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Pittsburgh Riverhounds

Hounds new kit sponsor is 84 Lumber

Pittsburgh’s top-soccer club will be sporting a new look in 2022 – or at least a new logo on the fronts and backs of their jerseys.

On Tuesday the Riverhounds announced a ‘multi-year’ deal with 84 Lumber, the largest privately held building materials company in the US to put their iconic red logo on Riverhounds kits, stadium signboards, and website. The ’84 ball’ logo will be on the front of Hounds new yet-to-be-released secondary jerseys, and will appear on the back of the black and yellow primary jerseys.

Allegheny Health Network, a long-standing advertiser with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, will remain on front of team’s primary kit.

In addition to the simple fact of giving the Riverhounds much-needed ad revenue to help them sign the best available USL talent, 84 Lumber is in many ways an ideal brand for the club to be associated with. The company is locally based in Eight Four, PA, located 20 miles south of Pittsburgh. The company operates nearly 250 stores in more than 30 states, and, under the leadership of President Maggie Hardy Knox, is one of the largest woman-owned and -operated businesses in the U.S. with more than $7 billion in sales revenue during 2021. 84 Lumber has a strong reputation of philanthropy, and makes a concerted effort to employ US military veterans. They report that 10 percent of all employees have a military background.

They made a small advertising splash in 2017 with a Super Bowl ad that riled up some folks. The ad featured scenes of a Mexican family taking a long and arduous journey, only to be stopped by the US border wall.

The company reported a record $4 billion in sales in 2020.

In a Riverhounds press release, Riverhounds owner and local construction magnate Tuffy Shallenberger expressed his great excitement and partnering with the building supply company. Shallenberger said, “This is very exciting for us to partner with a brand that comes from right here in Western Pennsylvania and is recognizable to folks across the United States. I’ve worked closely with the Hardy family for a long time in my construction business, and I’m happy we’re able to have their support and the support of 84 Lumber while we keep growing the Riverhounds here in Pittsburgh.”

The feeling was mutual on the part of 84 Lumber.

“We are excited to launch our partnership with the Riverhounds,” 84 Lumber Vice President of Marketing Amy Smiley said. “As a Western Pennsylvania-based company, we are already rooting for the Hounds. It will be a lot of fun to bring 84 customers and associates to games and see the team sporting our iconic logo.”

Mark Asher Goodman is a writer for Pittsburgh Soccer Now, covering the Riverhounds, the Pitt Men's and Women's teams, and youth soccer. He also co-hosts a podcast on the Colorado Rapids called 'Holding the High Line with Rabbi and Red.' He has written in the past for the Washington Post, Denver Post, The Athletic, and American Soccer Analysis. When he's not reading, writing, watching, or coaching soccer, he is an actual rabbi. No, really. You can find him on twitter at @soccer_rabbi

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Riverhounds MF Kenardo Forbes

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