On Monday, August 19th at 7:00 pm ET, 2023 National Women's Soccer League champions New Jersey/New York Gotham FC will host this season's Women's Super League champion Chelsea in the first friendly match between the champions. It becomes a clash.
This much-anticipated clash will generate plenty of interest for fans and provide seven-time WSL champions Chelsea with top-level competition as the English side prepare for the 2024/25 WSL season. Become.
“On the one hand, it's really exciting,” Gotham striker Lynn Williams said of the upcoming friendly. “When I was at North Carolina, we got to play at [Women’s International Champions Cup] The match between Lyon and PSG.It's really great to be able to play against a team of [international] league. ”
Despite the expected fanfare, concerns remain about this year's NWSL teams' extremely congested summer schedule, especially with the addition of these friendlies and the pile-up of injuries.
“It's very crowded in the summer,” Williams continued. “It's great to have this many games, but if you're going to have these games, you need the infrastructure to support them. We have to manage our load quite a bit. I think that's a big thing that we want from our players.”
Get access to the best women's soccer coverage all year round
Start your 7-day free trial of The Equalizer Extra and get industry-leading reports and insights on USWNT, NWSL, and more.