_(cropped).jpg) McCabe playing for Louisville City in 2017 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1990-10-06)6 October 1990 (age 35) | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Louisville City | ||
| Number | 11 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2010 | Colaiste Ide | ||
| 2010–2014 | Young Harris College | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2013 | Knoxville Force | ||
| 2014 | Chattanooga FC | 14 | (5) |
| 2015– | Louisville City | 249 | (22) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of October 25, 2025 | |||
Niall McCabe (born 6 October 1990) is an Irishfootballer who played as amidfielder forLouisville City FC retiring after the 2025 season.
McCabe was born inRingsend,Dublin. He grew up playing with his local side Cambridge Boys and Ashbourne United in Meath among others, before deciding to travel to the United States to pursue a scholarship offer and a chance to earn a degree atYoung Harris College.
McCabe played four years ofcollege soccer at the NCAA Division IIYoung Harris College between 2010 and 2014, after playing soccer in his high school years withColaiste Ide in his hometown ofDublin, Ireland.[2]
In 2012, McCabe led the Peach Belt Conference in goals and was second in assists; winning the conference's Golden Ball and being named to the All-Conference 1st team. In 2013 he was named to the All-Conference 2nd team.[2] McCabe totaled 32 goals and 31 assists in 62 games atYoung Harris to place second all time in goals and first all time in assists at the school. While at Young Harris, McCabe played in 2012 and 2013 forKnoxville Force[3] of theNPSL, but in 2014 moved toChattanooga FC in the same conference. For Chattanooga, McCabe totaled 5 goals in the 2014 NPSL season, which took Chattanooga FC to the NPSL finals.[4]
McCabe joinedUSL clubLouisville City FC on 12 February 2015 and made his debut in Louisville City FC's first game.[2] He appeared in 27 of the club's 28 regular season matches; starting 17. He scored four goals on 16 shots on goal.[5]
McCabe scored two goals and registered four assists while appearing in only 21 matches.[5] He had season ending surgery to repair a hip labral tear on his left side which his originally injured during the 2015 season. His last game was on 10 August against theHarrisburg City Islanders; missing all of the USL Cup Playoffs.[6]
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After staying in Louisville to rehab over the winter McCabe was able to train with the team during the preseason and appear in the team's opening match (a scoreless draw against rivalSaint Louis FC).[7] He would go appear to appear in 23 matches and score three goals with four assists in league play.[5] On 22 April McCabe was bitten byDjiby Fall while playing rivalFC Cincinnati. Fall would be sent off and suspended for six games while McCabe received a tetanus shot.[8] Louisville City would go on to win the USL'sEastern Conference and theUSL Cup.[9] McCabe would be named to the match squad for all four playoff matches but would only appear in the Conference semifinal againstRochester.
McCabe had his contract renewed with Louisville[10] and he made his season debut on 17 March against USL expansion sideNashville SC where earned both a goal and anassist.[11] He went on to appear in 22 of Louisville's 34 matches while scoring four goals with four assists.[5] He also appeared in two of Louisville's fiveU.S. Open Cup matches as Louisville reached the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time in its history.[12] This included a 3–2 victory over theNew England Revolution ofMLS; Louisville's first victory over an MLS side.[13] McCabe also appeared in all four of Louisville'sUSL Cup matches and scored two goals in Louisville's first round match against theIndy Eleven; his first brace as a professional.[14] He and Louisville went on to win the USL Cup Final againstPhoenix Rising.[15] On 9 October McCabe became the first Louisville player to reach 100 combined appearances in both the USL and USL Cup playoffs.[16] He finished the year with 111 appearances across all competitions.
McCabe resigned with Louisville for the 2019 season as the final player from the original roster to remain with the club.[16]
Louisville City
