The 2026 USL Championship Playoffs are here.
And for Louisville City FC, the postseason couldn’t have come at a better time.
It kicks off Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Lynn Family Stadium, with the No. 4 seed LouCity hosting the fifth-seeded and defending champion Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal.
For tickets and more information, visit LouCity.com/playoffs.
Heading into the playoffs, LouCity is enjoying the longest unbeaten run of the season to this point — seven games across all competitions.
That run has been fueled by a stout and resolute defense. Louisville has posted shutouts in four of its last five games, including two games in a row.
With LouCity’s defense tightened of late, the boys in purple will be hoping the age-old sports adage, “Defense wins championships,” proves true.
It certainly did last season for Pittsburgh.
The Riverhounds scored just one goal over four games in last year’s playoff run to the title. The ‘Hounds lifted the trophy because of their defense — Pittsburgh did not concede a goal in the playoffs, advancing from 0-0 draws to win a penalty shootout three times.
“They went on an incredible run in the playoffs and went and won the whole thing. So we know that they’re a team that knows how to win, knows how to play playoff games,” LouCity interim head coach Simon Bird said. “But I would say we’ve had a very similar run, obviously, in the (USL) Cup this year to them. It should be a really good matchup, and we’re excited to be at home for it and excited to be in the playoffs.”
That might be the blueprint for LouCity this postseason — keep your opponent off the scoreboard.
“I think the games that we’ve played in the last six, eight weeks have all been similar, where we know it’s probably going to be a goal, like going into those two Hartford games, Charleston, like they’re good teams that we’re playing,” LouCity captain and defender Kyle Adams said. “So it’s just about keeping it tight at the back. Hopefully we can find one at the other end to relieve some pressure off us.”
Friday’s game might not be explosive in terms of goalscoring, but it will be intense — Bird and his players are expecting the atmosphere to match the intensity on the field.
“We want to start the game well, and we want the crowd to get into the game. So that’s really important for us,” Bird said. “The whole year we’ve been kind of working our way towards this moment and now it’s here and we want to take advantage of it and play with no fear, play with confidence and go into the game with our chest out and… give the fans something to cheer about.”
Follow Along
• The game will air locally on MyTV 58, with local radio coverage on ESPN Louisville’s 680 AM and 105.7 FM.
• For streaming, log on to WDRB+WAVE, ESPN+ or YouTubeTV.
• 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…
Back in black: Louisville City will wear the black ‘Lightning’ third kit in Friday’s game. LouCity is 2-1-1 in the kits this year, including a friendly against Trinidad and Tobago.
Seeding: LouCity has earned the No. 4 seed once before, in 2019. That postseason saw the boys in purple make a run to the final, where they fell to Real Monarchs 3-1 at home.
Playoff history: LouCity and Pittsburgh have met three times in the USL Championship playoffs previously, with LouCity leading 2-0-1. The lone draw ended with LouCity advancing 5-3 in a penalty shootout in 2022.
Home-field advantage: Pittsburgh has not won away from home since Aug. 22 at Brooklyn FC, a run of five road games. Pittsburgh was 5-8-6 away this season, in all competitions. One of those wins, however, was at Lynn Family Stadium on May 9, 2-0. LouCity is 11-4-4 at home, in all competitions.
Show us the way, Schewe: Since joining LouCity on loan in early September, goalkeeper Ryan Schewe has proven invaluable to LouCity. His 77.7% save percentage leads LouCity, while his five clean sheets in all competitions are tied for the team high. Schewe has started eight games for LouCity, between the USL Championship regular season and the Prinx Tires USL Cup.
Oh, man it’s Amann: Pittsburgh’s Trevor Amann has shown a knack for scoring against LouCity. This season, four of his nine league goals came against Louisville, including a hat trick in Pittsburgh’s 3-1 home win on July 18. That hat trick came in the span of just 3 minutes and 27 seconds, the quickest hat trick in USL Championship history.
