Expansion Rhode Island FC made its biggest acquisition to date, signing Albert Dikwa, the USL Championship’s 2023 MVP, as a free agent.
The 26-year-old Cameroonian, who signed a multi-year agreement, scored a league-high 20 goals in 28 games for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, the 2023 regular-season champions.
Dikwa and JJ Williams (12 goals for Tampa Bay in 2023) will give Rhode Island FC one of the USL Championship’s most formidable frontlines.
As a long-time Riverhounds fan, there is little coverage of the Riverhounds in the local press (and ironically, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s building is right across the river from the stadium, with an unobstructed view of the field). It seems we turn over half to 2/3rds of the roster every season, and often lose our marquis players (especially goal-scoring forwards). Is this common with other USL teams? Are the Riverhounds just cheap (like the Pirates), selling their better players (or not being willing to pay their worth)? I would understand if those key players were moving to the MLS (or another higher league) but most seem to go to other USL teams (as Dikwa did). It would be great if SA did a story on turnover in 2nd tier leagues.
Another appropriate topic would be the economics of a USL team; the Riverhounds sold out almost every game this year (5,500 capacity), but tickets are quite reasonable ($20-$30 for the best seats). Do they not have the money to pay their players? Do they make much money from the TV rights (I can’t imagine the viewing audience is very big)? Inquiring minds want to know….