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Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Final Score 2-0 as Lions Open 2024 Playoff Run with Home Victory

Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda provided the offense, leading Orlando City past Charlotte FC in the Lions’ playoff opener.

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1 year ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda scored on either side of halftime as Orlando City (1-0) defeated Charlotte FC (0-1) in Game 1 of the teams’ first-round, best-of-three series at Inter&Co Stadium tonight. The Lions controlled the game almost from start to finish, allowing the visitors little room to attack and finding spaces to create chances, handing Charlotte its first loss since the team’s last visit to Orlando in September.

Orlando finally scored more than one goal in a playoff game, but the Lions could have had even more had they been just a tad more clinical with the volume of chances they created. In the end, two was enough to open the series with a win, as Pedro Gallese only had to make two saves to earn his third MLS playoff shutout.

“We’re very happy with the result, but much more for the way we did it against a tough rival in a very difficult postseason game, which means a lot for our fans,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said. “First half, we controlled it and we had a lot of volume. We created many chances. We missed a lot of opportunities.”

Pareja’s lineup included Gallese in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena started in central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Ojeda, and Torres, with Ramiro Enrique up top.

Orlando City dominated the first half but was wasteful with its opportunities, especially early. The Lions took the first shot of the game six minutes in as Cartagena sent an attempt from outside the area that was always going wide. Ojeda tried to redirect it in front, but it was just out of his reach. A minute later, Torres fired from the right but his shot was deflected out for a corner by the defense.

On the set piece, the Lions played it short and tried something off the training ground that nearly came off. A ball from the top of the area was sent into the box for Schlegel, who sent his header wide in the eighth minute. Orlando couldn’t pay off another couple of corners just after that opportunity.

Charlotte finally got forward in the 16th minute and a dangerous cross in from the left was just over two attacking players in front, sailing harmlessly out for a goal kick.

Araujo unlocked the defense with a brilliant pass in the 20th minute that sent Enrique in behind. The striker fizzed a shot inches wide of the left post from the right to waste the opportunity. The flag came up on the play, which would likely have been reviewed had Enrique found the net.

In the 22nd minute, the visitors got their best chance of the half as Liel Abada shielded off the defense well on the left and fired on frame, but Gallese was there to make the save. A minute later, Charlotte sent a good cross in from the right to Karol Swiderski, but it was a tad behind the striker and he headed it over the bar.

Orlando’s first shot on target came in the 26th minute when Torres tried his luck from outside the area. He put a lot of power on his shot, but it was right at Kristijan Kahlina, who fought it off.

The Lions broke the scoreless deadlock in the 32nd minute. Angulo sent Santos into the left corner and the fullback sent a dangerous cross into the six. Adilson Malanda tried to head it away but Torres stepped in front of it, chesting it down and firing it off the bottom of the crossbar and in to put Orlando City on top. It was Torres’ 46th career goal across all competitions, tying Dom Dwyer’s career combined (USL and MLS) mark. It also set a new single-season mark with 19 across all competitions, and it was Torres’ third goal against Charlotte in as many meetings in 2024.

“We worked a lot during the week in trying to take it a little bit deeper down the line and hit it back toward the center and back toward that back post, because Charlotte likes to get a lot of guys into the box defensively,” Torres said. “Thankfully, the ball kind of came my way. I just thought, ‘Just hit it on goal and see where it goes.’ And thankfully it went in.”

Orlando kept coming and had a good attacking movement in the 35th minute that appeared would put Enrique in behind. Torres continued his run on the play and the two Lions collided, knocking each other down to end the threat.

Angulo sent a cross in with teammates breaking in the 38th minute but sent it too close to Kahlina. Seconds later, the Lions nearly doubled their lead. Cartagena sent a beautiful through ball that sprung Enrique again. This time, the Argentine got his shot on target, but Kahlina got a piece of the shot with his leg, deflecting it off the right post to keep it a one-goal game.

That was the last good look of the half as the Lions took their slim advantage into the break.

Orlando City held the halftime advantage in possession (61.3%-38.7%), shots (11-3), shots on target (3-1), corners (6-0), and passing accuracy (90.9%-82.4%).

Charlotte came out in the second half and controlled the ball more but Orlando City’s defense kept the visitors from creating many opportunities from that possession. Once Charlotte started pushing up the field, the Lions looked more dangerous on the counter. Charlotte racked up corners and set pieces in the second half but couldn’t make them pay off.

“Second half, we became more tense, and the first 15-20, minutes in the second half, we sensed that we are winning, but this is a dangerous situation, and we started dropping in the zone that we don’t feel comfortable,” Pareja said. “But we just started getting some spaces too. So it was like a trade.”

Enrique missed another opportunity in the 50th when he got down the left side and tried a shot with his off foot, blasting it wide of the near post.

Torres should have doubled the lead in the 54th minute on a great attacking movement. Ojeda got down the left and pulled a pass back through traffic to a wide-open Torres in the box. The Uruguayan had plenty of time and space but he fired the shot too close to Kahlina, who made the save.

The visitors got three corners in quick succession over the next several minutes but the Lions did well to clear the danger, although they could never quite get out in transition off of them.

“I feel like the first half was really good from the team, and in the second we kind of dropped down a little bit, and I feel like we got a little bit sloppy, and that’s something that we can’t do in the playoffs,” Thorhallsson said. “So, we need to go the full 90 minutes with just full effort and full concentration. I feel like we did it. It dropped a little bit, but it’s just something that we need to be careful about.”

Araujo won a corner kick in the 64th minute and the initial ball was cleared. The recycle found Schlegel in front but the center back couldn’t get much on his shot, allowing Kahlina to make another save.

Charlotte nearly tied the match in the 70th minute and it would have been a controversial one. Substitute Patrick Agyemang pulled Jansson down in front as a cross came in from the left, leaving him all alone in front. The big striker’s header was too close to Gallese, who made the save. Jansson wasn’t happy with the lack of a call but managed not to pick up a yellow card for dissent.

Ojeda looked exhausted at that point in the game but it’s a good thing he didn’t get subbed off immediately, because he doubled the lead in the 76th minute, just moments after giving the ball away and conceding a free kick in Orlando’s defensive end.

Araujo sent a good ball forward down the left. Ojeda was offside but made no play on the ball, allowing Angulo to blaze down the left flank and beat Nathan Byrne to the ball . Angulo used his first touch to poke the ball inside to Ojeda. With Charlotte waiting for Ojeda to play the ball across to a teammate, the Argentine instead fired a shot just inside the left post, beating Kahlina to make it 2-0 with his last involvement in the game. It was the first time the Lions have scored twice in an MLS playoff game.

“Martin gave us that bit of peace when we scored a second one,” Pareja said. “In those instances where the other team is just throwing bodies up front, and they had this chance with Agyemang. And we were tense too. We were waiting for that second one. Martin was looking a bit tired but also his intentions were correct all the time too. And Martin has that quality of not just creating dangerous plays but he’s finalizing. His second goal in two games is great for us and a great moment as well.”

The visitors threw some attacking subs on to try to get back into the game but it was Orlando creating more on the counter in the final minutes. However, the Lions left Pep Biel alone outside the box in the 86th minute and it was nearly costly, as the winger smashed a shot just wide of the right post and into the outside netting.

Orlando had a few transition opportunities but couldn’t pick out the correct pass. One of the best chances dissolved when Angulo held the ball too long with second-half substitute Duncan McGuire breaking behind the defense on the right and another was just a tad behind McGuire.

Disaster struck for Charlotte early in stoppage time when Biel tangled with Jansson and kicked out at the Orlando center back, intentionally tripping the Swede. Referee Drew Fischer showed Biel a straight red card, sending him off, meaning he’ll be suspended for Game 2.

McGuire nearly got in behind late in stoppage time, but an untidy touch allowed the defense to recover and knock it out for a late corner. Shortly after the set piece, the game was over.

Orlando City finished with the advantage in possession (55.8%-44.2%), shots (17-9), shots on target (6-2), corners (8-4), and passing accuracy (88.6%-84.2%).

“We came into today looking for that victory, knowing that we were going to be playing in our home, in front of our fans, and we were looking to take advantage of that home-field advantage and carry a win into Charlotte,” Torres said. “We knew that coming into tonight, if we were able to get the win, that that was going to elevate the confidence for us going forward and how we were going to approach the rest of the series. And so, being able to get the win tonight and coming off a really good game, we know that we can go into Charlotte with a little bit more tranquility, but the same level of intensity, and try and go out and repeat and get that win in the series on Friday.”

“The boys were very happy on this first achievement, or this first win in the playoffs. But I noticed as well that they were very committed with just move on and prepare for the next one,” Pareja said. “Their experiences during the playoffs in Major League Soccer tell them, and tell us, this is one game. We need to move on and then prepare with the same intensity and responsibility, because it’s a series that is not done yet.”

These two teams will be back at it Friday night in Charlotte for Game 2 of the series. If Orlando gets a road win, the Lions would advance to the conference semifinals.

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Orlando City vs. CF Montreal: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions continue to hunt for their first win in their first game under interim coach Martin Perelman.

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5 hours ago

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March 14, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (0-3-0, 0 points) and CF Montreal (1-2-0, 3 points) at Inter&Co Stadium (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). It’s the first of two scheduled meetings between the Eastern Conference rivals in 2026, with the Lions set to make the return trip to the Great White North on May 9.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.

History

The Lions are 8-9-7 against Montreal in the all-time regular-season series and 10-10-7 in all competitions since they joined MLS. OCSC is 4-4-4 in home MLS games against Montreal and 6-4-4 in matchups held in the greater Orlando area — this includes wins in Leagues Cup and the MLS is Back Tournament knockout rounds.

The most recent meeting was a 1-1 draw in Orlando on July 12, 2025. Martin Ojeda gave the Lions a lead that appeared set to hold up, but Rodrigo Schlegel’s foul in the box on Prince Owusu allowed the Montreal forward to level the match late from the spot. That was the second of two matches that failed to find a winner last year. The teams played to a scoreless draw in Montreal on April 19. The Lions’ efforts at bringing home a road win took a hit in the second half when Rafael Santos was sent off.

The teams met in Orlando in the 2024 Leagues Cup competition on July 26, with the Lions running rampant in a 4-1 home victory. Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Facundo Torres, Ramiro Enrique, and Ojeda staked Orlando to a 4-0 lead. Josef Martinez scored for Montreal, although his bid for a brace was denied when Pedro Gallese stopped his penalty kick attempt.

The two sides met in Montreal on April 20, 2024 trading goals in a 2-2 draw at Stade Saputo. Mason Toye opened the scoring early, but Torres equalized from the spot a few minutes later. Ariel Lassiter appeared to win it late in normal time for the hosts, but Ivan Angulo struck in stoppage time to earn Orlando City a road point. These teams opened the 2024 season against each other in Orlando and played to a 0-0 draw. The Lions dominated the stat sheet but had a goal waved off for offside and simply weren’t lethal enough.

The teams met twice in 2023, completing the season series on Sept. 30, 2023, with Orlando winning 3-0 in dominant fashion. Jonathan Sirois’ own goal opened the scoring, and Thorhallsson and Torres added strikes for Orlando City. That was a good measure of revenge for OCSC, after Montreal defeated Orlando City 2-0 on May 6 at Stade Saputo. A Robin Jansson own goal got Montreal started in the second half and Romell Quioto added a second goal four minutes later.

These two sides played their biggest game against each other in the 2022 MLS playoffs, with CF Montreal knocking Orlando City out of the postseason by a 2-0 scoreline on Oct. 16, with goals by Ismael Kone and Djordje Mihailovic — the latter coming deep in stoppage time from the penalty spot.

Each team won at home in the two-game, regular-season series in 2022, with Montreal thumping Orlando 4-1 on May 7. Joel Waterman, Mihailovic, Joaquin Torres, and Zachary Brault-Guillard did the damage on the scoreboard and Orlando City managed just two shot attempts, with Joao Moutinho’s goal on a set piece spoling the shutout. Orlando City did not have either starting center back for that match, and it showed. The teams also met on opening day of the 2022 season, when Orlando City captured a 2-0 home win behind second-half goals from Alexandre Pato and Benji Michel.

In 2021, the teams met in Montreal with the Lions earning a 2-0 road victory on Decision Day to clinch a playoff spot. Sebas Mendez and Daryl Dike provided the goals. That season’s matchup in Orlando came on Oct. 20, 2021, with the visitors managing a 1-1 draw. Chris Mueller struck for the Lions just before halftime, but Rudy Camacho answered on a corner kick header shortly after the restart. The first meeting of 2021 took place Sept. 15 in Orlando with the Lions falling 4-2 and finishing the game with just nine men after both Nani and Andres Perea were sent off. Quioto led Montreal with a goal and two assists. Mathieu Choiniere and Quioto put Montreal up 2-0, but despite already being down one man, Jansson and Ruan tied things up. The visitors got two more from Lassi Lappalainen and Sunusi Ibrahim.

The teams met at Red Bull Arena in late 2020, as the team then known as the Montreal Impact played home games in New Jersey due to the pandemic. Orlando City got a Dike goal in the 39th minute to win 1-0 on Nov. 1, 2020. It was the second meeting of the 2020 season, with Orlando also beating Montreal 1-0 in the MLS is Back Tournament knockout rounds on July 25 to advance to the quarterfinals. Tesho Akindele scored the game’s only goal on a Montreal defensive mistake.

Orlando City snapped a six-game winless streak against Montreal (0-5-1) in MLS regular-season play dating back to 2016 when the Lions put the Impact to the sword in a 3-0 drubbing at Stade Saputo on June 1, 2019. Nani (penalty), Akindele, and Will Johnson supplied the offense that day. The Lions fell 3-1 at Exploria Stadium back on March 16, 2019, and Ignacio Piatti was a big reason why, scoring his ninth and 10th career goals against Orlando, adding to a strike by Orji Okwonkwo. Dom Dwyer added a cosmetic goal late for Orlando City to spoil the clean sheet.

Montreal did not allow a goal against the Lions in 2018, sweeping the two-game set from Orlando, and the Impact shut out Orlando City in three of the six meetings in that 5-0-1 run. The lone draw in that time frame was a 3-3 shootout in Orlando in 2017, in which the Impact led deep in stoppage time, only to see Jonathan Spector’s well-placed header steal the Lions a point.

Orlando won the first two meetings in 2016 by a combined score of 6-2. The teams split three meetings in 2015, with each going 1-1-1.

Overview

Orlando City is a team in turmoil entering tonight’s match, having parted ways with longtime head coach Oscar Pareja in the midweek after just three games into his seventh season. The club’s winningest coach of all time seems to have been let go, to be replaced on an interim basis by assistant Martin Perelman despite no plan in place for his succession per a press conference with Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira, who made it clear the club is going to be in an evaluation phase.

“For now, the focus is to support the team and for Martin to achieve results. Then we’ll assess what needs to be assessed in due time,” Moreira said. “If there’s a coaching search, I would assume that depending on how things go, Martin will be considered, but that’s something that we’re going to assess in due time.”

While the words “if there’s a coaching search” will not likely bring peace to any Orlando City fan, that’s where the club is right now.

Orlando City is 0-3-0 for the first time ever (0-2-0 at home) and is using a makeshift back line that has been abused by every team it’s played while captain Robin Jansson recovers from foot surgery. The Lions will play tonight’s match without starting goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, who made a below-rookie-level mistake in handling the ball outside the box to deny a goal-scoring opportunity a week ago and was sent off.

Montreal hasn’t fared much better than Orlando, but tonight’s visitors did manage to pick up their first win of the year last weekend at the New York Red Bulls — the team that started the Lions’ three-game skid on opening day. CF Montreal has yet to play at home this season, so the 1-2-0 start on the road is not necessarily a killer, but it’s not ideal either.

Midfielder Wikelman Carmona leads Montreal with two goals on the season, and both came at the Red Bulls, which is why he is the reigning MLS Player of the Matchday, making him the first to win the award this season in a week in which he did not play Orlando City. Owusu has the team’s other goal.

To get the win tonight, Orlando’s defense must show up. The OCSC offense has scored three goals in the 194 minutes the Lions have played with 11 men this season. If the defense in front of backup goalkeeper Javier Otero can somehow help him keep a clean sheet, this is a match Orlando City can win. Otherwise, it could be another ugly, lopsided loss. Perhaps the team will get a jolt from the shock of losing Pareja so early in the year. But it’s not clear how Perelman’s more attack-minded style will suit a team that should absolutely not put its back line under pressure on counterattacks.

“I’m not here to wait and the club doesn’t want me here to wait. This club deserves to always prepare the team to win, succeed, and continue the pathway we have built,” Perelman said ahead of the match. “The season has already started, but MLS is long. I know MLS well. We know how to manage the regular season and we will be ready for the playoffs too. We are here to work. We are here to make our people, our fans, and our community proud of this team and to succeed.”

Orlando City will be without Jansson (foot), Joran Gerbet (knee), Wilder Cartagena (thigh), and Crepeau (suspension), while Tiago (lower leg) is questionable. Montreal will be without Fabian Herbers (lower body) and Josh-Duc Nteziryayo (lower body).

Match Content

Projected Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Javier Otero.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, Nolan Miller, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Duncan McGuire.

CF Montreal (5-4-1)

Goalkeeper: Thomas Gillier.

Defenders: Luca Petrasso, Brayan Vera, Efrain Morales, Tomas Aviles, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.

Midfielders: Wikelman Carmona, Matty Longstaff, Victor Loturi, Ivan Jaime.

Forward: Prince Owusu.

Referees:

REF: Jair Marrufo.
AR1: Adam Garner.
AR2: Gianni Facchini.
4TH: Tori Penso.
VAR: Daniel Radford.
AVAR: Christian Clerc.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English); Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Four Names to Consider in Orlando City’s Coaching Search

Orlando City needs a new head coach, and there are a few names who merit consideration for the role.

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1 day ago

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March 13, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Wednesday brought the news that Oscar Pareja is no longer the coach of Orlando City. Martin Perelman has the job on an interim basis, and while it’s always possible that he ends up with the fulltime job a la Roberto di Matteo after leading Chelsea to the 2011-2012 UEFA Champions League trophy, it’s more likely that the club brings in an outside hire sooner or later. As far as who that person should be, I’ve provided several names that I think should be considered in the search for the club’s fifth full-time head coach as an MLS team.

Filipe Luis

If you’re going to make a change, why not aim high with your next hire? The Brazilian was in charge of Flamengo from September 2024 to March 2 (more on that in a bit), and during his time in the big job, he guided the Brazilian side to the 2025 Copa Libertadores title, the Brazilian Serie A title, the Brazilian SuperCup trophy, the Campeonato Carioca (the Rio de Janeiro state championship), and the Copa do Brazil (the Brazilian U.S. Open Cup). They won four trophies in 2025 alone with him leading the team. A poor run of form to start the 2026 season left him suddenly and rather spectacularly without a job, as he was fired the day after the team finished off an 11-0 aggregate win in the semifinals of this year’s Campeonato Carioca. Regardless of recent circumstances, he’s rightfully regarded as a bright young coaching candidate, and his Flamengo team attracted global attention with a convincing 3-1 win over Chelsea at last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup before being knocked out 4-2 by Bayern Munich despite putting up a good fight.

His teams were built on pressing aggressively to win possession and quickly attacking once they did so. It would bring a more offensive style and would be exciting to watch in theory, but there would be questions about his ability to adapt to some of the league’s roster-building requirements and how the adjustment would be in moving from the most successful Brazilian team this century to a team in a smaller market with the restraints that come with it. On the other hand, I don’t have to tell you how deep Orlando City’s Brazilian connection is, so on the face of things, he’d certainly be a cultural fit. There’s also the fact that he played a number of seasons alongside Antoine Griezmann at Atletico Madrid. If the powers that be remain set on signing the Frenchman, why not bring in the man he won the 2017-2018 Europa League with?

Wilfried Nancy

Nancy spent two seasons in charge of CF Montreal, and another three leading the Columbus Crew. He guided the Crew as they lifted MLS Cup in 2023 and won Leagues Cup in 2024 and built a reputation for fielding attacking and free-flowing teams that saw players swapping positions and popping up in unexpected places in the attacking third. He parlayed that success into taking the Celtic job in December of 2025, but wasn’t able to replicate his MLS success as he lasted just 33 days before being fired.

While the firing alone isn’t cause for concern, as it was always going to be difficult to try to implement his dynamic and rather complicated style in the middle of the season, the circumstances in which he’d be taking the Orlando job are concerning. It would basically be the same as the Celtic job: taking over a struggling team in the middle of the season without the benefit of an off-season to fully coach your players on the way you want things to look. On the other hand, his familiarity with the league is certainly a plus, and when his preferred method of play works, it’s an absolute joy to watch. If you want someone with a proven track record of success in MLS, along with the trophies to boot, he’s your guy.

Eric Ramsay

Continuing the theme of coaches who recently became available, we have Ramsay, who is on the market after being fired by West Brom in late February. Before that though, he led Minnesota United to back-to-back Western Conference semifinal appearances in 2024 and 2025 and the semifinals of the 2025 U.S. Open Cup. Minnesota scored the sixth-most goals in the West in 2025 while conceding the second-fewest, and the team finished eight points back of the Supporters’ Shield-winning Philadelphia Union. Like Nancy, he wasn’t able to translate that success in Europe, as he only managed West Brom for nine games before getting his marching orders.

Also like Nancy, while that truncated spell in charge doesn’t concern me in and of itself, he’d be walking into a similar situation with OCSC, and that’s worrying. Would he have better luck implementing his ideas on the fly with Orlando? It’s difficult to say. That said, he does have a built-in familiarity with the league, which might help. Another point in his favor is his ability to have success with Minnesota, which like Orlando is a team from a less-heralded market. Only four teams had smaller payrolls than Minnesota in 2025, and the hope would be that he could provide similar results to an OCSC team that splashed some cash in the off-season but is still operating with less resources than the league’s heaviest hitters.

Jim Curtin

It’s been a minute since we last saw Jim Curtin in the dugout as a coach. He concluded a 10-year stint with the Philadelphia Union after the 2024 season, in which Philly failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017. While he went out on a low note, the Union were generally successful with him at the helm, winning the Supporters’ Shield in 2020 and finishing as MLS Cup runners-up in 2022 and U.S. Open Cup runners-up in 2014, 2015, and 2018. Of course, almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, but there’s still something to be said for the way Curtin almost always managed to field competitive teams despite the Union’s steadfast commitment to operating with a budget that could perhaps best be described as shoestring. With that in mind, it could be very interesting to see what he could do when it comes to an Orlando team that would be operating on an increased budget from what he was accustomed to.

Of course, there are caveats here. Curtin was talking to the New England Revolution about their coaching vacancy in September of last year but walked away from the process citing family reasons, so is he even looking to get back into the game right now? There also aren’t strong recent results to lean on in the way there are with the three aforementioned names. That said, he knows the league and has demonstrated an ability to not just win, but win with limited resources.

When all is said and done, I’d probably rank the options in that order, although I’d be willing to swap Filipe Luis and Wilfried Nancy. On one hand, bringing in the Brazilian would show an exciting degree of ambition and belief, but it would be fair to have concerns about the potential whiplash from being at a club where you’re the biggest fish in the sea, to one where you’re more in the middle of the food chain. Nancy has won trophies and overseen scintillating soccer while doing it, but there’s a potential that he’d be set up for failure due to attempting to install a complicated playing philosophy on the fly. Ramsay also has a strong recent resume in the league and did so with a small payroll, but the same questions with Nancy apply to him. Curtin is more of an unknown due to the time that he’s spent away from the game, but he kept a miserly Union organization consistently competitive, and there’s something to be said for that.

There are likely plenty of candidates being considered by the club, and with it being so early in the process, it’s truly impossible to guess which way they’ll eventually decide to take things. There are certainly promising pieces on this roster, and if everyone stays healthy and gels, then who knows what this year will bring? Based on how things look at this exact moment though, whoever gets brought in is going to have a challenge ahead of them, and they’ll need to be up for the fight. Whether a hire is made sooner or if the front office takes its time, the only way out is through. Vamos Orlando.

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Lion Links: 3/13/26

Orlando Pride prepare for 2026 season opener, NWSL power rankings, Guro Reiten joins Gotham FC, and more.

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1 day ago

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March 13, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Friday, Mane Landers! I’ve spent most of my free time this week getting some needed spring cleaning done before the weekend gets here. Kicking up dust while also dealing with all the pollen when I go outside probably wasn’t the smartest idea, but it’s nice to be productive. Let’s get to the links!

Orlando Pride Prepare for Season Opener

The Orlando Pride are set to return to action on Sunday against the Seattle Reign in what should be an exciting season opener. It will be a rematch of last year’s quarterfinal between the two, which the Pride won 2-0 thanks to a strong defensive performance and goals from Haley McCutcheon and Luana. Head Coach Seb Hines spoke on how the team’s preparations for the season have gone, as well as the expectations to fight for titles after failing to win silverware last year.

NWSL Power Rankings Ahead of 2026 Season

The Orlando Pride placed fifth in All For XI‘s NWSL power rankings before the start of the season. It’s a pretty fair ranking for the Pride in my opinion, as they were inconsistent last year but still managed to reach the semifinals in the playoffs. Whether or not they can stake a claim as a title contender may hinge on how well Jacquie Ovalle does now that she’s had time to settle in this preseason.

The Kansas City Current top the rankings, with defending champion Gotham FC in second and the Washington Spirit third. As for the new teams on the block, the Boston Legacy are down in 15th while the Denver Summit are in 10th. It should be an interesting season and I can’t wait for it to start tonight when the Spirit and Portland Thorns square off at 8 p.m.

NWSL Transfer News Roundup

The NWSL season is here, but teams are still bringing in some firepower to their rosters before things get underway. Gotham added Norwegian forward Guro Reiten on loan from Chelsea and she will join the club as a free agent once the loan expires, with that deal lasting through 2029. Reiten has been a force in England, recording 59 goals and 44 assists across 207 appearances and helping Chelsea win six Women’s Super League titles.

The Chicago Stars also strengthened their attack, sending $300,000 in transfer funds and $200,000 in allocation money to the Reign in exchange for forward Jordyn Huitema. The 24-year-old joins on a contract through 2028 and gives the rebuilding Stars an aerial threat to help fill the void left by Ally Schlegel leaving for the North Carolina Courage.

European Title Races to Watch Out For

While it may not be crunch time just yet for clubs in contention, it’s a great time to check in on how title races are shaping up across Europe. While it may take some intriguing results in Germany, Italy, and Spain for things to get interesting, the United Kingdom is rife with drama to look forward to. Celtic and Rangers are usually the contenders in the Scottish Premiership, but it’s Hearts that has a five-point lead with plenty to go. In the English Premier League, the title race between Arsenal and Manchester City may end up being dwarfed by a relegation fight involving Tottenham, Nottingham Forest, and West Ham. Wrexham is right in the thick of a tight battle for promotion as well. Don’t sleep on the title race in France either, as Lens is hanging around just one point behind Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the Ligue 1 table.

Free Kicks

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

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