Orlando Kick Off NWSL Title Defense with a Bang ⚡️

Happy Tuesday, TWG readers!

I’m currently flying home after a quick trip to LA, where I cheered for Angel City, spoke on a panel, and ate some delicious food. Let me tell you - BMO Stadium and the Angel City game were 100% worth the outing! It was good weather, I got to meet so many fans, and the game was really enjoyable. San Diego really impressed me, especially the attacking creativity of Delphine Cascarino. She’s a player who can really help lead this team as they redefine themselves this year.

Make sure you check out my interview with Angel City’s very own Christen Press on our Youtube channel. While you’re at it, an all new episode of Good Vibes FC with Becky Sauerbrunn drops today as well. We cover NWSL opening weekend, WSL relegation, and give a quick preview of the Champions League quarterfinals this week.

Coming up on Thursday, we welcome Jenna Nighswonger of Champions League quarter-finalist Arsenal to Friendlies! The USWNT gold-medal-winning defender talks about her decision to go to England and reveals whether she’s loving beans on toast as much as I do (which is a lot).

Don’t forget - you can always send me an email with your questions or comments. Thank you all so much for being a part of this with us! 

Love,
Sam

NWSL Is Officially Back, Baby 🏟️

Weekend One: A strong start for Orlando, Gotham make history, and a whole bunch of draws.

• Last year’s first and second-place teams, Orlando Pride and Washington Spirit, both won their opening games Friday evening to open the new season. Zambian star forward Barbra Banda scored a brace of goals (below) and notched an assist to 26-year-old American forward Julie Doyle in Orlando’s 6-0 victory against Chicago Stars. Meanwhile, the Spirit beat the Houston Dash 2-1, with goals from Makenna Morris and Ashley Hatch. 

• Saturday, Kansas City Current beat Portland Thorns 3-1. Last year’s Golden Boot winner and NWSL MVP, Malawian forward Temwa Chawinga, scored just two minutes into the game for Kansas City.  

• Gotham, who finished third in the table in 2024, began their new campaign drawing Seattle Reign 1-1. Newly signed Brazilian midfielder Gabi Portilho scored in her debut (below), while 14-year-old forward Mak Whitham became the youngest player to appear in an NWSL match when she subbed in for Spanish striker Esther Gonzalez in stoppage time. 

• Elsewhere in the league, four of seven games ended in a 1-1 draw. The competition looks set to be fierce all season for a league famed for its parity across the table. 

Next Weekend: Last year’s top four teams go toe-to-toe.

• Kansas City Current vs. Washington Spirit (Saturday, March 22, 7:30 p.m. ET, ION): 2024’s second-place Spirit and fourth-place Kansas City were just one point apart in the standings last season. Both teams won their opening matches and face each other Saturday in Washington, D.C.

• Orlando Pride vs. Gotham FC (Sunday, March 23, 5:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2, ESPN+): Orlando won the NWSL Shield and Championship in 2024, and started 2025 with a big win against Chicago. Sunday, they’ll face last year’s third-place Gotham FC, who opened the new year with a 1-1 draw against Seattle after an off-season filled with roster changes. 

More: In a heartfelt message posted to social media, USWNT and NWSL veteran Sydney Leroux announced she is temporarily stepping away from the game to focus on her mental health, and will return to the game when she’s ready. 

Also: ESPN’s NWSL ambition rankings, who is number one this year?

🥤 Olipop power everything we do here at The Women’s Game. You can use code TWG20 for 20% off your first order at drinkolipop.com/TWG20.

A Busy Weekend in England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 

Chelsea Win 2025 League Cup 🏆

On Saturday, four straight tests between Chelsea and Manchester City began with the Blues’ first trophy of the year. England’s undefeated top-of-the-table team, Chelsea, beat Manchester City 2-1 at Pride Park to collect the 2025 League Cup trophy. 

More: Chelsea win Women’s League Cup to keep quadruple dream alive

Also: Do Chelsea prove WSL has a competitiveness problem?

WSL - Matchday 16 of 22 ⚽️

Arsenal moved back into second place after beating Everton 3-1, while Manchester United lost 3-1 to Liverpool at Anfield. As the relegation battle heats up, 12th-place Crystal Palace picked up their first home win in a 3-1 victory against 11th-place Aston Villa. 

European Roundup: Cup Competitions Galore 🌍 

🇫🇷 Première Ligue  

• As they prepare for the Champions League midweek, France’s first-place Lyon beat 10th-place Reims 8-1 with a brace of goals from both Norwegian striker Ada Hegerberg (below) and Australian defender Ellie Carpenter (her first goals for the club since 2020).

• U.S. veteran Crystal Dunn got the start at right back for her new club, PSG, in a 0-0 draw against fellow Parisian club, Paris FC. PSG ended the weekend in second place while Paris FC finished in third. 

🇪🇸 Copa de la Reina & Liga F

After beating Real Madrid 3-1 in leg two (8-1 on aggregate) of the Copa de la Reina semifinal, Barcelona is set to play Atlético Madrid (who beat Granada 5-2 on aggregate) in the Copa de la Reina final June 8. Over the weekend, Barcelona also won 2-0 against Tenerife in Liga F as they prepared for UWCL this week.

🇩🇪 Frauen-Bundesliga 

Bayern Munich kept their hold on the top spot after defeating third-place Wolfsburg 3-1. With both clubs preparing for Champions League tests this week, UWCL’s top scorer, Pernille Harder, scored a brace for Bayern in their win.

Women’s Champions League Quarterfinals 🏆

Eight teams still vying for the 2025 UWCL trophy launch their quarterfinal campaigns this week across Europe. Here’s a quick look at the matchups:  

Real Madrid vs. Arsenal (Today, 1:45 p.m. ET, DAZN)

Real Madrid hosts Arsenal in Spain for the first match of the round. This is Real Madrid’s first quarterfinal appearance since their debut in 2021/22, when they lost to fellow Spanish side Barcelona. Conversely, Arsenal are one of just eight clubs to claim a European Championship. Tuesday’s test marks their 16th quarterfinal appearance, though they’ve struggled in the event in recent years. 🇪🇸🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Bayern Munich vs. Lyon (Today, 4:00 p.m. ET, DAZN)

Today’s second matchup sees eight-time champions Lyon head to Germany to play Bayern Munich. USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps (nee Horan) won the Champions League trophy with Lyon in 2022, and now has U.S. right-back Sofia Huerta at her side. 🇫🇷🇩🇪

Manchester City vs. Chelsea (Wednesday, 4:00 p.m. ET, DAZN)

On Wednesday, England’s first-place WSL side, Chelsea, visits fourth-place Manchester City. As we mentioned earlier, this test is the second of four back-to-back meetings over two weeks between the two clubs. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Wolfsburg vs. Barcelona (Wednesday, 1:45 p.m. ET, DAZN)

The reigning UWCL champions, Barcelona, face Wolfsburg in Germany Wednesday evening for the final match of the round. The Spanish giants have won three UWCL titles, all since 2021, and have appeared in every UWCL final since then. Wolfsburg has won twice, but not since 2014. They’ve also been the runner up four times, including when they lost to Barca in the 2023 final. 🇪🇸🇩🇪

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News & Notes 🗞️

• USWNT and Washington star forward Trinity Rodman has confirmed that at some point, she’d like to play football in Europe. More: Is Emma Hayes influencing USWNT players to go abroad?

• Coming Soon FC: Boston’s NWSL team, set to enter the league in 2026, announced it will change its name following negative feedback to their original brand rollout as BOS Nation FC. 

• Jason Sudeikis has confirmed that Ted Lasso will return for Season 4, with writers working on the new season now. This time, Lasso will coach a women’s team. 

Parting Shots 🥃

“The will of my mother was like… you are going to rise up and score a header goal.” — USWNT veteran forward Christen Press told Sam about her iconic 2019 World Cup goal against England (and lots more) on last week’s episode of Friendlies. Watch the full episode here.

Good Reads 📚

• From HerFootballHub, ‘Anastasiia Klipachenko: Ukraine WNT lack of sponsor, training during war and ‘priceless’ women’s football’

• From Anne Peterson in The AP, ‘The growth of women’s sports is spurring a building boom’

• From Talia Barrington in The Cut, ‘Jessica Berman Is Taking the NWSL to New Heights’

• From Tom Garry in The Guardian, ‘Vivianne Miedema: ‘Women’s football is proud to be inclusive but it is starting to slip. We need to act’

Moments of Joy 🤸

After Kansas City Current defeated Portland Thorns at CPKC Stadium this weekend, defender Ellie Wheeler got an on-field surprise when her boyfriend dropped down on one knee to propose in front of her teammates and fans. ❤️

📝 Want to be featured in next week’s TWG newsletter? Send Sam an email! All your questions, comments, and dog (or wedding) photos can be sent to [email protected]

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