Orlando Pride vs Washington Spirit
When: Friday, March 7, 8:00 p.m. ET
Where: Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, Fla.
TV: Amazon Prime
As the Pride open 2025 against the Spirit in the Challenge Cup, here are five things to watch for:
NWSL Challenge Cup
The Pride are set to kick off the 2025 campaign by hosting the Washington Spirit in the 2025 NWSL Challenge Cup. The match is set to be played at Inter&Co Stadium on Friday, March 7, a week prior to the 2025 NWSL regular season opener and will stream live on Prime Video. The Challenge Cup is a single match competition that will feature a rematch of the 2024 NWSL Championship against the Pride and Spirit. If the match remains tied after regulation, the two sides will go to a penalty kick shootout to determine the winner of the 2025 Challenge Cup.
Familiar Foes
The Pride and Spirit are certainly familiar with one another after matching up against each other three times last season. The previous match between the clubs at Inter&Co Stadium saw the Pride earn a 2-0 victory over the Spirit that helped the Pride clinch the 2024 NWSL Shield. The Pride would meet the Spirit again in the 2024 NWSL Championship where Orlando was able to get the upper hand on Washington and lift the NWSL Championship trophy following a 1-0 win at CPKC Stadium. Orlando has won all four of its regular-season meetings with Washington over the last two seasons, including being the only team to complete the league double over the Spirit in 2024.
New Faces
The offseason for the Pride saw the add a few new players to its 2024 NWSL Championship and 2024 NWSL Shield winning roster. The Pride added goalkeeper Kat Asman who played collegiately at Penn State and spent the 2024 season with the Portland Thorns. Orlando also signed defender Zara Chavoshi who became the first player the Pride have signed directly out of college, since the league’s removal of the NWSL Draft. Zambian international Prisca Chilufya was also acquired by the Pride and signed to a three-year deal through the 2027 season. The Pride also added midfielder Aryssa Mahrt and goalkeeper DeAira Jackson to the roster on short-term contracts. The offseason signings wrapped up with the Pride acquiring 2023 World Cup winner Oihane Hernández on an immediate transfer from Real Madrid Femenino.
Staying in the City Beautiful
To go along with some new signings in the offseason, the Pride secured the future of multiple players on its roster, ensuring that they remain in Orlando for the foreseeable future. 2024 NWSL Defender of the Year and Olympic Gold medalist, Emily Sams, was extended by the Club in the offseason and will stay with the Pride through the 2027 season. Fellow defender Cori Dyke was also extended by the Pride and will remain with the Club through the 2027 season following her rookie campaign last year. Finally, the Pride and Ally Watt exercised a mutual option for the 2026 season after she scored three goals and recorded four assists while playing all but one match for the Pride during the 2024 season.
Home Opener, Presented by Orlando Health
Although the 2025 NWSL Challenge Cup will mark the start of the 2025 season for the Pride, it does not count towards the NWSL regular season. The regular season will begin next week on Friday, March 14 as the Pride get set to host Chicago Stars FC at Inter&Co Stadium. That match will mark the first time since 2022 that the Pride has opened up the regular season campaign at home. That night will also be highlighted with a pregame ceremony in which the Pride will raise its 2024 NWSL Shield winners banner along with its 2024 NWSL Championship banner.
