Big crowd, lots of goals but no win for Reign FC in homecoming for World Cup stars
The grass seating on the south side of Cheney Stadium was jammed with spectators sitting hip-to-hip. The stadium’s “R-Bar” was full of spectators, and throughout the main seating area, empty seats were hard to find.
Some 7,479 watched the pregame ceremonies on Sunday as eight of Reign FC’s nine World Cup participants were recognized.
“It’s fantastic,” U.S. returnee Megan Rapinoe said about the biggest crowd to see a Reign FC game in Tacoma. “This stadium has a great atmosphere when it’s packed like that… hopefully they’ll continue to do that throughout the summer.”
The festive atmosphere was some what damped by the Chicago Red Stars, who beat the Rapinoe-less Reign 4-0. Rapinoe did not play because of an Achilles injury but another of her teammates from the U.S. women’s national team, Chicago goalie Alyssa Naeher had a stellar performance, facing 13 shots but recording the shutout.
The Red Stars forwards were able to slip past the Reign defenses numerous times for good looks. Early goals from Arin Wright (four minutes in) and Vanessa Dibernardu (14) were more than enough for Naeher.
The Reign did have a good chance to score off the foot of Allie Long, but the midfielder failed to convert a shot inside the box to draw the game to within one.
“Obviously that didn’t go our way,” Reign FC coach Vlatko Andonovski said. “Credit to Chicago, they were defending well, they were well-organized, and they were attacking well. They definitely look like a top-team in this league.”
The deficit grew after a goal from Yuki Nagasato in the 51st minute, then the Red Stars eliminated any chance of draw when Sam Kerr, Australia’s World Cup star, scored a goal in the 81st minute.
However, the size and energy of the crowd were positives for the Reign and the NWSL. The Reign normally average around 3,700 fans per contest in 2019 but Sunday’s game was close to selling out before the World Cup even ended on July 7.
During the pregame festivities, Long and Rapinoe were met with fireworks, thunderous applause and an equal pay chant that reverberated throughout the packed stands.
“It feels like (there is momentum),” Long said. “We’ve had record-breaking crowds, the energy was so awesome. I was actually really disappointed, we had so many people here and we gave up four goals. I wanted to put on a show today, and I wish the score was four for us.”
Defender Steph Catley, who was a World Cup participant from Australia, said that she had never felt a crowd quite like this one.
“It was so loud, every tackle, every pass,” Catley said. “We obviously didn’t get the win for them, and I’m pretty sad about that… but I had the biggest smile on my face when I was lining up for the national anthem, there was just a real buzz.”
Now the question becomes: Can Reign FC, and the NWSL at large, keep up the high attendance numbers? Can they avoid the dropoff that occurs a few months after the World Cup buzz?
Long thinks that players, sponsors, and the fans themselves will be key to keeping that momentum building.
“It’s unbelievable to see the amount of people attending NWSL games,” Long said. “We need this league. Us winning the World Cup isn’t because we’re training extra or doing so much extra it’s because we have a league, probably the most competitive league in the world.
“It’s time for sponsors and people with money to continue to market and show how great this league is… and also if people are inspired by the World Cup, if little girls and parents were inspired, they need to pour into the league as well.”
The Reign return to action against the Houston Dash this Friday. The team is back at Cheney Stadium on Aug. 7 against Portland Thorns FC.
This story was originally published July 28, 2019 at 4:50 PM.