After a 1-0 win at Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC that kept Rhode Island FC at the top of Group 4 in the 2025 USL Jägermeister Cup, the Ocean State club will get back to USL Championship regular-season action when it returns to Centreville Bank Stadium to host Miami FC on Saturday. Although Khano Smith’s squad has won four-straight road games across all competitions and is unbeaten in four of its last five league games, the club is still in search of a first-ever win at Centreville Bank Stadium and will look to bring its road momentum back home to kick off a busy June schedule. Ahead of Amber Night in Pawtucket, here is everything you need to know.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Saturday, June 7
Kickoff | 7:00 p.m. ET
Location | Centreville Bank Stadium – Pawtucket, R.I.]
Broadcast | NESN, ESPN+
Radio | 790 The Score (790 AM)
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook)
Game Hashtag | #RIvMIA
Last Meeting | Oct. 26, 2024: RI 8-1 MIA – Smithfield, R.I.
MIAMI FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (-): 12-Rafael Martell, 28-Bill Hamid, Felipe Rodriguez
DEFENDERS (7): 2-Jonathan Ricketts, 3-Alejandro Mitrano, 4-Nicolas Cardona, 6-Tulu, 13-Daltyn Knutson, 21-Bolu Akinyode, 34-Victor Arana
MIDFIELDERS (13): 5-Diego Mercado, 7-Allen Gavilanes, 8-Matias Romero, 10-Sebastian Blanco, 11-Deian Veron, 16-Gerald Diaz, 22-Francesco Celeste, 23-Tobias Mas, 25-Juan Jiminez, 27-Aaron Acloque, 30-Cristian Vazquez, 33-Lucas Depaula, 77-Felipe Rodriguez Valla
FORWARDS (7): 9-Francisco Bonfiglio, 17-Ricardo Rivera, 18-Tobias Zarate, 19-Michael Lawrence, 6-Lucas Melano, 29-Kevin Hoyos, 35-Brandon Bent
2025 Turnaround
After finishing the 2024 season dead last in the USL Championship with just 11 points and three wins, Miami FC retooled its roster in the offseason and has fielded a much more competitive roster in 2025. After a rough start to the season saw Miami lose its first four games of the 2025 campaign, it quickly turned the ship around to avoid a repeat of a disastrous 2024 season, now finding itself unbeaten in four of its last five regular-season games. The streak included wins over Loudoun United FC and San Antonio FC, who both sit within the top four spots in their respective conferences. In the USL Jägermeister Cup last time out, Miami rose to the top of Group 6 after a come-from-behind 3-2 win vs. FC Naples, who is currently second place in USL League One. Now sitting just two points behind Rhode Island FC in the Eastern Conference standings, Saturday’s game is a huge opportunity for the visitors to make a leap up the table and continue a run of form that the Florida club has not experienced in almost two years.
Big-time Bonfiglio
A revamped Miami FC attack has run almost entirely through Francisco Bonfiglio this season, who leads the squad with six goals in his first season in the USL Championship as just one of two players to score more than once. The 23-year-old Argentine talent is one of the most in-form strikers in the league, having scored goals in each of Mimia FC’s last five USL Championship games, including three game-winners and the lone goal in a 1-1 draw with Monterey Bay FC to secure a point. Bonfiglio has contributed decisive goals to each one of Miami’s results this season, and the club is 3W-2L-1T when Bonfiglio finds the back of the net.
Magic Number 2
Despite Miami FC’s recent run of momentum, it is still in search of its first clean sheet of the season. All three of its wins have come by way of a 2-1 scoreline, and it is winless when scoring less than two goals this season. Against a Rhode Island FC defense that has conceded the fourth-fewest goals in the league (10) with four shutouts in regular-season competition, Miami will need to find a way to break through an airtight back line to earn a result on the road. The Florida club has played away from home just twice this season and is unbeaten (1W-0L-1T) on the road.
RHODE ISLAND FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 22-Jackson Lee, 1-Koke Vegas, 13-Will Meyer
DEFENDERS (7): 4-Hugo Bacharach, 6-Aimé Mabika, 14-Rio Hope-Gund, 15-Frank Nodarse, 2-Dani Rovira, 3-Aldair Sanchez, 5-Grant Stoneman, 24-Karifa Yao, 16-Cole Dewhurst
MIDFIELDERS (10): 80-Isaac Angking, 18-Joe Brito, 20-Zachary Herivaux, 12-Clay Holstad, 17-Jojea Kwizera, 8-Taimu Okiyoshi, 21-Maxi Rodriguez, 77-Amos Shapiro-Thompson, 19-Kevin Vang, 23-Marc Ybarra
FORWARDS (3): 10-Albert Dikwa, 11-Noah Fuson, 9-JJ Williams
Convert, convert, convert
In its last four USL Championship games, Rhode Island FC has connected at least 500 passes, held at least 57 percent of the ball and taken 13 or more shots, showing an ability to control the ball throughout the game. However, with the exception of a dominant 3-0 win at Tampa Bay Rowdies on May 17, RIFC has not scored more than one goal in three of those games. Despite the statistical advantage, RIFC has scored just one goal at Centreville Bank Stadium in regular-season competition and is still in search of its first win, having struggled to convert chance creation into goals at home. In its most recent league outing, a 1-0 shutout loss vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, the Ocean State club held onto more than 60 percent of the ball and took 15 shots, forcing five saves out of goalkeeper Eric Dick but ultimately failing to find the back of the net as it suffered its first home loss of the season. Against Miami FC, who has not kept a shutout all season, Rhode Island FC will need to find a way to uptick its goalscoring production in search of a long-awaited three points in front of its home fans.
Defensive Dominance
The other end of the ball for Rhode Island FC has been equally as tight, as Khano Smith’s defensive line has quietly grown into one of the best in the USL Championship. RIFC conceded just two goals in its last five league games, keeping three of its four regular-season shutouts in that time. That form extended in the USL Jägermeister Cup on Saturday, when Rhode Island FC enacted its revenge in a second-straight meeting with Pittsburgh in a 1-0 win to move to the top of Group 4. In that game, goalkeeper Jackson Lee kept his first shutout of 2025, making a season-high four saves as the defense fended off 15 total shots from the Riverhounds to keep the hosts out of the back of the net.
Scouting the Series
Rhode Island went 2W-0L-0T against Miami in its inaugural season in 2024, including the biggest win in club history in its regular-season finale on Oct. 26. Scoring a whopping eight goals in a resounding 8-1 win that included a JJ Williams hat trick and goals from five other players, the win kickstarted the Ocean State club’s historic run to the USL Championship Final in its first year. Rhode Island FC will look to keep its perfect streak against the Florida club alive on Saturday when Miami makes a first-ever trip to Pawtucket.