It’s game on for the KC Current: some final basics ahead of NWSL championship kickoff
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KC Current in NWSL championship
Kansas City’s women soccer team will play the Portland Thorns in the championship game on Saturday, Oct. 29.
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It’s all come down to this for the Kansas City Current: One last game, Saturday evening in Washington D.C., for the championship of the National Women’s Soccer League.
Here’s a final rundown of things you might want to know before the Current meet the Portland Thorns for perhaps the most coveted hardware in women’s soccer, aside from the World Cup: the NWSL trophy.
How to watch: TV and streaming
Live telecast on the CBS (Ch. 5 in Kansas City) and Paramount+ starts at 7 p.m. Central Time (CT) Saturday; the game will also be broadcast internationally on Twitch.
Big Blue Crew watch party in KC
The Blue Crew, the Current’s supporters group, often fills the KC Live! Block in the Power & Light District for watch parties, but Saturday’s watch party will be in a different location.
Those who didn’t travel to Audi Field to see the game in person are invited to the Haverty Family Yards at Union Station to watch the game live. The gates open at 5:30 p.m. and it’s free for all.
Food, drinks and more will be available through trucks from local vendors. Don’t be alarmed if you forget to wear teal — the Teal Mobile will also be on site for the game, spreading cheer and selling merch.
Pre-match coverage
Begins at 5:30 p.m. CT, per the NWSL, “exclusively on Paramount+, highlighted by Kate Abdo, Midge Purce, Lori Lindsey, Jenny Chiu, Jenn Hildreth and Aly Wagner.” CBS Sports’ Abdo will host pre-match coverage from Audi Field beginning at 6 p.m. CT, with Lindsey, Chiu, Columbus Crew sideline reporter Jordan Angeli and player-guest NJ/NY Gotham FC forward Midge Purce providing insight and analysis.
Pre- pre-match coverage
Catch “The Road to the 2022 NWSL Championship Presented by Ally” for behind-the-scenes coverage of the championship teams at 1 p.m. CT on CBS and Paramount+.
KC Current and Thorns’ records
The KC Current went 10-6-6 in the regular season, 2-0 in playoffs; the Portland Thorns were 10-3-9, 1-0 in playoffs.
Their road to D.C.
Portland earned the No. 2 seed (and quarterfinal bye) into the NWSL postseason, the Current the No. 5 seed. The Thorns beat the San Diego Wave 2-1 in the NWSL semifinals last weekend.
KC Current basics
Who is the Current’s coach? Matt Potter, 52, is in his first season with the Current. A native of England, he formerly coached the women’s soccer teams at Washington State and Oklahoma. He also brings a wealth of international-level experience from years spent coaching the U.S. U23 squad.
Who owns the Current? The club has three principal owners — Angie and Chris Long and Brittany Mahomes. The former two are a KC power-couple in business, and Mahomes, formerly Brittany Matthews, has emerged as part of Kansas City’s new guard of entrepreneurship. Mahomes (yes, she’s married to the Chiefs quarterback) is a former college and professional soccer player in her own right, and together the three owners of the KC Current bring a diverse set of skills to the business of running a successful, no-nonsense pro-sports franchise.
Who is the Current’s general manager? Camille Levin Ashton, 32, is a former U-23 national-team captain and accomplished college player who won a national title with Stanford in 2011 and went on to play in the NWSL, as well as overseas. Most recently, before her hire by the Current this spring, she’d worked in talent acquisition for the WWE (yes, pro wrestling).
Who are some top players for the Current? There are more than a few top players on this “next woman up”-oriented club, but at the risk of overlooking others, we’ll share just several here ...
- Lo’Eau LaBonta: The penalty-kick specialist leads the Current with 8 goals this season. She’s heart and soul of the Current, and half of a soccer power-couple in KC — husband Roger Espinoza is a veteran Sporting KC defender.
- Kristen Hamilton, forward: Hamilton has scored 7 goals this year. She scored one of KC’s two goals in the Current’s 2-0 semifinal victory against the OL Reign last weekend.
- Cece Kizer, forward/midfield: A KC native, Kizer started the season playing for Racing Louisville FC, but a midseason trade brought her to the Current. She’s been a goal-scoring machine (7 so far) but exited last weekend’s semifinal early after knocking heads with an OL Reign player.
- Hailie Mace, defender: Mace plays all over the field. Look for her to make some long runs Saturday. She’s scored 4 goals with 2 assists this season.
- AD Franch, goalkeeper: A native of Salina, Kansas, Franch was acquired from the Thorns last summer via trade. She’s been a rock in the net for the Current ever since, including this postseason.
Some very basic Portland Thorns basics
The Thorns had for years been considered the class of the league, but the organization has more recently been the face of scandal in the NWSL thanks to toxic former coach Paul Riley.
The quick lowdown on the Thorns now: They have a newish head coach in Canadian women’s national team veteran Rhian Wilkinson and a familiar-to-KC field general in former FCKC star and USWNT veteran Becky Sauerbrunn. Link off here for a more detailed look at Portland’s active roster.
Current and Portland Thorns head-to-head: The teams have played each other two times this year. Here is a recap of the scores from those games ...
- April 30: Thorns 3, Current 0 (in Portland)
- Sept. 18: Current 1, Thorns 1 (in KC)
The Star’s Joseph Hernandez contributed to this report.
This story was originally published October 28, 2022 at 12:14 PM with the headline "It’s game on for the KC Current: some final basics ahead of NWSL championship kickoff."
