SoccerWise - NWSL Edition: Top Ten Moments Of 2024

Episode Date: December 27, 2024

While relaxing during the holiday season Jordan & David reflect on the best moments of 2024. From record unbeaten streaks to earth shattering coaching appointments they review it all and discuss what it could mean for the future of Women's Soccer in this region.Soccerwise Live 2pm ET Every Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday on Youtube/Twitch/Twitter

Hey everybody, welcome back to SoccerWise. David Gossin, Jordan Angeli with you. Happy holidays to everyone. I hope everyone is having a quiet, pleasant time with friends and family, getting ready for the new year. We are going to bring you your 2024 year recap in NWSL as we are all, you know, thinking about ourselves and looking back on the year that was as we prepare for January 1. Tom's been saying the diet starts January 1 for about four months. So it is, you know, that's the big time for all of us to change who we are and change everything about ourselves and get ready for the new year. It's going to be a really, really fun year. I am excited. It's going to be our first full year for SoccerWise covering everything going on in NWSL from the start of the year all the way through to the final. But to start off, Jordan, you won't be with us at the beginning of the year because you are going on an epic trip. Tell us a little bit about it. I am. I have been wanting to go here

for a long time. And so I accumulated a few points, travel points this year, Gus, calling NWSL Games. So I am taking myself on a fun trip with my college roommate and my best friend from growing up. And I'm going to New Zealand and Australia for three weeks at the beginning of the year. So I leave before the end of the year. I get to Auckland on New Year's Eve and that'll be fun. We'll be the first ones to celebrate the new year. Yep. So it'll be really, I'm excited. So if you guys out there listening have any like must do in New Zealand, we have a pretty good plan, but like restaurants in certain cities or adventures that you did that you're like, you got to do this, send them my way. You know where to find me. We are up for adventures during this trip. It's

going to be so much fun. It's summer there. And I feel like I miss summer here because I'm working the whole time. So I'm like, I'm excited to get a little bit more summer. Is summer, is it hot, hot? No, it's probably like what I've seen is like mid 60s to mid 70s. So probably like your ideal life. Dreams.

And there's beach and there's mountains too new zealand looks amazing i've never been i've been to australia had a great time in australia i know they're not the same to anyone who is from those places but they're kind of the same so you know relax uh but i'm very excited for you i very jealous. Do you have one thing that you're most excited for? Like one big whatever it is to see or do? Oh my gosh, there's so many things in New Zealand. There's a couple of hikes that I'm really excited for. But I would say that the biggest thing that I'm most excited for on the South Island,

you can take a day trip from Queensland to like these fjords in the south of the island. And you can go on a boat trip. We're going to go on a boat through the fjords. And it's going to be... These pictures are insane. And I just can't believe I'm going to see it with my own eyes. That is amazing. I'm very excited.

I cannot wait to see the pictures as you go along. And cannot wait to have you back. And then we can talk all about it. And talk about NWSL and all the things going on in the world. While Jordan is gone, we will still have shows. So this show obviously is coming out here in this holiday week while we are sort of off. We prerecorded it, the magic of television. And I've got some interviews lined up.

So people are going to join me to help fill in and talk about some really interesting topics, I think around the sport and around the league in this region. And then Jordan will return and we'll continue to do things. Also when Jordan does return, we're going to continue to do interviews and cover a bunch of different topics. So anyone that you think you really want to hear from any stories you think aren't being covered properly, feel free to shoot us a message and you can always subscribe to our

Patreon. And therefore you get on the discord and you can send me either mailbag questions for our mailbag episodes, or you can chat with other fans in our NWSL chat, US Women's National Team, Canadian National Team chats, or you can send me direct messages there and you can sort of talk to me about any topics that you think we're missing and that we should be covering even deeper. Let's dig into the year that was. It was a pretty special year. And we decided we were going to put together our top 10 moments from 2024.

As we started doing it, it felt like it was going to be a Casey Curran and Orlando Pride list. We ended up spacing it out a little bit, though. But I think let's start where you would start, chronologically, right at the beginning. Jordan, why don't you go number one? Okay, number one has to be the first game in the opening of the first ever women's professional soccer stadium, CPKC Stadium in Kansas City. My goodness, was it a barn burner. I think all of our jaws were on the floor with Portland and Kansas City just going, what, punch for punch in this one. Ended up being five

to four. Portland nearly came back with the comeback right at the end. I just thought it was such a, it was on ESPN, So it was a big stage as well. I thought it was the perfect moment to kick off this new season with all of the changes that were maybe happening and about to happen. There were it kind of told us that this was going to be an epic year in NWSL. We got to see Bia and Shawinga and Sophia Smith really go and show off in that game. Man, I don't think I'll ever forget that game and how like I remember texting people like, no way, this is happening again.

They're scoring again. What's going on? And just the noise. Remember the noise when the first goal was scored? That was incredible. It was the start of that moment where it was like, well, they're never going to lose a game here. And there was excitement going into the year like this building's being built but obviously we hadn't seen the crowds in KC specifically and so I think there was a little bit of like what does

this look like and as you said it's on ESPN it comes down and like you're like oh the crowd looks good and then immediately they explode the three goals out gate, I think it's three goals in the first 30 minutes for Kansas City and each one louder and louder. And it was like, oh my God, this is new. This is different. We haven't seen this before. And I think it turned Kansas City, no, 100% into must watch TV for the rest of the year.

Both from a style point of view of like, yeah, we'd rather beat you 5-4 than 1-0, which is like, okay, cool. Where do I sign up? How do I, what channel are you on? Let me know. And then any game at that stadium you were going to watch. Like that atmosphere was special and it was clearly an advantage for them.

And I just remember those first few games where it was like sideline to sideline, insanity soccer, where Casey was just like, we're going to create, we're going to create. And it was so much fun to watch. It takes me to my first moment of the year, which is the addition of Temwa Shawinga and Barbara Banda. And of course, on top of that, Oshuala and Kuninanji, the influx in transfer fees and money for these huge players and the style of players that they were coming to this league and ending up as your top two golden boot contenders. And Temwa Showinga breaking the record as the highest scorer in NWSL history.

I think she is. If I was starting a team, I'd start a team with Showinga, I think, because you saw over the course of the year how reliable she was, how consistent she was, and how many different ways she could find the ability to get in front of goal and finish. But she, I think her ability to play in the way she plays helped set the tone for Kansas City of who we're going to be. And everyone kind of followed along and was like,

yeah, we'll play these open games because we'll win because we have the biggest weapon in the ability to take advantage of this. And so to have these players of this quality and pedigree come into this league preseason was exciting. I remember when Oshawa was signed and Bay of C, you know, they have the cool graphics and the drawing and all this stuff. And you're like, this is unbelievable. And then to have Shawinga hit the ground running and then Banda come in right after, hit the ground running. And for the two of them to be going toe-to-toe in the Golden Boot Race, And to have Shawinga hit the ground running and then Banda come in right after, hit the ground running.

And for the two of them to be going toe-to-toe in the Golden Boot Race, I think it's not something we're going to see again. You have to remind yourself in the moment, like, oh, this isn't going to happen every year. That the two best goal scorers both join the league at the same time and are going toe-to-toe. Just watching, I'll never forget Barbara Banda, that first game she played. And we were all like, like, good luck, defenders. Just ridiculous with how quickly she adapted to this league and really put opposing teams on watch. And then Temuha Shawinga, when she scored that eighth goal in a row, in eight games in a row, excuse me, I was on the call, and I remember saying, what you want to do?

You want to keep her here in between the lines lines and you don't want to give her space. And the goal she scored right after I said that nearly ripped the net off. And you have to go back and watch Vlach Karinanovsky's reaction to the goal. Like this is a man who's seen everything and he was like, how do you score that goal um so it was I think moments like that are integrated in this African influx of players but also the top two finishers and how how fun they made this season because of this battle between them and how difficult they were to defend with um their set. So yeah, I like that. I like that pick, Goss. You want to take us to our third?

Yeah. Okay. Well, we're just going to stay, I guess, in Kansas City and talk about Kansas City, the regular season matchup between the two teams that were undefeated in the Kansas City Current and Orlando Pride. This game was heated. Red card to Kerry Lawrence in the first half. Orlando's playing down. And then they figure out a way on the road against the

Kansas City team, who I would say at that point were the better of the squads, right? When it comes to goal scoring, they flipped the table. They flipped the script. Orlando scores two goals to Kansas City's one. They beat them down a player in Kansas City. Marta does the baby celebration and the rivalry begins. I felt like that is a turning point that we're going to look back to because Kansas City fans will always hate Orlando pride. They will.

And that is going to be ingrained in what they do now forever. And that was just a, it was a fun game. It was a fun game to witness and to see one streak broken and the other continue, not just then, but for a long time. That was a fun game in the end of this whole season. It was one of the best regular season games I've ever seen. It was played like a championship in a playoff game. Yeah.

And I remember I was at my in-laws because we were there for a family thing. And was like i was like the game's on i gotta put the game on and you put it on and you know it's soccer we all know sometimes they don't live up and you got to be the one being like no no it's a big deal and like you didn't have to sell it the moment you turned the tv on it was like the atmosphere it was electric obviously the names are as big as they get with marta and all of that and then the red card was just absolutely ridiculous and to watch the way that as you said they flipped the script the game played out and all of that was unbelievable to see um I don't know if we'll see another undefeated streak like with both of them doing it you're like oh I guess this is a thing now and for sure

this year everyone's gonna have lost by week three and we're gonna build it up going into the season so it's hard to sort of take into stock what we saw but it was absolutely unbelievable and of course Orlando then continued to set records and everything um let's continue here let's go to our number four moment and I'm gonna go here with Kory Bethune who I think when you take away Shawinga and Banda was the other huge surprise this year. She was a rookie coming out of college as a draft pick. She was on pace to set the record for assists in a single season. She tied the record and then ends up getting hurt. But her explosion onto the scene this year was something we have rarely seen to the point where I think you said it first on the show, she was not just in line for rookie of the year. She was probably in line for MVP and she did it with Trinity Rodman kind of up and down at the beginning

of the season before Washington had brought in some pieces like a Lacey Santos from overseas. She was setting up Ulesar. She was scoring goals herself. She scored all of those stoppage time equalizers and winners. And her in the open field, I think, was one of the must-watch things in NWSL. And it really set the blueprint for Washington of like, they are going to be an elite team. They're going to push things.

And she's a player that can carry you. The injury was unfortunate. I still feel guilty because I said on this show, she tied the record. She'll set it like there's so many weeks. There's no chance she's not going to get another assist. And then she tore her meniscus throwing out the first pitch at the Washington Nationals. No one should be a part of the Washington Nationals. I think that is kind of like an accepted thing. There was the problem. But there's no way you look back on 2024. And if you talk about this year, one of the first names you're going to say is Corey Bethune. And she's the last number three pick in the NWSL draft. And the fact that she went third, I think, speaks to Washington that they took a risk on her because she has had three ACLs. She is now down with a knee injury.

This is a player who, unfortunately, I know all too well, when you have that type of baggage, teams don't always want to pick you. And I like that Washington took a risk, or what other teams felt like was a risk. They picked her third. She will be one of the best draft picks we ever see come out of the college draft and now that's all going to look different but i i love croy bethune's like humble confidence and i think that's one of the things that really helped her this year is how she carried herself and always

looking to be better but knew that she could come in and impact right away and that's exactly what she did it is is. Should we... Oh, I was going to say, should we stay in Washington? Yeah, I'm going to say real quick before we go to the next one. Okay. You talked about the last draft. Arguably the greatest draft in history for Washington. They picked up Hal Hersfeld in the first round.

They ended up with five players who all played significant minutes. I think it was four that started NWSL Cup for them. So went out on a bang with that one for sure. Maybe they broke the draft and therefore no one wants it anymore. Let's go to number five though and let's stick in DC. Yeah, it has to be the signing of Jonathan Geraldo as head coach for the Washington Spirit. I think everybody's jaw dropped on the floor when they saw that Michelle Kang was able to pull this off because Geraldo was in the middle of the Barcelona season, a season that would go on to be a record-breaking season.

He would win pretty much everything you can win. And this is a coach who is young, but even in his youth, he has so much experience as a head coach and has a real understanding of how he wants to play and I don't think it's just that he came to NWSL I think it's everything that's going to happen around him coming to NWSL the players that are going to come to play for him we've already seen that happen with Esme Morgan, probably Narumi coming there and wanting to sign with them as opposed to staying in North Carolina. I think this is going to be one of the tipping points in NWSL as to not just the best players are going to want to play

here, but the best coaches are going to want to coach here. And he was, he's going to be a trailblazer in that. And so I think that that was really a big moment in NWSL history. It is. I think it was one of the biggest signs of intent for Michelle Kang, right? You know how, what she's done already with the European teams that she owns. And I think it was, you started to realize the, like, there's a salary cap. So players are going to come, they're going to pay players. But like, what are the other things you can spend on? And Washington's going to do all of those things.

And this was the big moment. And I think it was a big moment because he ended up announcing, I believe it was December of 23 that he was going to come. And we were not outside of the, is NWSL a competitive league? Is it hurting the national team? Like where does this league stand in the world? And it ended up being a year, I think, that reset a lot of that. And this felt like the start of him deciding my next move from Barcelona is to the Washington Spirit and NWSL.

And on top of the attacking players we talked about, I think it was, what, a 250% increase in spending year over year for nwsl bringing players in from outside the league it was the largest jump and it was the second most spent in any league in the world but i think this one moment you can sort of circle and look back at 24 and say like this was a statement of intent from the league and obviously from one of the biggest teams um so you don't tell her all this comes into league and coming out of the biggest teams. So Yonatan Geraldo comes into the league and coming out of the league was a lot of legends this year. We had a lot of really big names finish their careers professionally. We had Alex Morgan finish off her career kind of in the middle of the season.

Alyssa Nair announced her retirement from the national team. Becky Sauerbron, we have now found out, has announced her retirement after the season ended. But the biggest one is the all-time leading goal scorer in world history, Christine Sinclair, saying that this would be her last year playing professionally. And from the moment she said that, Portland went on a run. And all of a sudden it was like, well, we're going to make sure at least you're going to play one more game.

And so her final home game, it was a Friday night game under the lights pouring rain in Portland and she scored she gets taken off because they have the big enough league for Megan Klingenberg one of the players she has played with almost the whole time in Portland one of the rare few have almost played as long as Sinclair it was the perfect send-off for one of the biggest names in the history of the sport and the history of the league. And the goal she scored was such a teaser. It was just like, so Christine Sinclair, she is always thinking ahead of everybody else in the box. And she just like jukes three players and the goalkeeper with like this, these pauses and these chops. And then she

was just like, all right, then now I'll find the back of the net I loved the goal I loved it showed off who she is in her prolific goal scoring technique and ability and it felt right she was also a part of the the goal that got scored a little bit later from Morgan Weaver that was like one of the best goals I think we saw in NWSL this year when it taught when it comes to team goals and the build-up that they had to that goal a little three-man weave action um yeah it was a really fun sand send off to watch Christine Sinclair there in Portland scoring her in her her last game in front of the Rose City Riveters who um gave her the biggest standing ovation they could when she left the field it was uh it was special it's one we'll always remember and um I hope Becky Sarabande gets hers as well, by the way. It was like so perfect that she did nothing and the goal scorer got the biggest moment.

Jordan, you want to keep us going here? Yeah. Yeah. Another one we picked was, it has to be, you know, it was an expansion year. So there's two new teams. There was an influx in international players and influx in players. But it's Bay FC as one of those expansion teams making the playoffs in their expansion year, only the third team to ever do it. And they did it in such unique style, I would say. They came out with an interesting build with a lot of superstars, but also veteran

defensive players trying to build this team off of and letting the flair be up top. A lot of goals for this Bay team in the first part of the year for them and also against them. They rebooted in the middle of the year, focused on defensive work, and then it was really from the international break for the Olympics on, that they found the combination of the two and made the playoffs and I think played one of their best games when it came to that playoff game in Washington where they lose off of an own goal in extra time. Sorry, extra time? Added time?

No, extra time. Extra time. Yeah. I always get confused. It's stoppage time or injury time during the game. Yeah, good. My dad loves this, like one little thing. And he's always like, whenever he hears me say it wrong, he always, and I'm like, okay, cool.

How was the rest of the game that I broadcast? And he's like, yeah, no, it was good. Okay, well, tell your dad that. He could make fun of me getting it wrong, too. It just was a really good performance from them, and I think a preview of what we can look forward to them going forward now that they've built this foundation and they've kind of settled into how they can have their style of play

but also be effective. Yeah, big for them, too to with all the hoopla around them and the the founding four and the inclusion of the bay area in nwsl again or not again in professional soccer again i think it was really big for them to make the playoffs in their first year it was um they started with the bang from an attendance and like obviously you know notoriety point of view and then the soccer wasn't there with it and it was like uh-oh how long is this gonna last so to stabilize and you have to go back to the moment of trading for abby doll kemper of they kind of built from the front as a expansion build and when they were able to solidify in the back that's really where things

took off for them and then you finally saw the best of kuninanji and osho all it because midway through the year they they i mean overall i don't think they performed from a stats point of view as what you'd expect setting transfer records and with their backgrounds but i think by the end of the year you saw and even you know in that playoff game kuninanji's goal the way she're like, okay, these can be the best players on the field for a really good team. Reminder, they only drew one game all year. It was like the most bizarre stat. They struggled on the road. They had some really weird up and down moments across the year.

But they definitely finished on a high. And they're definitely going to be one of the teams going into next year to watch. My moment, next moment, our eighth moment here, is what I think Bay FC would hope, which is Orlando finished last year on an undefeated streak, didn't make the playoffs, and then came into this year and decided, we're not going to take that risk. We're just never going to lose.

And for a large stretch of this year, we're never going to concede a goal. They set the record for longest shutout streak in NWSsl history they set the record for longest undefeated streak across any amount of time from last year to this year they also set the record for an undefeated streak to start a season and they had the best points total in nwsl history so they did everything they won the shield you were in the building when they won the shield they won the cup we were in the building when they won the shield they won the cup we were in the building when they won the cup and there are so many little moments in all of this that you that come to mind that you think of but Marta was at the center of a lot of it the goal against Kansas City is gonna probably go down as her signature goal now to just have defenders on

skates in a big moment and then of course her reaction and celebration and then her speech uh after winning nwsl cup and cursing on the national broadcast because march is gonna do what march is gonna do it was all special it was all incredible and to cap it all off the parade after they won first parade in orlando city history for a winning sports team packed great you know set up all of the local dignitaries were there the fireworks everything it really felt big and it felt huge and hopefully Orlando remains there as a club not just from an on-field perspective but mainly from the off-field perspective we've heard these marcha speeches in various international forums for a long time and I love that we got a couple of those this year not just at cup but when she won the shield too and I think what was it was special when she won the shield is that she got to thank the fans in

Orlando who have been there since she started with the team and she is the longest tenured player there and she has a lot of history there and it is not as it has not been easy. And what she said in the emotions that she conveyed when she got to lift the shield as a superhero in this in this game really give you that Marta moment. And I'm glad NWSL got one of those Marta moments, not just on the field, but with that, with her words and what she can do to inspire people. So I love that. I'm going to go to the ninth moment. And this is probably one of the biggest moments in general is a new CBA was announced. And we talked about a little bit with Kroy Bethune that there is no more college draft. There is no more expansion draft. Trades

have to be mutually agreed upon. There are contracts that are guaranteed. This was a huge CBA for NWSL and I think will change a lot of what we know of this league, how you build teams, how you retain players, what trades look like, all of those things. But hopefully in the long run, it really wants players, it allows players to stay here in this league as long as they can. And I think that's the big hope that we get players who continue to break records of numbers of games played in NWSL, of years of service in this league. And I think the CBA will be this year in the CBA in that it was renegotiated before it was even up is a big thing.

And it will be remembered for the work that Tori Huster and a lot of those people put in to make sure that this is not just that it's the best league in the world when it comes to playing, but also in when it comes to how players are treated. It is really exciting for, as you said, for players to have the control to choose where they want to play and when they want to play. And that's, I think, going to make people want to be in this league more. The thing that excites me the most is the pressure is now on the clubs because you don't get a draft pick. There's no guarantee Ali Centenor is coming to your state. There's no guarantee that Corey Bethune's coming. You have to build a project that they want to be a part of. And so without having all of these requirements of like,

oh, you have to spend X on your facilities. You have to have this field style. It's just going to be, you know, open season of if you don't do things the right way, players are not going to come. And so I think that's the most exciting thing is it's kind of like a one fix for a lot of little issues that can happen. And I think that's something to look forward to. I'm going to finish out on NWSL Cup. We already talked about Orlando. But for me, being at CPKC Stadium for the first time, us hanging out. And obviously the biggest moment of the year was SoccerWise starting and us covering this league.

And it was a really special way to finish it all off. I was so excited to go to the game. We talked about it. We don't go to a ton of games as much as we'd like because we are normally working and you're remote and other things like that. And so to just go and enjoy it. And I took a school bus from a brewery to the game and you wandered through the outside stuff and there's a concert and you're watching Temwish Wing and take

pictures with fans and all that just to soak it all in was really really special and really really cool and um for us doing this show has been really special and really exciting for me uh it's my first time covering this league as my profession and not just watching as a fan. And so it was a great capper for all of that. And it's a great finish to our list. Yeah, it is. It was so fun. It was fun to be there and to experience it and really to experience that stadium.

We've talked about should it be a neutral venue? I think this was the perfect neutral venue to have it at. And I felt like no matter where the fans were from, they really enjoyed the atmosphere that was there. And I loved watching the Orlando Pride fans that traveled celebrate with their team and the celebrations on the field that you get to see after a winning moment like that. So, yeah, what a nice way to end the season. Anything for 2025 before we get out of here.

What's your NWSL resolutions? Or one. Yeah, okay. I feel like I want to see – I feel like we're going to see more Brazilian players. So I'm, like, speaking this into existence. It feels like it's – the NWSL is now a space where Brazilian players are not just coming to play.

They are thriving here. So I'm going to put out that I want to see Yaya or Yasmeem come to NWSL. I think those two in particular could really have a heyday. Yaya just worked in the midfield of those late runs that she loves. And then Yasmeem as an outside back that can just crush up and down the sideline. That's one of my resolutions. I hope that we get to see one of those two players in NWSL in this 2025 season. Normally, as we learned from the anonymous GM survey, if you name players you want,

you're supposed to start with Tabitha Shewinga. Everyone's like, well, if Temo works this well, you got to go there. But I like that because what should happen is anyone who is from the Americas, NWSL should be the league you go to. It shouldn't be Spain. You shouldn't have to travel across the continent into other time zones because I think the best league in the world exists here. And obviously soccer is pretty great in all those countries.

I think in seeing Lacey Santos come here as well, you start to see the Conmebol, can all of the best players in the Americas come. So I love that one. I'm going to say I'm excited to see the college players come in to the league. Obviously, UNC, an incredible roster. I'm excited to see those players choose where they're going to go and sign. The one I'm most excited for,, and this is my like nerd space,

is Jordan Dudley. I thought she was unbelievable with the U20s, watching College Cup, watching the college NCAA tournament. I saw it all again. And she feels like one of those players, like a Corey Bethune, where you're like,

how good could it be? And then once it starts, you're like, oh, of course, they're the best player on the team already. And I think she has the potential to be that. I think there's a couple other pieces in college as well. And now they're going to get to choose where they go and sort of what roles do they want as a rookie. So that's going to be really exciting to watch in 2025.

And we're going to cover all of it here at SoccerWise. Week in and week out, Jordan is going to be backpacking through Mordor and the Lord of the Rings. And I will be here continuing to do the show. And then when Jordan gets back, we'll cover it all for you. So thank you all once again for listening all year. Thank you for all your support. Thank you for all your engagement. It keeps us going.

Please rate, review the show, like us and subscribe to us on YouTube where you can watch most of our shows. And of course, subscribe to us on Patreon so you can interact with us. But I hope everyone has a very pleasant holiday season. You know, sometimes you need something to break it up. So I hope this show helped to sort of step away from everyone for 40, 45 minutes and hang out and listen to us for a little bit and send us your top moments. What were the moments that you will think back on in 2024 that defined NWSL and the

sport in women's soccer. Overall, we didn't do the gold medal because we were talking NWSL on this one, but that one can come up and will be a big one as well. So Jordan, have a fun trip. Thanks for being here. And I'll talk to you again pretty soon. Yeah, we'll talk soon. We'll see you next time.