PITTSBURGH (Dec. 18, 2023) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC has announced the match schedule for its 25th anniversary season today, part of the full USL Championship schedule release for the 2024 regular season.
The Hounds — winners of the 2023 Players’ Shield — once again will play a 34-match schedule with home-and-home contests against their fellow Eastern Conference clubs and one meeting with each of the league’s Western Conference teams, for a total of six home and six away inter-conference matchups.
The season will kick off with two of those Western Conference opponents, as the Hounds begin on the Championship’s opening day, Saturday, March 9, with a road match at New Mexico United in Albuquerque. The following Saturday, March 16, will be the start of action in Pittsburgh when the Hounds host Orange County SC in the 12th home opener at Highmark Stadium.
Highlights of this year’s schedule include an early-season playoff rematch with Detroit City FC on April 27 at Highmark Stadium, a midweek showdown with Louisville City FC on Wednesday, June 19, and another home-heavy summer slate that includes four consecutive home weekends in the month of July.
The regular season extends two weeks longer than a year ago, and the Hounds wrap up with two of their final three on home turf — longtime rival Charleston Battery comes to Highmark on Oct. 12, and and the schedule ends with a home match Oct. 26 against El Paso Locomotive FC.
Across the league, changes for this season include the introduction of two new opponents to the Eastern Conference. The Hounds will face newcomers Rhode Island FC for the first time on the road on April 13, and on May 18 they will host North Carolina FC, which returns to the Championship after three seasons in USL League One. As part of the changes, Memphis and Tulsa move to the Western Conference in place of San Diego and Rio Grande Valley, both of whom left the league.
The national broadcast schedule for the USL Championship will be announced a later date, and the Hounds also will announce their local broadcast schedule in the coming months. Select games in 2024 will be shown on CBS, CBS Sports Network and Paramount+ as part of the USL Championship’s new national deal with CBS.
The Hounds are coming off their best-attended season in history during 2023 with 13 of 17 regular-season matches selling out. Season tickets and Flexbook ticket plans for 2024 are already on sale, and single-game tickets will go on sale in early February. To purchase and lock in your seats now, contact the Riverhounds Ticketing Department at 412-865-GOAL or by email to ticketing@riverhounds.com.