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Louisville City FC clinched a spot in the USL Championship Playoffs with a point vs. the Tampa Bay Rowdies last Saturday. With four games left in the regular season, the back-to-back champion is looking to improve its playoff positioning. 

“For us, we never had a doubt about getting there,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said of clinching a playoff spot. “It is really important that we continue to try to be the best team at the end of the year because that is when we have to be. We have shown a lot of improvement over the last two months and maybe Saturday was a wake-up call for us in that regard because we can’t rest. We have to continue to have that mentality and that attitude and these guys are the best at that so I have total faith that we will do that.”

The USL Championship Playoffs consist of 10 teams from both the Eastern and Western Conference. Louisville City is currently in 6th in the East and has secured a spot in the playoffs with 51 points. 

In the first round of the USL Championship Playoffs, the 7-seed plays the 10-seed and the 8-seed plays the 9-seed. By virtue of being 6th currently, Louisville City would get a bye during that first round. Louisville City is one point ahead of 7th place North Carolina FC and three points ahead of 8th place Ottawa Fury FC. 

LouCity has a crucial two-game road trip coming up, facing 9th place Saint Louis FC (42 points) in Saint Louis Saturday before facing 2nd place Nashville SC (58 points) Tuesday night in Nashville. While it is a two-game road trip, Hackworth is only focused on Saint Louis right now. 

“Saint Louis is an excellent team,” Hackworth said. “They are well-coached, they are really well organized so they are not going to give you a lot of chances. We are going to have to make sure we execute on the attacking side and be really careful of their dangerous counters and restarts. They do excellent work there.”

Wins in both of those matches would put LouCity at 57 points which could move them from 6th place up to as high as 4th place. That would be crucial as the top 4 seeds are guaranteed to host a playoff game in Round 2 of the USL Championship Playoffs. 

After Louisville City’s two-game road swing, the club returns home for its final regular-season match at Louisville Slugger Field ever on Saturday, Oct. 12 vs. the 17th place Swope Park Rangers. Then, LouCity will head on the road to face 12th place Memphis 901 FC in the final match of the regular season. 

With four wins to close out the season (at three points per win), Louisville City could finish the regular season with 63 points. The Pittsburgh Riverhounds currently lead the Eastern Conference with 61 points with three games left. 

Given how tight the Eastern Conference points race is, Louisville City’s final four matches of the regular-season are crucial for USL Championship Playoff Positioning. 

Louisville City squares off against Saint Louis at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Saturday night. The ESPN+ streaming feed is here: STLvLOU

Here are the current Eastern Conference Standings: 

Louisville City helped Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and the Louisville Parks Foundation open new turf soccer fields at Wyandotte Park Monday, marking the third phase of an award-winning partnership between the Louisville Parks Foundation and the club. 

“LouCity is excited to continue our partnership with the Louisville Park Foundation,” Louisville City Director of Youth Development Mario Sanchez said. “The new fields at Wyandotte will provide an opportunity to bring people together from all backgrounds in a safe and first-class facility to enjoy the sport of soccer.  This is a great day for the city of Louisville and the entire soccer community.”

Mayor Fischer joined the Louisville Parks Foundation (LPF), Churchill Downs officials, Coach John Hackworth, Sanchez and selected LouCity players, Louisville Parks and Recreation staff, other city officials, and donors Monday to celebrate the completion of three 5-a-side turf soccer fields in Wyandotte Park. The construction of the fields completes all three phases of the LPF turf soccer field campaign for South Louisville, which included five new fields in three public parks.“More now than ever, as a community, we’re depending on the work of non-profits like the Louisville Parks Foundation, and the generosity of those who support them, to help move this community forward with investments like the South Louisville Soccer Project,” Mayor Greg Fischer said. “I look forward to seeing this field and others full of competitors of all ages enjoying the game of soccer.”

Funding for the $200,000 project was the result of a partnership between the Louisville Parks Foundation, a non-profit that supports Louisville Parks and Recreation, Churchill Downs, the Gheens Foundation, Humana Foundation, Louisville City FC, Louisville Metro Council, JBS Swift/UFCW, CE&S Foundation, Aegon Transamerica Foundation, LG&E Foundation, ORCA Life, the Kentucky Colonels, and individual donors.

The Louisville Parks Foundation raised just under $500,000 to complete turf fields and drinking fountains in the three parks in fewer than 18 months. “Working with various partners in the community to create new amenities and support for our public parks, is what we, as a foundation, are all about,” said Louisville Parks Foundation CEO, Brooke Pardue. “We could not have completed this project without serious community investment from businesses like Churchill Downs, local foundations, and individual donors, large and small. Through our philosophy of projects through partnerships, we will continue to identify needs in our public parks, and work hard to provide new amenities to improve the health and wellbeing of our community, through play.”

After Monday’s press conference, local players from Butler Traditional High School were the first team to get to play on the fields. LouCity players Taylor Peay, Brian Ownby, Alexis Souahy and Shaun Francis joined them on the field to kick a ball around.

Butler Tradition High School coach Mario Carrillo and LouCity’s Sanchez spoke about the importance of the new fields in the community. 

 About the Louisville Parks Foundation:
The Louisville Parks Foundation (LPF)’s mission is to inspire donors to invest in our 120+ public parks and recreational facilities – for present and future generations. LPF was formed as a non-profit in December 2005 to support parks and community programs not funded by other local non-profits. In 2013, the Louisville Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular opened and the producers of the show partnered with the Louisville Parks Foundation, which became the recipient of the proceeds. Since then, the Foundation has completed major projects in California, Lannan, and Russell Lee parks, installed a 5-a-side turf soccer field at Beechmont, a 7-a-side turf field at William Harrison and built the first “Skate Spot” in the Midwest at Breslin Park. The Foundation is currently raising funds for nature play areas. For more information, visit www.lpfky.org.

About Louisville Parks and Recreation:

Louisville Parks and Recreation, a nationally accredited parks and recreation agency, manages 120 parks, 18 of which are Olmsted-designed, on more than 13,000 acres of land. Louisville Parks and Recreation also operates numerous youth and adult recreation programs and facilities, two historic homes, 10 golf courses, two arts and cultural centers, an outdoor performing arts theatre and two nationally-recognized skate parks. Its mission is accomplished by taking care of all parks properties and creating new ones, by providing safe and diverse recreational programs, and by protecting our public lands and resources for future generations. www.bestparksever.com

Louisville City FC played Tampa Bay Rowdies to a 2-2 draw Saturday night at Slugger Field in front of a season-record crowd of 10,620 fans. Check out some of our favorite photos from the match from photographers EM Dash and Bee Buck. 

Seatgeek Ticket Link: LouCity vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies

Louisville City FC hosts Tampa Bay Saturday night at Slugger Field in a matchup of two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. LouCity is the hottest team in the East, going unbeaten since July 28 and having won six of its last eight matches. 

The Rowdies are currently 3rd in the East, one point behind league-leading New York Red Bulls II. Tampa Bay leads LouCity by six points in the Eastern Conference table with three points on the line Saturday night. 

USL Championship: League Standings

“It is going to be a different challenge for us against Tampa than it was against the Red Bulls,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said. “Both teams have played well this season, but they have very different styles. How we adjust what we do is going to be critical this week.”

Louisville City has been playing its best soccer of the season the last eight weeks.

“I said it in the post-game interview on Saturday, I thought that finally beating (New York) would get us that respect — that recognition,” Hackworth said. “But reality is you look around the league and some national media who cover us, I still don’t think they’re giving us any respect. That just motivates all of us in the locker room. We’re two-time defending champions. We think we’ve earned the right to have a little more respect than we’re getting nationally. The only way we can do that is to keep beating top teams like Tampa.”

And over the last two weeks, the club has regained the service of several players who have been out for extended periods of time this season like forward Brian Ownby and midfielder Paolo DelPiccolo. 

“We have always maintained very competitive training sessions. That’s one of the things that hasn’t changed about this group all year long,” Hackworth said. “When you have more guys healthy, it helps keep the competition level high in training.”

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. tonight at Slugger Field. The game will be broadcast locally on WBKI TV and the radio broadcast is on 790 KRD. The game will also be streamed by ESPN+. 

Gates at Slugger Field open at 5:30 p.m. and music by Me and You, an acoustic duo, will begin at 5:45 on the Overlook Deck. Drink specials provided by Lunazul Tequila will highlight the pregame program with kickoff set for 7 p.m.

Louisville City has gone undefeated since July 28 including six wins in their previous eight matches. How did the run start? And can the defending back-to-back champs keep this remarkable streak going through the end of the regular-season?

“We’ve just fixed a lot of details and it started with our defending. We put an emphasis on making sure we didn’t give up goals early in the games, despite doing that against Red Bulls,” head coach John Hackworth said. “I think that has meant that we’re more confident in everything we’re doing.”

Aside from a different approach on the defensive side of the pitch, depth at the center back position has enabled Coach Hackworth to implement several different schemes and lineups.

“We know we have four really talented center backs on our roster,” he said on his defense. “All four have played a lot of minutes so far this year, so we have a lot of confidence in those guys. But having the consistency at the right moment at left back position has been key.”

Despite a number of injuries – from team captain Paolo DelPiccolo to the explosive forward Brian Ownby – the club has made a strong effort to return to the Eastern Conference playoffs for the 5th time in 5 tries.

One of Louisville City’s keys to the success of late has been the aggressive play from defender Pat McMahon, who did not see much of the pitch before the 8-game streak began.

“I would say personally is trying to defend first,” McMahon said on what has changed in his style of play to help the club. “That’s what I’ve been put on to do and then just organizing in the back and I think it’s coming together on the back line where we’re working with the midfield in front of us.”

The addition of McMahon to the lineup helped the Boys in Purple concede just three goals over a 7-game stretch beginning with a 1-0 clean sheet against then-playoff hopeful Charlotte Independence.

“In that game, we’re battling and it doesn’t look like it now but if you remember, Charlotte was in really good form, in a playoff position,” Coach Hackworth said. “We played well, we did what we tried to implement against them and we ended up winning that game despite being down a man for about 20 minutes.”

Down to just 10 on the pitch after a second-half sendoff, Coach Hackworth was left no choice but to take a defensive stand.

“It was towards the end and that kind of solidified that we had a lot of games left,” he added. “If we could just be good on the defensive side we would give ourselves a chance. And I think that’s something we’ve continued to do through this streak if you will.”

Now Hackworth and company will have a shot to earn points for the 9th straight match against 3rd ranked Tampa Bay Rowdies.

“They have a game in hand so if we’re able to win this and get three points, it makes us relatively even with them,” Coach said. “It’s a huge game and I like the team right – the way we’re working, our process, our confidence, our belief in each other.”

With just 9 points separating the first-place New York Red Bulls II and Louisville City, Saturday’s clash will be nothing short of playoff-style soccer. Kickoff against the visiting Rowdies is set for 7 p.m. at Slugger Field. 

TICKETS >> LOUvTBR @ Slugger Field

After collecting points in all eight of its recent matches and moving up in the Eastern Conference table, Louisville City FC takes another shot at the top of the table Saturday night when 3rd-place Tampa Bay Rowdies come to Slugger Field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. 

“I like our team right now,” Hackworth said. “I like the way we are working, our process, our belief in each other. We have a very good opponent coming into town and we have to respect them and give them our full attention.”

After 30 games, Tampa Bay is currently tied atop the Eastern Conference Standings with 56 points. The Rowdies are currently third based on tiebreakers with the New York Red Bulls II and Indy Eleven. Louisville City moved up to 6th in the East after taking three points from NYRBII on Saturday. The Boys in Purple have 50 points after 20 games played.

“It’s another challenge for us to see if we can continue to get better and get results. This is another six-pointer,” Louisville City FC coach John Hackworth said. “They have a game in hand so if we are able to win this and get three points it would put us relatively even with them. It’s a huge game.”

Tampa is coming off a 6-1 route of Bethlehem Steel on Saturday. The Rowdies got goals from five different players.

“Their movement in their front five in the attack is excellent,” Hackworth said. “Leo Fernandez is an excellent player. I know him from Philly because he played for me there. He played with Danny (Cruz) and Antoine (Hoppenot) there. The movement of their two nines and the playmaking ability of (Andrew) Tinari has been excellent. (Malik) Johnson has been excellent as the right wing back. They have good players and their movement in that front five is something we are really going to have to account for.”

Louisville City and Tampa Bay are linked because of a trade executed near midseason. Louisville City gained Antoine Hoppenot, sending Lucky Mkosana to Tampa.

“I know both teams felt like it would improve their teams and I believe it has,” Hackworth said. “We like what Antoine provides for us. Certainly, that will be a storyline coming into this game especially with both players scoring over the weekend.”

Louisville City’s recent run has consisted of wins over Charlotte, Atlanta, Charleston, North Carolina, Hartford, and New York draws vs. Indy Eleven and Pittsburgh. Hackworth said the run started with defense. 

“We have fixed a lot of little details and it starts with our defending,” Hackworth said. “We put an emphasis on making sure that we didn’t give up goals early in the game for most of this run – even though we gave up one against Red Bulls – I think that has meant we are more confident in everything we are doing. You saw that in the second half against Red Bull, how we answered there. We didn’t necessarily play our game, but that’s OK because we were up by three goals at one point and we were being more pragmatic.”

Louisville City FC and Tampa Bay Rowdies kick off at 7 p.m. Saturday night at Slugger Field. The game will be broadcast on 790 KRD radio and WBKI TV. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ in America and on YouTube worldwide.

Thanks to a two-goal performance in his side’s 5-3 win over New York Red Bulls II, midfielder Napo Matsoso earned a third straight nod for Man of the Match.

His recent scoring burst came after a bit of nagging from head coach John Hackworth, as noted by Matsoso himself.

“He’s been giving me a hard time since preseason,” Matsoso said. “It’s been a long waiting. I’m happy to finally score now, but we just have to keep going.”

Two goals in a three-minute stretch from number 27 opened the Louisville City lead to 3-1, including a strike off a rebound with another slotted in the bottom right corner on a long run.

“Oh, it felt good, especially with how New York Red Bulls play,” Napo said on the importance of his attack. “They press every time. They don’t really let any goals in, so it was massive to get that many goals.”

Great timing and brilliant skill from the Louisville native came in arguably the biggest match of an 8-game unbeaten streak for the Boys in Purple, with a chance at a win over the top-ranked Red Bulls II and a jump up the table on the line.

“Oh, it’s massive,” he said on the win. “I mean they’re the number one team in the East, so it was a huge motivation for us to continue winning, continue beating the top teams and showing the whole league that we are up there too.”

When asked about the last time the 5-foot-6, 150-pound Lesotho-born midfielder scored twice in a league match, Matsoso did not hesitate to answer.

“Never. That was the first one and felt amazing to have another win at home. Massive win against Red Bulls. All the goals came because of the team. We all believe in each other.”

Up next for Matsoso and the now 6th ranked Louisville City club is a Saturday night clash with a Tampa Bay Rowdies side sitting at 3rdin the table. Kickoff at Slugger Field is set for 7 p.m.

Louisville City FC notched a season-high five goals in a 5-3  win over league-leading NY Red Bulls II Saturday night at Slugger Field. The Boys in Purple extended their Eastern Conference-best unbeaten streak to eight games with six wins and a pair of draws since their last loss on July 28.

“I think it’s just one of those statement games really,” Hackworth said. “I feel like we’ve been doing really well. I think this is eight games unbeaten and no one’s really given us a lot of credit for that run. That’s a really amazing run at this time. You play the top team in the league right now and on the table and nothing speaks more than to go out and execute the way that we did.”

The New York Red Bulls II came into Slugger Field as the top team in the Eastern Conference.

“It’s what we have to do and what we believe we should do,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said of knocking off the top-rated Red Bulls. “I give them a lot of credit because they’ve had an excellent season and they’re in a great position. This is the position that we want to be in. I’ve said it all along, I believe that we are playing the best soccer of anybody right now, so that gives us a lot of confidence when we go face a team like New York.”

New York drew first blood with a goal by Vincent Bezecourt in the 20’, but Louisville City scored three straight goals to take a 3-1 lead. 

“It was a fantastic response,” Hackworth said. “The character of this group is really amazing. I just told them that not only am I proud of them but the way that they responded. Especially against a team like New York, who is really a tough team to play against and to break down. Especially if they go a goal up on you, I can’t say enough about it.”

Louisville City’s first goal, a screamer from Oscar Jimenez after an assist by Speedy Williams, equalized the score at 1-1 before Napo Matsoso had back-to-back goals in the 31’ and 33’ to put Louisville City up 3-1. 

“That was the first time (scoring two goals in a game as a pro) and it felt amazing to have another win at home,” Napo Matsoso said. “It’s a massive win against Red Bulls. All the goals came because of the team. We all believe in each other. We say every time after training, before training, ‘We believe in ourselves. We believe in what we are doing every game.'”

A handball call in the box gave the NY Red Bulls a penalty kick in the 37’, and Jared Stroud buried the shot to pull within a goal. But Louisville City got a goal in stoppage time from Antoine Hoppenot (assist to Brian Ownby) to give the Boys in Purple a 4-2 lead going into halftime.

LouCity midfielder Niall McCabe drilled a beautiful strike from 10 yards beyond the 18 to push LouCity’s lead to 5-2 in the 59’. The booming goal brought the 9,846 fans to their feet. A 71’ minute goal by Omar Sowe pulled the Red Bulls to within 5-3, but they couldn’t inch any closer.

STANDINGS UPDATE:

The win moved Louisville City from 7th to 6th in the Eastern Conference standings with 50 points. LouCity is two points behind fifth-place Pittsburgh Riverhounds and five points behind 4th place Nashville SC. NY Red Bulls II are now in a three-way tie for the league lead with 56 points but remain in 1st due to the goal differential tiebreaker.

GOALS:

20’ – Bezecourt – NYRB, 0-1

24’ – Jimenez – LouCity, 1-1

31’ – Matsoso – LouCity, 2-1

22’ – Matsoso – LouCity, 3-1

37’ – Stroud – NYRB, 3-2

45+2’ – Hoppenot – LouCity, 4-2

59’ – McCabe – LouCity, 5-2

71’ – Sowe – NYRB, 5-3

LouCity vs. @NYRBII    |     Tickets: LOUvNY on Seatgeek

Local TV: WBKI    |       Streaming Link: LOUvNY on ESPN+

Louisville City FC hosts Eastern Conference rival New York Red Bulls II Saturday night in a showdown which includes the last three USL Cup winners and two of the best clubs in the American Second Division. 

New York Red Bulls II are traveling to Louisville having already sewn up a spot in the USL Championship Eastern Conference Playoffs by clinching a spot two weeks ago. If the playoffs started today, NYRBII would be the top seed in the East. Louisville City, currently sitting in 7th in the East Conference, is looking for more points to move up a seed line (or two) before the playoffs begin. 

While New York is the higher-ranked of the two teams, Louisville City appears to be in better form. The Boys in Purple have not lost since July 28 and have five wins in the last seven matches. The Red Bulls have dropped their last two of their last three matches, two of just seven losses on the entire season. 

The Red Bulls figure to start a talented lineup with Evan Louro in goal and forward Mathias Jorgensen leading the way. Jorgensen scored the game-winner in the 80′ of NYRBII’s 1-0 win over Louisville back on June 16. 

Tonight’s match is LouCity’s Noche Latina, which will include music to honor Hispanic Heritage Month. The Mariachi Band Zelaya will play our pre-game Party Around the Pitch from 5:45 to 6:45. 

Louisville City FC finalized preparation for Saturday’s showdown with East-leading New York Red Bulls II with a Friday morning training session. The Boys in Purple largely dodged the heaviest rain, but a light rain came down near the end of the workout. 

Here are some photos from this week’s training: