You’d have to be living under a rock (or not care about American soccer) to not know about USL’s deal with CBS. The deal, announced in November of last year, would put broadcasts of the USL’s multiple leagues onto “CBS Television Network, Paramount+, CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network.” Tomorrow, for the first time, a USL Championship match will be broadcast on network television.

In a rapidly dividing viewing market, where streaming platforms abound, the USL still sees network television as a big deal. Senior vice president of the USL Championship, Jeremy Alumbaugh, discussed tomorrow’s broadcast with Protagonist Soccer. “I think it's a massive priority for us because it shows our growth. The broadcast world for sports has changed immensely in the last 5, 10 years or so. And when a league like the USL can have a national broadcast on, free over the air TV at a national level, I just think it shows the growth of the league and, just as importantly, the growth of the sport in our country.”

Kyle Adams, Louisville City captain. *Photo credit Chris Humphrey*

The broadcast, set for 4p ET, will showcase Louisville City FC hosting Indy Eleven. Louisville is in peak form, currently 3-0 and on top of the standings in the Eastern Conference. The same can’t be said of Indy Eleven, who are currently 9th in the standings with a single win. However, both clubs exemplify what Alumbaugh sees as a big strength of the USL: successful clubs bringing soccer to smaller markets. “The growth of soccer isn't just going to happen in Las Angeles, Chicago, New York, and the big cities. Those cities are massive and we're fortunate to be in a number of those, but the game is going to grow by connecting this sport to more and more communities…For people that don't live in big cities to be able to have that same passion, that same love affair, to go to a game on a Saturday afternoon or a Saturday night, I think is really how we continue to grow.”

The match tomorrow should be another notch in the belt for USL as a whole, as the league has shone brightly in the US Open Cup this year. Clubs from throughout the USL leagues have shown well in the competition, mostly at the expense of other leagues. Putting a USL-C match on broadcast tv, particularly one from Lynn Family Stadium, which is the soccer-specific home of Louisville City and NWSL club Racing Louisville, further highlights the success of the league.

- Dan Vaughn