Neco Brett’s brace earns Player of the Round as Spokane advances

Neco Brett’s two-goal performance pushed Spokane Velocity FC into the 2026 Prinx Tires USL Cup knockout stage and earned him Player of the Round. In a tournament built to reward teams and finishers at the exact moment the table tightens, Brett’s brace arrived as the decisive swing in Spokane’s path forward.

The award fit the shape of this Cup from the start. The 2026 competition opened on Saturday, April 25 with all 43 teams from USL Championship and USL League One divided into seven regional groups, and each club played four group-stage matches before Saturday’s July 11 conclusion. Seven group winners advanced automatically, and the eighth berth went to the second-placed team with the most points, with goals scored as the first tiebreaker. That structure has made every late goal matter, and Brett’s finishing turned that pressure into progression for Spokane.

USL’s final-round setup made the stakes in Group 1 especially sharp. Spokane could not clinch the group before its match with Oakland Roots SC, but a regulation win would have forced the pressure onto Sacramento Republic FC. A Spokane loss would have opened the door to a dramatic nightcap in which Sacramento and Athletic Club Boise could have settled the group title in regulation. Brett delivered the kind of output that removed the uncertainty and sent Spokane on, a result that will place the League One side against Championship opposition in the knockout stage.

That matters beyond one scoreline. The Cup is only in its third edition, Hartford Athletic is the defending champion, and the league has framed the format as a way to encourage attacking soccer. Brett’s brace is exactly the kind of performance that fits that design: not just goals for the table, but goals that decide whether a club stays alive for the next phase.

Spokane’s advance also extends a strong early chapter for a club still building its profile. USL has noted that Spokane Velocity FC became only the second expansion team in USL League One history to reach the postseason in its inaugural season, and it won five of seven regular-season home matches in that first year. Brett’s recognition now gives that rise a signature Cup moment, with the final set for Sunday, October 4 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN2.