Charlotte Independence vs League One debutante Fort Wayne 

CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE

Charlotte Independence defender Kevin Riascos underwent knee surgery on Wednesday, which will sideline him for six weeks.

Charlotte Independence will take on a new opponent at a new venue Saturday.

The Jacks, who play Fort Wayne FC for first time ever at the debut of 9,200-seat Ruoff Mortgage Stadium in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and broadcast on WCCB (channel 18). Fort Wayne FC is in its first season as a USL League One club after previously competing in League Two. 

Charlotte (1-2-1) is fresh off a 2-1 win against rival Richmond Kickers in USL Cup play in which Enzo Martinez scored a brace to earn Player of the Round honors. Martinez, who has three goals in all competitions, is a goal shy of becoming the first player in Jacks history to reach 50 goals.

The Jacks, whose last league game was a 2-1 loss to One Knox on April 18, are one of five clubs with 4 points in League One, three points below the playoff cut line. New York Cosmos (2-3-1) is ninth with 7 points, ahead of eighth-place Sarasota Paradise based on goal differential.

Notes:
Defender Kevin Riascos, a starter in all five Independence games across all competitions, is out for roughly six weeks after right knee surgery on Wednesday. He was injured without contact in during the first half of the Jacks’ U.S. Open Cup game against Charlotte FC. 

The Jacks added midfielder Jeando Fuchs to the roster on Thursday. Fuchs, who has a pair of caps with Cameroon’s national team, played with Gabala (Azerbaijan) in 2025 and before that with clubs in France, Spain, Israel, Scotland and England.

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