through their first three seasons in the league), Minnesota (last year’s champion), and have four games against the West’s other two playoff teams from last year. That’s at least eight games against clear playoff-caliber teams. If they’re able to make it out alive and secure a playoff berth for the fourth year in a row, the Shred will be fully battle-tested and could make another title run after last season’s disappointing finish.
