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Dirty River Derby

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

River Cities Cup
Other namesDirty River Derby
LocationOhio Valley
First meetingCIN 2–3 LOU
2016 USL
(April 16, 2016 (2016-04-16))
Latest meetingCIN 1–0 LOU
2023 U.S. Open Cup
(April 26, 2023)
Statistics
Meetings total12
Most winsFC Cincinnati (6)
Top scorerChandler Hoffman (LOU)
(3 goals)
All-time seriesCincinnati: 6
Drawn: 2
Louisville: 4
Largest victoryLOU 5–0 CIN
2017 USL
(August 12, 2017)

The Dirty River Derby, also known as the River Cities Cup, is a rivalry between American soccer clubs representing Cincinnati, Ohio and Louisville, Kentucky. From 2016 to 2018, the cities were respectively represented in the second-tier league now known as the USL Championship by FC Cincinnati and Louisville City FC. Both teams played in the Eastern Conference of what was then known as the United Soccer League, and the River Cities Cup was contested solely in regular-season matches between the two sides, with the winner of the regular-season series claiming the cup. After the 2018 season, FC Cincinnati ceased USL operations, with the ownership group having been awarded a Major League Soccer franchise that began play under the FC Cincinnati name in 2019. From that point forward, the rivalry only takes place if the two teams are drawn together in the U.S. Open Cup, with the first such meeting after FC Cincinnati's arrival in MLS taking place in 2019.

The teams are located in cities situated on the Ohio River and are separated by roughly 100 miles of Interstate 71. The winner of the regular-season series won the cup for that year.

The last regular-season league match between the teams took place on September 11, 2018, with FC Cincinnati winning 1–0. The final cup holders are Louisville City, who retained the cup by winning the previous two regular-season matches that season.[1]

Beginnings

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Previous clubs

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Before the formation of Louisville City and FC Cincinnati, various soccer clubs, both professional and amateur, played in the respective regions. The Derby City Rovers played in the fourth-division Premier Development League and played at the Woehrle Sports Complex in Louisville's northern suburb, Jeffersonville, Indiana. The Louisville metropolitan area also housed two indoor soccer teams prior to Louisville City: the Louisville Lightning, who played in the Major Arena Soccer League from 2009 until 2013,[2] and the Louisville Thunder who played in the American Indoor Soccer Association from 1984 until 1987.

The rivalry between the two cities long predates the arrival of professional soccer in the region; most notably, the largest universities in the two cities, the University of Cincinnati and University of Louisville, had a longstanding football rivalry that ended in 2013 due to conference realignment.

Formation of the USL clubs

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Both clubs were formed in the early to mid 2010s. The formation of Louisville City FC began with the formation of the club's current supporters group, The Coopers, whom aimed to build a grassroots support base to bring a professional soccer team to Louisville.[3] The following year, a local ownership group invited the owners of Orlando City to meet with the Coopers supporters group. In 2015, the team Louisville City was born and served as the USL affiliate for Orlando City as they jumped from USL to Major League Soccer.[4] In 2016, the affiliation ended with Orlando City creating its own reserve team to field in USL.[5]

That same year, reports swirled of USL seeking expansion into Cincinnati.[6] The formation of the ownership group came from a partnership between the Cincinnati Bengals NFL franchise and the former soccer club in the region, the Cincinnati Kings, when Jeff Berding was named as part of the potential ownership group.[7] In the summer of 2015, more details on the new club were announced. The Lindner family, of American Financial Group headquartered in Cincinnati, was announced the owner of the new club with Carl Lindner III representing the owners at the press conference.[8] Subsequently, the team name "FC Cincinnati" was announced as the club's name, as well as their coach, and stadium.[9]

Naming

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While already unofficially known among fans as "The Dirty River Derby", an online poll by both clubs was released asking fans what their preferred name for the series cup would be. Amongst the options included the "River Cities Cup", the "Steamboat Cup", the "Royal Cup", the "100 Mile Cup" or the "Riverboat Rivalry Cup".[10] On February 5, 2016, it was announced the "River Cities Cup" had won.[11]

Rivalry

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First season (2016)

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The two teams played their first match on April 16, 2016, at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati in front of a then-USL-record crowd of 20,497. Cincinnati jumped to an early lead over Louisville with a sixth-minute goal from Austin Berry. Louisville's Chandler Hoffman scored the first hat-trick in series history, scoring three unanswered goals for Louisville in the next 30 minutes to give Louisville a 3–1 lead over Cincinnati. In the 40th minute, Louisville's Sean Reynolds received the first red card in series history and Louisville played the final 50 minutes down to ten men. Cincinnati was able to score a late goal in the 90th minute, but the match ended 3–2 in Louisville's favor. The return leg in Louisville ended as a scoreless draw as four yellow cards were dished out. Cincinnati would ultimately win the series in 2016 against Louisville, by earning a 2–0 victory on July 23, 2016. USL golden boot winner, Sean Okoli scored the insurance goal.

Biting controversy (2017)

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External image
image icon Photos taken by EM Dash Photography allegedly show Djiby biting McCabe's face. In one photo, Djiby's face is directly pressed against McCabe's right cheek, and in another, a mark is visible on McCabe's cheek.

The rivalry continued into its second season when Louisville visited Cincinnati for a USL match on Saturday, April 22, 2017.[12] Tensions rose between the clubs after an incident in the 87th minute, when Cincinnati forward Djiby Fall was shown a straight red card and then briefly had an exchange of words with Louisville midfielder Niall McCabe before exiting the pitch. In a post-match interview, Louisville head coach James O'Connor alleged Djiby bit McCabe's cheek during this exchange.[13] FC Cincinnati denied the claims the next day, writing in a statement, "We have seen no evidence to substantiate the allegations made by Louisville City Head Coach James O'Connor and it is our belief his post-match comments are not true. [...] Any attempt to portray Djiby as a dirty player is extremely unfair."[14]

Fans of both clubs clashed on social media for several days in the wake of the allegations. The USL's weekly disciplinary report, published the following Wednesday, announced that Djiby's red card suspension would be extended to six games for "major game misconduct", which they later confirmed was for biting an opponent.[15] FC Cincinnati manager Jeff Berding sent out a newsletter to fans the next day, stating that the USL decision had come after a failed appeal attempt by Cincinnati. He wrote that the club respected the USL decision even though they disagreed with it, and that the club continued to support Djiby, stating, "[we] will welcome him when he returns and I hope you will do the same."[16]

Rivalry continues (2017–2018)

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Corben Bone of Cincinnati and Niall McCabe of Louisville fight for the ball in the 2017 U.S. Open Cup.

Louisville and Cincinnati faced each other in their first non-USL match on May 31, 2017, when they met in the third round of the 2017 U.S. Open Cup, again hosted in Cincinnati. Although Djiby's six-game suspension (originating from the previous Cincinnati–Louisville match) had not yet ended, he was allowed to play as in-league suspensions do not apply to the U.S. Open Cup. Cincinnati won 1–0, with Djiby scoring the sole goal at the 48th minute.[17]

The two clubs did not meet again until the next season, when Louisville won 1–0 at FC Cincinnati's home opener on April 7, 2018. Lou City officially retained the cup for 2018 with a 2–0 win on May 26, also at Nippert Stadium. Cincinnati defeated Louisville 1–0 in the final regular season match between the two clubs on September 11, 2018.

FC Cincinnati leaves USL (2019–present)

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FC Cincinnati moved up to Major League Soccer after the 2018 USL season, putting the two teams in different leagues for the first time. The cup is no longer officially recognized since the teams are not guaranteed to compete every season. The two teams have since met twice in the U.S. Open Cup; in the fourth round of the 2019 U.S. Open Cup on June 12, 2019, at Nippert Stadium, and in the third round of the 2023 U.S. Open Cup on April 26, 2023, at TQL Stadium.

Results

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Home team is listed on the left, away team is listed on the right. Home team's score is listed first.

  Cincinnati win   Louisville win   Draw

April 16, 2016 USL FC Cincinnati 2–3 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:00 PM EDT Berry 6'
Okoli Yellow card 9'
Delbridge Yellow card 31'
McMahon 90+2'
USL Report
FCC Report
LC Report
Hoffman 17' (pen.), 24', 33'
Reynolds Yellow card 28' Yellow-red card 40'
Montano Yellow card 89'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 20,497
Referee: Brandon Artis
June 25, 2016 USL Louisville City FC 0–0 FC Cincinnati Louisville, KY
7:30 PM EDT Reynolds Yellow card 45' USL Report
FCC Report
LC Report
Delbridge Yellow card 39'
Polak Yellow card 41'
McMahon Yellow card 61'
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field
Attendance: 10,062
Referee: Brandon Artis
July 23, 2016 USL FC Cincinnati 2–0 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
4:00 PM EDT Wiedeman 39'
Berry Yellow card 45'
Okoli 59'
Bone Yellow card 72'
USL Report
FCC Report
LC Report
Lubahn Yellow card 13'
Abend Yellow card 30'
Quinn Yellow card 50'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 20,151
Referee: Alex Chilowicz
April 22, 2017 USL FC Cincinnati 1–1 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:00 PM EDT Mansaray Yellow card 30'
Berry Yellow card 50'
Walker Yellow card 69'
Quinn 78'
Fall Red card 86'
FCC Report
LOU Report
Box Score
Ownby 19'
Totsch Yellow card 20'
DelPiccolo Yellow card 83'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 20,437
Referee: Mark Kadlecik
May 31, 2017 USOC FC Cincinnati 1–0 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:00 PM EDT Delbridge Yellow card 27'
Djiby Yellow card 38', 49'
Polak Yellow card 90'
CIN Report
LOU Report
Box Score
Smith Yellow card 42'
Abend Yellow card 60'
Craig Yellow card 91'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 6,519
Referee: Brandon Artis
Assistant referees: Maggie Short
Assistant referees: James Duling
Fourth official: James Ulrich
Note: Media related to FC Cincinnati vs. Louisville City FC, 2017-05-31 at Wikimedia Commons
July 15, 2017 USL Louisville City FC 2–3 FC Cincinnati Louisville, KY
7:30 PM EDT Ilic 8' (pen.)
Smith Yellow card 27'
Davis IVYellow card 36'
DelPiccolo Yellow card 78'
Wiedeman 90+3' (o.g.)
CIN Report
LOU Report
Djiby 16'
Bone Yellow card 52'
Delbridge 55'
König 77'
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field
Attendance: 11,632
Referee: Marcos de Oliveira
August 12, 2017 USL Louisville City FC 5–0 FC Cincinnati Louisville, KY
7:30PM
USL Report
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field
Attendance: 13,812
Referee: Charles Murphy
April 7, 2018 USL FC Cincinnati 0–1 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:00PM ET Emmanuel LedesmaYellow card 35' Report Cameron Lancaster 13', Yellow card 47'
Ilija IlićYellow card 90+5'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 25,667
Referee: Joseph Dickerson
Assistant referees: Cory Richardson
Assistant referees: Jame Duling
Fourth official: William Gaither III
Note: Media related to FC Cincinnati vs. Louisville City FC, 2018-04-07 at Wikimedia Commons
May 26, 2018 USL FC Cincinnati 0–2 Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:30 EDT Paddy Barrett Yellow card 28'
Richie Ryan Yellow card 33'
Dekel Keinan Yellow card 81'
Report Cameron Lancaster 15'
Paco Craig Yellow card 55'
George Davis IV 73'
Devon Williams Yellow card 85'
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 26,495
Referee: Ramy Touchan
Assistant referees: Kyle Longville
Assistant referees: Dan Stupca
Fourth official: Adam Warner
September 11, 2018 USL Louisville City FC 0–1 FC Cincinnati Louisville, KY
7:00 EDT DelPiccolo Yellow card 90+3' USL Report
CIN Report
Bone 23'
Richey Yellow card 90+2'
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field
Attendance: 10,009
Referee: Joshua Brooks
June 12, 2019 USOC FC Cincinnati 2–1 (a.e.t.) Louisville City FC Cincinnati, OH
7:30 PM EDT
Report
Stadium: Nippert Stadium
Attendance: 6,895
Referee: Ismir Pekmic
April 26, 2023 USOC FC Cincinnati 1-0 Louisville City Cincinnati, OH
7:00 PM EDT Jimenez Yellow card 40'
Ordóñez 85'
Stadium: TQL Stadium
Attendance: 10,062
Referee: Calin Radosav

Top goalscorers

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As of April 26, 2023. Does not include own goals.
Top scorer, Chandler Hoffman
Position Name Team Goals
1 United States Chandler Hoffman Louisville City FC 3
2 Senegal Baye Djiby Fall FC Cincinnati 2
England Cameron Lancaster Louisville City FC
4 Nigeria Fanendo Adi FC Cincinnati 1
United States Richard Ballard Louisville City FC
United States Austin Berry FC Cincinnati
United States Corben Bone FC Cincinnati
United States George Davis IV Louisville City FC
Australia Harrison Delbridge FC Cincinnati
Serbia Ilija Ilić Louisville City FC
Canada Mark-Anthony Kaye Louisville City FC
Denmark Danni König FC Cincinnati
The Gambia Kekuta Manneh FC Cincinnati
Republic of Ireland Niall McCabe Louisville City FC
United States Pat McMahon FC Cincinnati
Zimbabwe Lucky Mkosana Louisville City FC
United States Sean Okoli FC Cincinnati
United States Arquimides Ordonez FC Cincinnati
United States Brian Ownby Louisville City FC
United States Aodhan Quinn FC Cincinnati
United States Sean Reynolds Louisville City FC
United States Luke Spencer Louisville City FC
United States Andrew Wiedeman FC Cincinnati

Players who played for both clubs

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As of April 25, 2023
Player Louisville City FC career FC Cincinnati career
Span Apps Goals Span Apps Goals
United States Aodhan Quinn 2015–2016 57 5 2017 17 2
United States Kadeem Dacres 2015–2016 59 9 2017 21 0
United States Luke Spencer 2017–2020 93 29 2016 11 0
United States Pat McMahon 2018–2021 37 1 2016–2017 28 1
United States Corben Bone 2020–2022 65 8 2016–2019 108 16
United States Jimmy McLaughlin 2021 21 3 2016–2020 92 11
United States Tyler Gibson 2021– 71 0 2018 9 0

References

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  1. ^ Murray, Nicholas (May 26, 2018). "Louisville Strikes Twice to Defeat Cincinnati". United Soccer League. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
  2. ^ Warner, Adam (March 14, 2013). "Q&A with Ted Nichols: A fire in his belly for soccer at all levels". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, KY: Gannett Company. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
  3. ^ Main, Dalton (January 8, 2014). "Louisville could soon host pro soccer team". Louisville, KY: WDRB. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
  4. ^ Main, Dalton (January 14, 2014). "Louisville soccer fans rally around possible pro team". Louisville, KY: WDRB. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
  5. ^ Tenorio, Paul (June 30, 2015). "Orlando City to own, operate USL franchise in 2016". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  6. ^ Hollingsworth, Chad (May 10, 2015), USL to Expand to Cincinnati in 2016, archived from the original on October 8, 2016, retrieved May 28, 2017
  7. ^ Monk, Dan (August 6, 2015), Cincinnati Bengals exec Jeff Berding trying to bring a new pro soccer franchise to town, WCPO-TV, archived from the original on August 8, 2015
  8. ^ Vicar, Nathan (August 12, 2015). "Details released about new FC Cincinnati pro soccer team". FOX10 News. Archived from the original on December 23, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
  9. ^ Report: FC Cincinnati set to announce 2016 USL expansion, John Harkes as head coach, MLSSoccer.com, August 11, 2015, archived from the original on September 30, 2015, retrieved May 28, 2017
  10. ^ Litner, Jonathan (February 2, 2016). "LouCity FC asks fans to 'name the rivalry'". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, KY: Gannett Company. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  11. ^ Brennan, Patrick (February 5, 2016). "FC Cincy, Louisville City to compete for 'River Cities Cup'". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, OH: Gannett Company. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  12. ^ Brennan, Patrick (April 24, 2017). "FC Cincy takeaways: River Cities Cup again lives up to hype". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  13. ^ Lerner, Danielle (April 22, 2017). "Late equalizer spoils Louisville City FC result". The Courier-Journal. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  14. ^ Brennan, Patrick (April 23, 2017). "FC Cincy, Lou City at odds over alleged Djiby bite". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  15. ^ Brennan, Patrick (April 26, 2017). "FC Cincinnati's Djiby Fall suspended for 'major game misconduct'". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  16. ^ Brennan, Patrick (April 27, 2017). "FC Cincinnati: We will welcome Djiby back". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  17. ^ Brennan, Patrick (May 31, 2017). "FC Cincinnati, Djiby down Louisville City FC in U.S. Open Cup". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
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