The Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Louisville City FC gave fans an exciting show when they battled in the USL Championship semifinals in front of a record-breaking crowd at Highmark Stadium last season.
Louisville City handed the Riverhounds a 2-1 loss on the fateful night in November and ended a magical season. Now, the Riverhounds will have the opportunity to exact some revenge.
The Riverhounds will open up their 2020 season on the road at Louisville City FC on July 12 in the inaugural match at Lynn Family Stadium. The match will also be broadcasted on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and the ESPN app.
“We are excited to kick off our 2020 season with a nationally televised match on ESPN2,” Riverhounds owner Tuffy Shallenberger said. “The national stage will mark a tremendous opportunity for our club to return to play. We are looking forward to playing soccer again and beginning our 2020 season.”
According to ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle, the game will be played in front of fans. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear gave his approval for the venue to operate at up to 50% of its 15,304-seat capacity. Actual attendance will likely be less than that, though, and social distancing and other safety protocols will be in effect for those in attendance.
The Hounds have had success on the road against their conference opponent. They’ve won two straight road matches and have an all-time road record of 3-1-1 against Louisville City FC.
Just last week, the Riverhounds learned that they would be playing in Group F of the USL Championship, which means 12 of their 16 matches will be played against Hartford Athletic, Loudoun United FC, New York Red Bulls II and Philadelphia Union II.
Pittsburgh’s matchup with Louisville City FC will be one of the four games that it will play outside of its group against teams in close proximity. The Hounds haven’t played a game this season, but Louisville played one match before the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. They defeated North Carolina FC, 1-0.
The remainder of Pittsburgh’s 2020 regular season schedule will be announced in the coming days.
