Three months ago, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC owner Tuffy Shallenberger stood at a lectern at Highmark Stadium to announce the next era for the club. 

At its heart, a $125 million expansion of the club’s already-iconic venue on the banks of the Monongahela River which would bring its official capacity to 15,000, and the estimation that between games and events throughout the year half-a-million visitors would be attracted to Pittsburgh’s South Shore annually. 

“Since 2014, we have invested significant capital and effort into this stadium and growing soccer around the area. Now, we have a major opportunity to continue that growth,” said Shallenberger in a club statement. “This expansion is going to be great for our fans and allow us to take our teams to the level we want to reach, but it’s also going to bring additional events here that will help the entire Pittsburgh community. We’re excited to start and take this next step forward.” 

On Saturday afternoon, with a large contingent of travelling support led by the Steel Army behind them, the Hounds created their own on-field landmark, lifting the USL Championship trophy for the first league title in the club’s 26-year history. 

The side’s penalty shootout victory against FC Tulsa at ONEOK Field produced exuberant celebrations for players and fans alike, one that after years of postseason disappointment finally provided the release of joy those who had achieved a deep connection to the club – as players, staff or supporters – had been waiting for.  

What’s more, in claiming the Steel City’s first professional sporting crown since the Pittsburgh Penguins lifted the Stanley Cup in 2017, it provided a further boost to the Hounds’ visibility in a sports-mad city. 

“Like I said last week, I hope this is something that kind of cements soccer, and the Riverhounds’ place, in that echelon of Pittsburgh sports teams that has so much rich tradition,” Hounds midfielder Robbie Mertz told WTAE’s Felicity Taylor as the club was welcomed back by fans on Sunday at Pittsburgh International Airport. “I think people are paying attention now, and people recognize how fun it is to come watch a game on a Saturday night at Highmark. They recognize the quality of the team, and the impact it can have on the community, so it's awesome.” 

A Pittsburgh native, Mertz has seen the impact of the Hounds up close. As a youngster he trained in the Riverhounds’ Development Academy before competing at the University of Michigan and returning home to sign his first professional contract with the Hounds in 2019. With 159 appearances in the USL Championship for the club – and now one of the most iconic goals in club history thanks to his game-winner against Rhode Island FC in the Eastern Conference Final this postseason – the 28-year-old has had a front-row seat to the club’s progression. 

But for those who’ve arrived at the club more recently, the same trajectory is apparent. In the build-up to Saturday’s final, goalkeeper Eric Dick was effusive in his praise for the support not only the Hounds had been backed throughout the year, but also the club’s new USL W League club Pittsburgh Riveters SC during its inaugural season this summer. 

“I think there's a huge plan for Pittsburgh moving forward, with the stadium unveiling and just this year alone, this is a huge step in that right direction,” said Dick. “I think that attention needs to be made to the progress that Tuffy has done with this organization and the future that will come here in Pittsburgh for Pittsburgh soccer.  

“The Riveters this year, I mean, it was attended to sold out every game. They had a lot of bad weather, unfortunately, they had rainstorms, I think, at every single home game, but they still had fans come out and support. Soccer is just growing in Pittsburgh, and it makes me so happy. I’m honored to be a part of it.” 

Pairing the Hounds’ title-winning breakthrough with the work that’s been achieved by club President and Pittsburgh native Jeff Garner since his arrival in 2022 and the rest of the club’s staff to build bridges across the city’s other sporting organizations and local businesses, the Hounds have reached an inflection point that can propel the club to even greater heights.  

They might not be the Steelers, Penguins or Pirates yet, but the Hounds appear on their way to becoming one of Pittsburgh’s great sporting success stories. 

“The Pittsburgh sports nation loves trophies, loves their teams, and we would just be one of many teams, good teams, hopefully to bring home a championship here,” said Dick last week. “I know the fans would be behind us, and are behind us, and I think [winning the Final] would just be a way to cement the fact that the Riverhounds are a serious organization.” 

With Saturday’s goal achieved, the Hounds have never been readier for the next chapter.