Draft:Kentucky Derby Derby

The Kentucky Derby Derby or El Bluegrassico is a rivalry between two American United Soccer League (USL) teams in Kentucky: Louisville City FC and Lexington SC. Currently, the two teams are in different leagues within the USL. Louisville City is in the USL Championship (USLC) and Lexington is in USL League One. Due to this, matches between Louisville City and Lexington must occur in non-regular season play (unless relegation is introduced in the USL).

The name "Kentucky Derby Derby" originates from their first match. On April 5th, 2023, Louisville City and Lexington played in the 2nd Round of the U.S. Open Cup. During the match, the announcer joked that "This is the Kentucky Derby...uh Derby," playing on the name of Thoroughbred Racing's premier competition, the Kentucky Derby. As of July 2024, Louisville City and Lexington have only played once.

The soccer rivalry is a manifestation of the two cities, Lexington and Louisville, rivaling in ways beyond sports. As the two most populous cities in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, there is a lot of tension politically, socially and culturally. On top of that, both cities possessive the two largest universities in the state; the rival University of Kentucky and University of Louisville.

Background
Louisville City was founded in 2014, and has been on the USL's top clubs. Louisville City has won two USL Championships and remains near the top of the USL's ranking for average attendance. Unfortunately for Louisville City, the club developed two fierce rivalries with FC Cincinnati and Saint Louis FC-- two clubs that would dissolve due to their respective cities both gaining an MLS club. Due to the club's success and average attendance, many felt that Kentucky was primed for expansion to the MLS or for another club in the USL... thus, Lexington SC was born.

Lexington SC was founded in 2021, and has seen a stable beginning. To support their new club, the City of Lexington announced it would be building a new soccer stadium and complex around the team, expecting to host >5,000 fans..

In their first match, Louisville City and Lexington met in the 2nd Round of the U.S. Open Club. Louisville City soundly beat Lexington 1-0. Louisville outshot and outpossessed Lexington in both halves of the game.

In January of 2024, Lexington SC announced it was signing former Louisville City captain and all-time club leading scorer Cameron Lancaster. He was later announced to be Lexington SC's Captain