2024 El Paso Locomotive FC season explained

The 2024 El Paso Locomotive FC season was the sixth season for El Paso Locomotive FC in the USL Championship, the second tier of professional soccer in the United States and Canada.^[1]

Staff

After a 1–8–2 record in their first eleven games, the team announced they had parted ways with head coach Brian Clarhaut and assistant coach Jon Burklo.^[2] On May 20, El Paso Locomotive FC announced they had appointed Wílmer Cabrera as their new coach.^[3]

Position	Name
Head coach	Wílmer Cabrera
Assistant coach	Ray Saari
Assistant coach	Gianluca Masucci
Assistant coach	Gerson Echeverry
Goalkeeping coach	Matt Dabrowski
Coordinator, equipment and player operations	Saul Soto

Transfers

In

Date	No.	Pos.	Player	From	Fee	Source
November 2, 2023	3	MF	Elijah Martin	San Diego Loyal	Free agent	[4]
November 6, 2023	21	DF	Bolu Akinyode	Miami FC	Free agent	[5]
November 8, 2023	10	FW	Amando Moreno	New Mexico United	Free agent	[6]
November 20, 2023	11	FW	Joaquin Rivas	Miami FC	Free agent	[7]
December 1, 2023	15	DF	Noah Dollenmayer	LAFC2	Undisclosed	[8]
December 7, 2023	9	FW	Justin Dhillon	San Antonio FC	Undisclosed	[9]
December 13, 2023	18	FW	Tumi Moshobane	San Diego Loyal SC	Free agent	[10]
December 18, 2023	93	DF	Tony Alfaro	LA Galaxy	Free agent	[11]
January 4, 2024	23	GK	Jahmali Waite	Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC	Undisclosed	[12]
January 10, 2024	4	DF	Lucas Stauffer	Las Vegas Lights	Free agent	[13]
January 12, 2024	5	DF	Éder Borelli	El Paso Locomotive FC	Contract renewal	[14]
June 24, 2024		FW	Emiliano Rodriguez	El Paso Locomotive FC Academy	Home grown	[15]
July 17, 2024	33	MF	Ricky Ruiz	Chattanooga Red Wolves SC	Undisclosed	[16]
July 19, 2024	30	DF	Robert Coronado	Central Valley Fuego FC	Undisclosed	[17]
July 31, 2024		DF	Dennis Erdmann	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Undisclosed	[18]
July 31, 2024		DF	Wahab Ackwei	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Traded for Justin Dhillon	[19]
August 2, 2024		FW	Andy Cabrera		Free Agent signed for 25 days
September 16, 2024		FW	Malik McLemore	FSV Frankfurt		[20]

Loans in

No.	Pos.	Player	Loaned from	Start	End	Source
2	DF			February 15, 2024	December 31, 2024	[21]
1	GK	Ramón Pasquel		February 21, 2024	December 31, 2024	[22]
14	DF	Gonzalo Pelua		February 26, 2024	December 31, 2024	[23]
99	MF			February 26, 2024	December 31, 2024
	MF			March 13, 2024	June 27, 2024	[24] [25]
	MF	Stiven Rivas		July 17, 2024	December 31, 2024

Out

Date	No.	Pos.	Player	To	Fee	Source
November 1, 2023	2	DF	Marc Navarro	Free agent	N/A	[26]
	23	DF	José Carrillo	Free agent	N/A
	21	FW	Emmanuel Sonupe	Free agent	N/A
	29	FW	Petur Knudsen	Free agent	N/A
	88	MF	Joel Maldonado	Free agent	N/A
December 21, 2023	4	DF	Erik McCue	Örebro SK	Free	[27]
January 1, 2024	10	MF	Denys Kostyshyn	FC Oleksandriya	Free	[28]
December 12, 2023	9	FW	Luis Solignac	San Antonio FC	Undisclosed	[29] [30]
January 30, 2024	7	FW	Aarón Gómez	Union Omaha	Free	[31] [32]
June 17, 2024	3	DF	Elijah Martin		Mutual Agreement	[33]
	77	MF	Diego Abarca	Austin FC II	Mutual Agreement
June 18, 2024	22	MF	Liam Rose	Macarthur FC	Mutual Agreement	[34]
August 8, 2024	9	FW	Justin Dhillon	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Trade for Wahab Ackwei	[35]
August 12, 2024	27	MF	Petar Petrović	Östers IF

New contracts

Date	Pos.	No.	Player	Contract until	Ref.
October 30, 2023	MF	27	align=left	Petar Petrović	2024	[37]
November 13, 2023	MF	19	align=left	Arun Basuljevic	2024	[38]
November 15, 2023	MF	11	align=left	Christopher Garcia	2024	[39]
	MF	77	align=left	Diego Abarca	2024
	MF	8	align=left	Luis Moreno	2024
	DF	31	align=left	Nick Hinds	2024
	GK	13	align=left	Javier Garcia	2024
August 30, 2024	FW	27	align=left	Andy Cabrera	2024	[40]

Non-competitive fixtures

Preseason

El Paso Locomotive announced their 2024 preseason schedule on January 16, 2024.^[41]

Midseason

Competitive fixtures

USL Championship

See main article: 2024 USL Championship season.

Match results

Matchday! style="background:#0D1D41; color:#F8CC00; border:2px solid #5FAFE4;" scope="col" align="center"

Date	Opponent	Venue	Location	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Referee	Position
1	March 9	Hartford Athletic	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–1		6,111	Brandon Stevis	10th Western Conf.
2	March 13	Monterey Bay FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–1	Moreno 4'	4,566	Brad Jensen	7th Western Conf.
3	March 16	Louisville City FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–1		4,876	Abdou Ndiaye	9th Western Conf.
4	March 23	Las Vegas Lights FC	Cashman Park	Las Vegas, Nevada	0–1		1,070	Thomas Snyder	11th Western Conf.
5	April 6	New Mexico United	Isotopes Park	Albuquerque, New Mexico	2–3	Rivas 81'	9,019	Matthew Thompson	11th Western Conf.
6	April 13	Oakland Roots SC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	2–3	Moreno 13'	6,667	Sergii Demianchuk	11th Western Conf.
7	April 20	Tampa Bay Rowdies	Al Lang Stadium	Tampa Bay, Florida	1–1	Nevárez 64'	4,945	Alex Beehler	11th Western Conf.
8	April 27	FC Tulsa	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–1		6,142	Lorenzo Hernandez	12th Western Conf.
9	May 4	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Weidner Field	Colorado Springs, Colorado	0–2		8,023	Luis Arroyo	12th Western Conf.
10	May 10	Loudoun United FC	Segra Field	Leesburg, Virginia	2–0	Tumi 1 Calvillo 40'	1,836	Velimir Stefanovic	12th Western Conf.
11	May 17	Memphis 901 FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–2		6,004	Abdou Ndiaye	12th Western Conf.
12	May 24	Charleston Battery	Patriots Point	Mount Pleasant, South Carolina	2–1	Moreno 69', 90+2'	3,257	Alejo Calume	12th Western Conf.
13	June 1	Birmingham Legion FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–3	Dhillon 44'	5,707	John Matto	12th Western Conf.
14	June 5 Copa Tejas	San Antonio FC	Toyota Field	San Antonio, Texas	1–0	Craig 65'	5,805	Ricardo Fierro	12 Western Conf.
15	June 15	Phoenix Rising FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–1	Calvillo 13'	5,802	Elijio Arreguin	12 Western Conf.
16	June 19	Oakland Roots SC	Pioneer Stadium	Hayward, California	1–2	Dhillon 5'	3,247	Trevor Wiseman	12th Western Conf.
17	June 26	Rhode Island FC	Beirne Stadium	Smithfield, Rhode Island	0–3		3,481	Nabil Bensalah	12th Western Conf.
18	July 12	Las Vegas Lights FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–2		6,727	Servando Berna Rico	12th Western Conf.
19	July 19	Phoenix Rising FC	Phoenix Rising Soccer Stadium	Phoenix, Arizona	0–2		6,544	Elton García	12th Western Conf.
20	July 27	New Mexico United	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–2	Nevárez 21'	5,577	Elijio Arreguin	12th Western Conf.
21	August 3	Memphis 901 FC	AutoZone Park	Memphis, Tennessee	0–0		2,714	Thomas Snyder	12th Western Conf.
22	August 10	Miami FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	2–1	Coronado 45+1' Moreno 66'	7,067	Katja Koroleva	12th Western Conf.
23	August 14	Sacramento Republic FC	Heart Health Park	Sacramento, California	0–2		8,688	Trevor Wiseman	12th Western Conf.
24	August 17	Orange County SC	Championship Soccer Stadium	Irvine, California	1–0	Calvillo 64'	4,001	Abdou Ndiaye	12th Western Conf.
25	August 24	Monterey Bay FC	Cardinale Stadium	Seaside, California	0–0		5,199	Benjamin Meyer	12th Western Conf.
26	September 7	Detroit City FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–0		5,764	Luis Arroyo	12th Western Conf.
27	September 14	Indy Eleven	Michael A. Carroll Stadium	Indianapolis, Indiana	1–3	Zacarías 83'	10,132	Sergii Demianchuk	12th Western Conf.
28	September 21	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–1	Ruiz 51'	5,422	Nabil Bensalah	12th Western Conf.
29	September 28	North Carolina FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	1–0	Rivas 90+2'	4,014	Muhammad Hassan	12th Western Conf.
30	October 5	FC Tulsa	ONEOK Field	Tulsa, Oklahoma	1–0	Coronado 20'	3,092	Jeremy Scheer	12th Western Conf.
31	October 9 Copa Tejas	San Antonio FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	2–2	Own goal 83' Lyons 88'		Servando Berna Rico	12th Western Conf.
32	October 16	Orange County SC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	0–2			Brandon Stevis	12th Western Conf.
33	October 19	Sacramento Republic FC	Southwest University Park	El Paso, Texas	2–1	Stauffer 26' Alfaro 32'	6,376	Joe Surgan	12th Western Conf.
34	October 26	Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC	Highmark Stadium	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	0–2			Matthew Corrigan	12th Western Conf.

U.S. Open Cup

See main article: 2024 U.S. Open Cup.

Round! style="background:#0D1D41; color:#F8CC00; border:2px solid #5FAFE4;" scope="col"

Date	Opponent	Venue	Location	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Referee
Third Round	April 17	Union Omaha	Werner Park	Omaha, Nebraska	0–0			Abdu Razzaq Juma

Awards and honors

USL Championship Team of the Matchday

Matchday	Player	Opponent	Position	Ref
1	Lucas Stauffer	Hartford Athletic	DF	[42]
10	Eric Calvillo	Loudoun United FC	MF	[43]
	Bolu Akinyode		MF
	Tumi Moshobane		FW
	Jahmali Waite		Bench
12	Amando Moreno	Charleston Battery	FW	[44]
	Lucas Stauffer (2)		DF
22	Jahmali Waite (2)	Memphis 901 FC	GK	[45]
23	Robert Coronado	Miami FC	MF	[46]
	Lucas Stauffer (3)		DF
	Amando Moreno		Bench
24	Eric Calvillo (2)	Orange County SC	MF	[47]
27	Ramón Pasquel	Detroit City FC	GK	[48]
30	Arturo Ortiz	North Carolina FC	DF	[49]
31	Tony Alfaro	FC Tulsa	Bench	[50]
33	Tony Alfaro (2)	Sacramento Republic FC	DF	[51]
	Lucas Stauffer (4)		Bench

Save of the Matchday

Matchday	Player	Opponent	Ref
1	Jahmali Waite	Hartford Athletic	[52]
3	Javier Garcia	Las Vegas Lights FC	[53]
7	Jahmali Waite (2)	Tampa Bay Rowdies	[54]
20	Jahmali Waite (3)	Phoenix Rising FC	[55]
21	Jahmali Waite (4)	New Mexico United	[56]
22	Jahmali Waite (5)	Memphis 901 FC	[57]
24	Jahmali Waite (6)	Orange County SC	[58]
28	Jahmali Waite (7)	Indy Eleven	[59]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Our History . March 14, 2022 . March 15, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220315020540/https://www.eplocomotivefc.com/ourhistory . dead .
2. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Announces Departure of Head Coach and Technical Director Brian Clarhaut . Huichapa . Alberto . May 17, 2024 . EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive . May 18, 2024.
3. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Appoint Wilmer Cabrera as New Head Coach . Huichapa . Alberto . May 20, 2024 . www.ElPasoLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive . May 21, 2024.
4. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Defender Elijah Martin from San Diego Loyal FC . Huichapa . Alberto . November 2, 2023 . www.EPLocoMotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . November 2, 2023.
5. Web site: Locomotive FC brings aboard veteran midfielder Bolu Akinyode . November 6, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com. USL Championship . November 7, 2023.
6. Web site: Locomotive FC signs Amando Moreno for 2024 season . November 8, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com. USL Championship . November 8, 2023.
7. Web site: El Salvador international Joaquin Rivas moves to Locomotive FC . November 20, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com. USL Championship . November 20, 2023.
8. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Defender Noah Dollenmayer from LAFC2 of MLS Next Pro . December 1, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com. USL Championship . December 2, 2023.
9. Web site: Locomotive FC acquires Justin Dhillon via transfer from San Antonio FC . December 7, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com. USL Championship . December 7, 2023.
10. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC sign forward Tumi Moshobane from San Diego Loyal SC . December 13, 2023 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com. El Paso Locomotive FC . December 13, 2023.
11. Web site: Locomotive FC brings aboard veteran defender Tony Alfaro . December 18, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . December 18, 2023.
12. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Jamaican International Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite . January 4, 2024 . www.USLChampionship.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . January 4, 2024.
13. Web site: Lucas Stauffer makes move to El Paso Locomotive FC . Murray . Nicholas . January 10, 2024 . www.USLChampionship.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . January 12, 2024.
14. Web site: Eder Borelli re-signs with El Paso Locomotive FC . Murray . Nicholas . January 11, 2024 . www.USLChampionship.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . January 12, 2024.
15. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Academy Product Emiliano Rodriguez to Professional Contract . Huichapa . Alberto . June 24, 2024 . www.USLChampionship.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . June 30, 2024.
16. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Add Stiven Rivas, Ricky Ruiz to 2024 Roster . Huichapa . Alberto . July 17, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . July 22, 2024.
17. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Robert Coronado from Central Valley Fuego FC . Huichapa . Alberto . July 19, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . July 22, 2024.
18. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Defender Dennis Erdmann . Huichapa . Alberto . July 31, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . August 18, 2024.
19. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Acquire Wahab Ackwei via Transfer From Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC . Huichapa . Alberto . August 8, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . August 18, 2024.
20. Web site: Huichapa . Alberto . September 16, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Forward Malik McLemore . September 16, 2024.
21. Web site: Locomotive FC adds USYNT’s Brandan Craig on loan from Philadelphia Union . Murray . Nicholas . February 15, 2024 . USLChampionship.com . USL Championship . February 15, 2024.
22. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC acquire goalkeeper Ramon Pasquel on loan from FC Juárez for 2024 . Huichapa . Alberto . February 21, 2024 . EPLocomotoveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . February 21, 2024.
23. Web site: Locomotive FC adds defender Javier Nevarez on loan from FC Juárez . February 26, 2024 . EPLocomotoveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . February 26, 2024.
24. Web site: Locomotive adds Jeremy Garay on loan from D.C. United . March 13, 2024 . EPLocomotoveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . March 13, 2024.
25. Web site: Jeremy Garay Recalled by D.C. United, Option to Return to El Paso Available . Huichapa . Alberto . June 27, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive . June 30, 2024.
26. News: Guzman . Sam . November 1, 2023 . Several key players depart from El Paso Locomotive FC . . El Paso, Texas . November 2, 2023.
27. Web site: 2024-02-09 . Välkommen Erik McCue! . 2024-02-09 . ÖSK Fotboll . sv.
28. Web site: 2023-12-05 . It's official. "Oleksandriya announced the signing of Denys Kostyshyn . 2024-02-09 . dynamo.kiev.ua.
29. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC’s Luis Solignac Departs Ahead of 2024 Season . Huichapa . Alberto . December 12, 2023 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . December 12, 2023.
30. Web site: San Antonio announces return of forward Luis Solignac . Murray . Nicholas . December 14, 2023 . www.USLChampionship.com . USL Championship . December 14, 2023.
31. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC’s Aaron Gomez Departs Ahead of 2024 Season . Huichapa . Alberto . January 3, 2024 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . January 4, 2024.
32. Web site: UNION OMAHA SIGNS USL CHAMPIONSHIP FORWARD AARÓN GÓMEZ . 2024-02-09 . Union Omaha . en-US.
33. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Mutually Part Ways with Elijah Martin and Diego Abarca . Huichapa . Alberto . June 17, 2024 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . July 13, 2024.
34. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Mutually Part Ways with Liam Rose . Huichapa . Alberto . June 18, 2024 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . July 13, 2024.
35. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Acquire Wahab Ackwei via Transfer From Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC . Huichapa . Alberto . August 8, 2024 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive FC . August 18, 2024.
36. Web site: Austin FC II Acquires Goalkeeper Marcus Alstrup and Winger Christopher Garcia . January 11, 2024 . AustinFC.com . Austin FC II . January 11, 2024.
37. News: . October 30, 2023 . El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Midfielder Petar Petrovic to Contract Extension for 2024 . . November 2, 2023.
38. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Midfielder Arun Basuljevic to Contract Extension for 2024 . Huichapa . Alberto . November 13, 2023 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive . November 13, 2023.
39. Web site: El Paso Locomotive FC’s Diego Abarca, Chris Garcia, Javier Garcia, Nick Hinds and Luis Moreno Return for 2024 . Huichapa . Alberto . November 15, 2023 . www.EPLocomotiveFC.com . El Paso Locomotive . November 15, 2023.
40. Web site: Huichapa . Alberto . August 30, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC Sign Andy Cabrera for Remainder of 2024 Season . September 16, 2024.
41. Web site: Huichapa . Alberto . El Paso Locomotive FC Announce 2024 Preseason Schedule . EPLocomotiveFC.com . . 17 January 2024.
42. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 1 . March 12, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . March 12, 2024.
43. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 10. USL Championship. USLChampionship.com. May 14, 2024. June 15, 2024.
44. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 12 . USL Championship. USLChampionship.com. May 28, 2024. June 1, 2024.
45. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 22 . August 6, 2024 . USL Championship . August 16, 2024.
46. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 23 . August 13, 2024 . USL Championship . August 16, 2024.
47. Web site: Huichapa . Alberto . Eric Calvillo Named to USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 24 . August 20, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . September 14, 2024.
48. Web site: Huichapa . Alberto . Ramon Pasquel Named to USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 27 . September 10, 2024 . El Paso Locomotive FC . September 14, 2024.
49. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 30 . October 1, 2024 . USL Championship . October 9, 2024.
50. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 31 . October 8, 2024 . USL Championship . October 9, 2024.
51. Web site: USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 33 . October 22, 2024 . USL Championship . October 9, 2024.
52. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 1 . USL Championship. USLChampionship.com. March 12, 2024. June 1, 2024.
53. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 3 . USL Championship. USLChampionship.com. March 26, 2024. June 1, 2024.
54. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 7. USL Championship. USLChampionship.com. April 23, 2024. June 2, 2024.
55. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 20. El Paso Locomotive FC . July 26, 2024. August 18, 2024.
56. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 21 . El Paso Locomotive FC. August 2, 2024. August 18, 2024.
57. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 22 . El Paso Locomotive FC. August 9, 2024. August 18, 2024.
58. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 24 . El Paso Locomotive FC. August 20, 2024. October 9, 2024.
59. Web site: USL Championship Save of the Week – Week 28 . El Paso Locomotive FC. September 17, 2024. October 9, 2024.