There’s no place like home — at least that was the case for Louisville City FC in 2024, when the club won a USL Championship-record 16 of its 17 regular season home games.
The boys in purple return to Butchertown on Saturday for their 2025 home opener, hosting Loudoun United FC for a 4 p.m. kickoff at Lynn Family Stadium.
That league’s home wins record will be untouchable for the foreseeable future, as expansion of the USL Jägermeister Cup cut down the regular season in 2025. Across all competitions, LouCity finished 18-2-0 last season at Lynn Family Stadium.
“It’s no secret that in 2024 we made Lynn Family Stadium a fortress,” LouCity head coach Danny Cruz said. “We want to make this a place where teams… understand that it’s a difficult place to play with our environment and the way that we play.”
LouCity returns home after a two-game road swing to begin the season that saw them earn four points against the Charleston Battery and Birmingham Legion. That’s on top of a lengthy preseason that saw the team on the road for around three weeks.
“We’re so excited to be back home, to be back on our field, in front of our fans,” midfielder Taylor Davila said. “We all love playing there and playing in front of everyone.”
On Saturday, gates open at 2:30 p.m. for a $2 happy hour featuring beer, Pepsi products and bottled water. The first 2,500 fans can also pick up a commemorative 2025 home opener pennant upon entry, and complimentary schedule posters and magnets will be available to take.
The game also includes a special halftime ceremony: Mayor Craig Greenberg will present My Morning Jacket with a ceremonial key to the city in recognition of the band’s cultural contributions and deep roots in Louisville. This celebration coincides with a merchandise collaboration between LouCity and the acclaimed rock band.
Members of My Morning Jacket will be available from 3-3:45 p.m. for a pregame meet and greet with fans at Gate 7 to Lynn Family Stadium — near the I Love Tacos location, across from the Rabbit Hole Bar.
For tickets and more information on the home opener, visit loucity.com/opener.
Follow Along
• The game will air live locally on MyTV 58 and ESPN Louisville’s AM 680/FM 105.7.
• If streaming, download the free WDRB+ app to watch the local feed in Louisville or ESPN+ for national coverage.
• 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.
Story Lines…
I’m Amazed: LouCity defender Sean Totsch could become just the second player in USL Championship history to reach 22,000 regular season minutes in the USL Championship this Saturday — second only to the recently retired Kenardo Forbes, formerly of Pittsburgh. Totsch needs to play just 11 minutes on Saturday to hit the milestone, having played 21,989 career minutes. Totsch is in his ninth season in Louisville, and over 19,000 of his career minutes have come in purple.
Golden: Manny Perez opened the scoring for LouCity in last Sunday’s 1-1 tie at Birmingham, blasting an effort into the roof of the net on a breakaway in the first half. For him, it was his first regular season goal for Louisville City and his first for the club in any competition since the 2022 USL Championship Playoffs. His only other career USL Championship regular season goal came in 2020 for North Carolina FC, also against Birmingham.
One Big (home opener) Holiday: All time, LouCity is 6-3-1 in home openers with losses in 2016, 2020 and 2023. That includes a 3-2-0 record at Lynn Family Stadium. The team’s lone tie in a home opener came in 2017.
Victory Dance: LouCity 8-1-0 all-time in meetings with Loudoun United. The series dates to 2019. In those meetings, Louisville has outscored Loudoun, 15-7. In 2024, LouCity claimed a pair of 1-0 victories.
All the Best: Danny Cruz was very complimentary of his opposite, Loudoun coach Ryan Martin, in the buildup to Saturday’s game. “For me, (he’s an) incredible coach,” Cruz said. “I think he maximizes his group year after year.” Martin has been at the helm of Loudoun since May 2019. Despite missing the playoffs each season, Martin has led Loudoun to steady improvement. The team had just six points in the standings in 2020 but improved to 31 last season.
Circuital set pieces: In 2024, LouCity conceded goals from set pieces 16 times — tied for fourth-most in the USL Championship. That unfortunate trend has continued so far in 2025. Both goals that LouCity let in so far this season have come from free kicks.
Get the Point(s on the road): If there’s a team right now fit to spoil LouCity’s home mojo, it might be Loudoun United. The Northern Virginia club only earned four points from losing positions on the road in the 2024 regular season. In 2025, the team has already picked up six following come-from-behind wins in each of its first two games, at Birmingham and North Carolina. Additionally, Loudoun claimed a 3-2 road victory on Wednesday at West Chester United SC in the U.S. Open Cup.
