After plenty of player movement this offseason and preseason preparations, the 2018 USL regular season kicked off this past weekend with some results that were expected and some which caused surprise, as a record-opening weekend of attendance was treated to some thrilling action.

Those are reflected in the opening USLSoccer.com Power Rankings of the season, where the Tampa Bay Rowdies narrowly claimed the top spot over defending USL Cup champion Louisville City FC after their road victory against North Carolina FC on Saturday afternoon.

You’ll likely notice something new with the rankings this season, too, with the league’s expansion meaning we’re now looking to fill 16 slots on a weekly basis.

The four-person USLSoccer.com voting panel tabulates 16 points for first-place team votes, 15 points to the second-place team and so forth to one point for 16th place. The accrued points among the group determines the final ranking.