The last several seasons have featured many firsts for Louisville City FC on the international stage.
In 2023, LouCity faced opposition from Europe (FC Kaiserslautern) and Mexico (Atlante FC) for the first time, both in friendlies.
The next season, 2024, LouCity welcomed a team from a top-five European league for the first time, as Eintracht Frankfurt of Germany’s Bundesliga visited for a friendly and training camp. Cancún FC, of Mexico, also visited.
Frankfurt repeated the trip in 2025, while LouCity added a game against Spanish opposition for the first time when CD Leganés visited Lynn Family Stadium.
On Saturday, LouCity will take on a senior national team for the first time, as Trinidad and Tobago comes to Butchertown. The game kicks off at 8 p.m. at Lynn Family Stadium.
After a summer full of international soccer, with America captivated by the FIFA World Cup, LouCity fans will get an up-close view of the international game.
The Trinidad and Tobago team is known as the “Soca Warriors” by their fans. They rank 102nd in FIFA’s world rankings, missing out on this summer’s action after third-place group stage finish in Concacaf World Cup qualifying.
The Trinbagonians are entering a new era. Derek King took over as head coach earlier this year, replacing Dwight Yorke, a legendary figure who was arguably the nation’s greatest player.
King has been charged with leading Trinidad and Tobago in the upcoming Concacaf Nations League, which will kick off in September. Saturday’s game provides a crucial final chance for the Soca Warriors to prepare — as of now the national team has no more scheduled games before the next tournament begins.
Earlier this week, Concacaf officials drew Trinidad and Tobago into Group A for the upcoming tournament, along with Costa Rica, Haiti, Curaçao, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.
Success in that group means qualification for the knockout round, where traditional Concacaf powers like the United States, Mexico and Canada await next spring.
For LouCity, Saturday’s stakes aren’t quite as high. The boys in purple are in the midst of their season, with a short turnaround in front of them — LouCity hosts the Birmingham Legion on Wednesday.
But Saturday’s game is an opportunity for LouCity to bounce back from a loss to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds last weekend.
Follow Along
• The match will air locally on MyTV 58, with local radio coverage on ESPN Louisville’s 680 and 105.7.
• For starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter. Also, find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram and Louisville City FC on Facebook.
Storylines…
Where do they play?: The Trinidad and Tobago roster for this game features 20 players, including seven who have yet to play for the national team. Of those 20, 13 play in the TT Premier Football League, the top division in Trinidad and Tobago’s domestic system; four play in the United States; two play in Europe and one plays in Jamaica. Of the US-based players, Samory Powder plays for USL League One team Westchester SC, while the other three compete for USL League Two clubs. Of the European-based players, Diego Nanton plays for Swiss third-tier club Vevey-Sports while Judah Garcia plays for GS Ilioupolis of the Greek third tier. Adriel George plays for Racing United FC of the Jamaican first division.
Young Soca Warriors: The Trinidad and Tobago roster has an average age of 24 years. Of the 20 players, 10 are under the age of 23 and four are under the age of 20, including 15-year-old Adasa Richardson. Veteran Jamali Garcia is the oldest player on the roster at 33.
Academy call-ups: The LouCity roster for Saturday’s game will include two new additions from the LouCity Academy: midfielder Marty Wicinski and forward Cooper Conley. Wicinski is a Louisville native and Trinity High School graduate who will play at Colgate University this fall. Conley is from Woodinville, Wash., a suburb of Seattle in King County, where he was the 2025 Gatorade Player of the Year in the state. Conley is committed to play at the University of Notre Dame and recently competed for LouCity’s USL League Two development team, where he made two starts and scored one goal.
Not so friendly: All time, LouCity has played seven open-door, midseason friendlies against outside competition. The club is 2-5-0 in those games, including six games against foreign opposition and a 2015 friendly against Orlando City SC of Major League Soccer.
