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Weeks after the WNBA played a marquee game at 12:30 on a Thursday due to an arena scheduling conflict, the NWSL is also facing venue and scheduling issues for its biggest games.
The usual home stadiums for the NWSL’s top-seeded teams all had scheduling conflicts for the semifinals, which are slated for Saturday Nov. 14, and Sunday, Nov. 15. A Division III football game was scheduled for Saturday at the Washington Spirit’s home stadium, Audi Field, which is owned by MLS team D.C. United.
The Spirit announced Sunday that it would host the semifinal game against the Utah Royals at Audi Field on Saturday, though the club did not say where or when the DIII game between the Merchant Marine Academy and the Coast Guard Academy would be played.
The other team set to host a semifinal, Gotham FC, will now slide into the Sunday semifinal spot, avoiding their own Saturday scheduling conflict with New York Red Bulls, the MLS team that owns their home venue. But, there are still serious issues with the pitch at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey.
Players and coaches complained about the quality of the pitch after Sunday’s 1–0 quarterfinal win over Seattle Reign. The Red Bulls had a regular season MLS home match Saturday night.
“I feel the obligation to almost apologize for the state of the pitch,” Gotham coach Juan Carlos Amorós said after the match. “I think at this level, in this kind of game, as a league we should be having a better surface.”
This upcoming weekend, Gotham is scheduled to once again play on Sunday after a Saturday night Red Bulls game, a friendly against Mexican side Club América. The NWSL and Gotham have explored moving their semifinal game to 5,000-seat Icahn Stadium in New York, ESPN reported last week. A Turkey Trot 5K is currently scheduled on the island park that surrounds the stadium on Sunday morning.
The NWSL previously fined Gotham $10,000 for poor pitch quality for the final match of the regular season, which was two days after the stadium hosted a rugby match, according to ESPN. NY Red Bulls and Gotham did not respond to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for the NWSL’s players union did not comment on the quality of Gotham’s pitch, but said the players association was not told about the fine last week.
“Throughout the semifinal scheduling process, the NWSL has prioritized preserving home-market advantage and, wherever possible, providing clubs the opportunity to compete in their regular home venues, while balancing competitive considerations and the best possible experience for players and fans,” a spokesperson for the NWSL told Front Office Sports. “We are continuing to finalize venue arrangements for Sunday’s Gotham FC vs. Kansas City Current match and expect to confirm those details today.”
The NWSL nearly had another venue problem on its hands. No. 2 seed, the San Diego Wave, would have had a scheduling conflict on Saturday with a San Diego State football game, if not for being upset by No. 7 Utah.
The stadium debacle comes less than a month after the WNBA rescheduled all three of its Finals games in Atlanta last month. The Atlanta Dream play most of their home games at the 3,500-seat Gateway Center, but moved playoff games to the much larger Hawks’ State Farm Arena. When the Dream made the Finals, though, the team ran into a series of conflicts with NBA games and a concert; Game 6 tipped off at 12:30pm local time on a Thursday afternoon.
The Spirit, who beat the Portland Thorns 4–1 on Sunday, are now hosting Saturday’s 12 p.m. Eastern game after bumping the Secretaries Cup between the Merchant Marine Academy and the Coast Guard Academy. The league had been considering a possible Spirit semifinal at the Washington Commanders’ Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, ESPN reported last week.
It’s unclear when and where the Secretaries Cup will be played. On Monday morning, the schedules on both schools’ websites still listed a 1 p.m. Saturday game at Audi Field. Spokespeople for the military academies did not reply to a request for comment.
Saturday’s Spirit–Royals game will be on CBS, while Sunday’s Gotham–Current game will be on ABC. The winners will advance to the NWSL Championship in Washington, D.C on Nov. 21.
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