Orlando Pride vs. Chicago Red Stars: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Welcome to your match preview as the Orlando Pride (6-8-1, 19 points) return to regular-season action against the Chicago Red Stars (5-9-1, 16 points) at Exploria Stadium. This is the second and final time the Pride and Red Stars are scheduled to meet this season.

Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game.

History

The Pride and Red Stars have played every season since the former’s entrance into the NWSL except 2020. The teams have played 17 games, with the Pride going 4-12-1. The Pride have yet to beat Chicago at home, going 0-7-1, all in regular-season games.

The Pride and Red Stars first met this season on May 27 in Illinois. Orlando dominated the entire 90 minutes, with Chicago only getting two chances on their home field. But the Pride struggled to hit the target, and Yuki Nagasato’s goal was the difference as the Pride fell 1-0.

The second meeting last season was on June 12, 2022 in Illinois. Mallory Swanson capitalized on an early Pride turnover and the Red Stars held on for the 1-0 win. The first meeting of 2022 took place on May 22 in Orlando. Sarah Griffin gave the visitors the lead, and Bianca St. Georges and Swanson made it 3-0 Chicago. It appeared as though the Red Stars would run away with the game, but the final 10 minutes saw three goals and two penalties for an exciting finish. Sydney Leroux missed a penalty, but Amy Turner scored the Pride’s first goal late. Pugh converted her penalty in the moments later, and Leah Pruitt scored her first goal for the Pride a minute after that in a 4-2 Red Stars win.

The teams met three times during the 2021 season, but didn’t play until Aug. 8 in Illinois. Jodie Taylor and Leroux scored for the Pride before the half. The 2-0 win ended a six-game winless streak and was the first NWSL win for interim head coach Becky Burleigh.

The second meeting was Oct. 13 in Bridgeview, a rescheduled game that was originally supposed to take place Oct. 2. Kealia Watt scored early and the Red Stars defended that lead for 84 minutes on their way to a 1-0 result. The teams met again Oct. 29 in Orlando in the final game of the regular season. The Red Stars controlled the game but the Pride held off the Chicago attack for 65 minutes, at which point Watt scored the lone goal in a 1-0 game.

The Pride and Red Stars didn’t play in the 2020 Fall Series, so the last meeting prior to 2021 came in 2019. The first game was June 30 at Exploria Stadium. Goals by Chioma Ubogagu and Marta were topped by a Sam Kerr hat trick as the Red Stars won 3-2. The second game was on Aug. 21 in Bridgeview. The Pride took a 2-0 lead with goals by Rachel Hill and Ubogagu. Tierna Davidson cut the lead in half for Chicago, but it wasn’t enough as the Pride won 2-1. The third meeting in 2021 came on Sept. 11 in Orlando. Casey Short stole the game for Chicago with the game’s lone goal five minutes into second-half injury time as the Red Stars won, 1-0.

The 2018 NWSL season saw the Pride and Red Stars meet three times. On May 2 in Bridgeview, Hill and Ubogagu scored in a 2-0 Pride win. They met in the same location May 26 in a high-scoring affair. A Leroux brace was added to goals by Hill, Alex Morgan, and Dani Weatherholt, as the Pride won 5-2. They met a third time in 2018 on Aug. 25 in Orlando. The Red Stars were led by a Kerr brace, resulting in a 3-1 victory over the Pride.

The Pride and Red Stars met three times in 2017 — the first year that they played that many games against each other. Christen Press scored the lone goal on July 1 in Orlando as Chicago won 1-0. On July 22 in Bridgeview, Press led her team with a brace in a 2-1 Chicago win. The final meeting came a week later in Orlando. Morgan put the Pride ahead, but Sofia Huerta equalized as the teams drew 1-1.

The two teams met for the first time during the Pride’s inaugural season in 2016 on May 1 in Bridgeview. Press’ second-half goal led the Red Stars to a 1-0 win. On July 16 in Orlando, Taylor Comeau scored the lone goal as Chicago again won 1-0.

Overview

The Pride went into the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup break on a two-game winning streak, beating the Washington Spirit, 3-0 at Audi Field and OL Reign, 1-0 at home. Two postponements earlier in the year meant that the Pride had to play four Challenge Cup games during the break, going 0-3-1 and finishing last in the East Division.

Tonight, the team returns to the regular season, entering this weekend’s slate just two points behind San Diego Wave FC for the sixth and final playoff spot. It’s been a week and a half since the Pride last took the field, so they’ve been able to remain healthy leading into the final six-game playoff push.

Fortunately for the Pride, Brazil experienced an early exit from the World Cup, so Marta and Adriana are back with the team. The pair have been the biggest attacking threats this season and the Pride offense struggled mightily without them, scoring three goals in five games. Their return will provide experience and relief for the younger attackers, as defenders will have to keep an eye on the two returning players.

Other World Cup participants include Brazilian defender Rafaelle and Argentine striker Mariana Larroquette. Larroquette might not take the spot of Messiah Bright or Julie Doyle, but Rafaelle will likely slide into the back line alongside rookie Emily Madril. The experienced center back, who signed from Arsenal FC in England just before the World Cup, can be a leader for the defense and guide the young Madril.

Tonight, the Pride will welcome the team at the bottom of the NWSL standings. Much was made of the Red Stars losing their star attacker Swanson, who tore her patella tendon in a USWNT friendly against the Republic of Ireland in April. However, while Chicago’s in the middle of the league in goals scored, its 33 goals conceded is the most of the 12 teams in the league.

The Red Stars have had some tough games defensively, giving up five goals to OL Reign on April 22, four goals to the Portland Thorns on May 21, and five goals to the North Carolina Courage on June 10. But, similar to the Pride, they went into the World Cup break on a roll, with 1-0 wins over San Diego and the Houston Dash. They built on those wins by beating the Dash again, 3-0 on Aug. 5 in the Challenge Cup.

The Red Stars have made up for Swanson’s absence in the aggregate. Ella Stevens, Penelope Hocking, Ana Cook, Nagasato, and Allison Schlegel all have multiple goals this season. Julia Bianchi has been the playmaker with a team-leading three assists.

Stopping Stevens and Cook will be the main task in tonight’s game. Chicago’s pair of clean sheets heading into the break are impressive, but the Pride have a strong attack now that everyone is back. However, similar to the Red Stars, they’ve had their struggles defensively. Their 21 goals conceded this season is tied for fourth most in the league, so it’s possible this game could become a shootout.

“Chicago is a good team. They’ve hit some form in recent games and they like to possess the ball,” Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said about tonight’s opponent. “They’ve started to finish with a lot of possession, but the emphasis is on us. We’re at home in front of our fans and we need to put a performance together and we want nothing less than three points. We are going in the right direction to hit that playoff spot. It starts again on Sunday against Chicago and if we stick to our principles, work ethic, and execution in our finishing then I’m sure we’ll be in a good position moving forward.”

While the Pride entered the weekend only two points from sixth and five points from fifth, they were also only three points from last in the NWSL. The final six games are critical, because they could secure the second playoff appearance in team history or finish dead last for the second time. All six games are important, but the three homes games are especially essential. That run starts tonight with a team they should beat.

The Pride are as healthy as they could hope for heading into this game. The only player out is Carrie Lawrence (knee), who’s been missing all year with a season-ending injury. In addition to Swanson (knee), Chicago will be without starting center back Tierna Davidson (ankle) and Samantha Fisher (hip).

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Official Lineups

Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.

Defenders: Kylie Strom, Emily Madril, Rafaelle, Haley McCutcheon.

Defensive Midfielders: Kerry Abello, Viviana Villacorta.

Midfielders: Adriana, Marta, Julie Doyle.

Forward: Messiah Bright.

Bench: Carly Nelson, Erika Tymrak, Celia, Ally Watt, Mariana Larroquette, Jordyn Listro, Megan Montefusco, Mikayla Cluff, Summer Yates.

Chicago Red Stars (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Alyssa Naeher.

Defenders: Casey Krueger, Arin Wright, Kayla Sharples, Taylor Malham.

Midfielders: Yuki Nagasato, Julia Bianchi, Cari Roccaro, Bianca St-Georges.

Forwards: Ava Cook, Penelope Hocking.

Bench: Jill Aguilera, Jenna Bike, Emily Boyd, Samantha Fisher, Sarah Griffith, Amanda Kowalski, Tatumn Milazzo, Ally Schlegel, Ella Stevens.

Referees

REF: Anya Voigt.
AR1: Katarzyna Wasiak.
AR2: Seth Barton.
4TH: Daniel Gutierrez.
VAR: Katherine McCormick.
AVAR: Tony Obas.

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How to Watch

Match Time: 7 p.m.

Venue: Exploria Stadium — Orlando.

TV: None.

Streaming: Paramount+ (U.S.), NWSLsoccer.com (International).

Twitter: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @ManeLandSean and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter feed (@ORLPride).

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Enjoy the Match. Go Pride!