Orlando Pride vs. Angel City FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Welcome to your match thread as the Orlando Pride (9-0-5, 32 points) begin a three-game league road trip against Angel City FC (4-7-3, 15 points) in Los Angeles. This is the final time the two teams will meet during the 2024 NWSL regular season.

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

History

Angel City was one of the NWSL’s two expansion teams entering the league in 2022. As a result, the Pride have only played tonight’s opponents five times. The Pride are 2-1-2 in the five games, all in NWSL regular-season play.

The most recent matchup between these two teams took place on March 22 in Orlando. Former Pride attacker Claire Emslie gave the visitors the lead in the 53rd minute from the penalty spot, and it looked as though the Pride would drop their first game of the season. But Marta volleyed home an equalizer from an Angelina corner kick in the 88th minute, pulling out a 1-1 draw.

The first meeting of the 2023 season was on April 2 in Orlando. Emily Sams took down Alyssa Thompson in the 39th minute, giving the visitors a penalty. Emslie stepped up and converted to give her team a 1-0 lead. Messiah Bright responded just after halftime to make it 1-1, and the game appeared to be heading for a draw. But Katie Johnson scored the winner in the 10th minute of second-half injury time. On Oct. 2, 2023 in Los Angeles, an Adriana volley in the 22nd minute beat Angel City goalkeeper Angelina Anderson to her near post for the only goal as the Pride won a crucial late-season game.

The first-ever game between the teams took place on May 8, 2022 in Los Angeles. In the third minute, Gunny Jonsdottir’s cross was tipped by Angel City goalkeeper DiDi Haracic, but it went right to Sydney Leroux. The Pride striker fired right at Morgan Reid standing in front of goal. The ball bounced off the defender and went in to give the Pride an early lead. The hosts controlled the final hour, but the Pride held on for 87 minutes to claim their first win of the season.

The teams met again on Aug. 7 in Orlando. Former Pride defender Ali Riley opened the scoring with a wonderful strike from the left side. The Pride responded in the second half through Julie Doyle, three minutes after she entered the game to even it at 1-1. The visitors took another lead when Cari Roccaro beat Viviana Villacorta to a corner kick, putting it past Erin McLeod. The Pride equalized for a second time in the 90th minute when Doyle and Paige Nielsen raced for a Thais Reiss cross, with the defender reaching it first. But Nielsen’s attempted clearance went into her own net, allowing the Pride to claim a 2-2 draw and extend their unbeaten run to five games.

Overview

The Pride are currently tied with the Kansas City Current atop the NWSL standings and are still undefeated after 14 games. Their 1-1 draw with San Diego Wave FC on June 7 saw the end of the longest winning streak in league history (eight games) and they followed that with a scoreless draw in North Carolina. Despite a disappointing result against the Courage, it was the first time a team had taken points in Cary, NC, this year.

Returning home on June 21, they got back to their winning ways with a historic performance. The 6-0 win over the Utah Royals set club records for the most goals scored in a game in team history and the largest margin of victory in team history. Barbra Banda’s four goal contributions tied a team record set by Marta in 2017. Tonight, the Pride will look to build on that win.

Angel City finished as the eighth and final playoff team last season, beating the Pride on goal difference. It took a Pride collapse for tonight’s opponent to make last year’s postseason and Angel City fell to OL Reign in the first round. This season has been disappointing for the Southern California-based team as it currently sits in 10th with 15 points.

The team has had inconsistent form this season, only going on one winning streak and one losing streak. Angel City won back-to-back games on April 13 and April 21, with wins over the Chicago Red Stars and North Carolina Courage, and lost back-to-back games on May 12 and May 18 against the Houston Dash and Washington Spirit. The club is coming off a tough 1-0 loss to Bay FC on June 22.

The front line of Emslie, Leroux, and Thompson should produce plenty of goals for Angel City. However, Angel City has scored the fifth-fewest goals in the league this season with 15. Emslie leads the team in goals with five, closely followed by Leroux with four. Thompson has yet to score this season, but leads the team with five assists.

Angel City has conceded 21 goals in 2024. Only five teams have conceded more. Veteran center back Sarah Gorden has been the leader on the back line, helping to guide rookies Madison Curry and Gisele Thompson through their first professional seasons. Despite their current place in the standings, going across the country and getting three points will be a challenge for Orlando.

“It’s another difficult game on the road,” Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said about tonight’s opponent. “I think where they stand isn’t a reflection of their performances. I think they’ve had some good performances and haven’t gotten the results, so it’s another game that’s going to be a challenge for us. But I think if we play at our best, then we have good momentum right now. I think we’ll go out there and give absolutely everything and hopefully get a result that we deserve.”

Celia (hip) is available for this game and Rafaelle (leg) has been upgraded to questionable. Simone Charley (leg), Morgan Gautrat (concussion), Luana (illness), Megan Montefusco (heel), and Viviana Villacorta (knee) remain out. Angel City will be without Jun Endo (knee), Katie Johnson (knee), and Christen Press (knee). Additionally, Ali Riley (upper leg) is listed as questionable.

Official Lineups

Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.

Defenders: Kerry Abello, Kylie Strom, Emily Sams, Carrie Lawrence.

Defensive Midfielders: Haley McCutcheon, Summer Yates.

Midfielders: Julie Doyle, Marta, Adriana.

Forward: Barbra Banda.

Bench: McKinley Crone, Angelina, Amanda Allen, Ally Lemos, Bri Martinez, Alex Kerr, Rafaelle, Cori Dyke. Ally Watt.

Angel City FC (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: DiDi Haracic.

Defenders: Gisele Thompson, Merritt Mathias, Sarah Gorden, Madison Curry.

Midfielders: Rocky Rodriguez, Kennedy Fuller, Madison Hammond.

Forwards: Claire Emslie, Sydney Leroux, Alyssa Thompson.

Bench: Angelina Anderson, Messiah Bright, Meggie Dougherty Howard, Elizabeth Eddy, Clarisse Le Bihan, Lily Nabet, Megan Reid, Jasmyne Spencer, M.A. Vignola.

Referees

REF: Elijio Arreguin.
AR1: Matt Trotter.
AR2: Jennifer Garner.
4TH: Melinda Homa.
VAR: Shawn Tehini.
AVAR: Tom Felice.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: BMO Stadium — Los Angeles.

TV: Bally Sports Florida.

Streaming: NWSL+.

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

Enjoy the game. Go Pride!