Orlando Pride Transfer Forward Prisca Chilufya to Angel City FC

With three matches remaining in the 2025 NWSL regular season, the Orlando Pride made a surprise deal by dealing Zambian international forward Prisca Chilufya to Angel City FC. The club announced today that Chilufya and a 2025 international roster spot are on their way to California in exchange for $50,000 in 2025 intraleague transfer funds.

“Prisca has played an important role in the club’s journey this season, both on and off the pitch,” Orlando Pride Vice President and Sporting Director Haley Carter said in a club press release. “We are thankful for her contributions and her positive influence on her teammates and staff this season. She will always be a part of the Pride family and we wish her continued success in the future.”

The 26-year-old Zambian forward departs having scored two goals in 503 minutes across 16 NWSL appearances (four starts). She attempted just four shots in those 500+ minutes, putting three on target. Chilufya passed at just a 64% rate without logging a key pass and committed 22 fouls while drawing only four, earning two yellow cards. She contributed seven tackles defensively, winning 88% of her attempts.

Making her Orlando debut off the bench in the Pride’s Challenge Cup match against the Washington Spirit on March 7, Chilufya made her first Pride start on April 25 in a home match against her new club, Angel City. Her first Pride goal was a game-tying effort in the 93rd minute May 10 at North Carolina. She also scored the match-tying goal in a 1-1 draw against the Utah Royals on Aug. 3 at home. Chilufya notched an assist in Orlando’s 5-0 win in Concacaf W Champions Cup play at Chorrillo FC on Sept. 16 — her lone assist in competitive play with the Pride and her final goal contribution with the club.

Chilufya signed with the Pride on Jan. 31 from Mexican side FC Juarez, joining Orlando on a three-year deal through 2027. While with Juarez, Chilufya made 48 appearances and scored 14 goals before joining Zambian international teammates Barbra Banda and Grace Chanda in Orlando. Prior to joining Juarez, Chilufya played in seven matches for Fatih Karagumruk of the TFF 1. Lig in Turkey’s second division, scoring four goals.

On the international stage, Chilufya has been a regular player with Zambia for several years. She was part of Zambia’s 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Naitons, 2024 Summer Olympics, and 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup (the latter as an alternate) teams.

What It Means for Orlando

Chilufya’s time in Orlando was disappointing. She was plagued with poor touches, passing, and decision making in the final third, but in all fairness, this was her first season in the league and in a new culture. She was billed as a replacement for winger Adriana, who left the club in the off-season in a transfer to Al Qadsiah FC in Saudi Arabia. She wasn’t one.

Chilufya showed plenty of speed in her time with the Pride, but little else. With the Pride struggling offensively, getting just four starts shows Head Coach Seb Hines didn’t have confidence in her ability to provide goals.

She is hardly alone in having had a disappointing Pride career. Her Zambian international teammate, Chanda, joined the team in May of 2024 and ruptured her quadriceps tendon while at the Olympics, delaying the start of her Pride career. Since being cleared to play, Chanda has not only struggled to see minutes in NWSL competition, but has often not even dressed for league matches, showing a lot of rust in a few appearances in Concacaf W Champions Cup play. Some have speculated that Chanda and Chilufya were brought in to make superstar striker Banda feel more comfortable, but that would not be typical of Carter’s squad building or consistent with the ambitions of Carter and Mark Wilf to build the Pride into a consistent contending club.

The timing of the Chilufya move is curious, as the Pride have been dreadfully underperforming offensively for much of the season and have a dearth of attacking options following Banda’s season-ending hip injury. Angel City is mathematically still alive for the postseason, but is a longshot to get above the line. Meanwhile, the Pride are simultaneously just two points out of third place and only five points from being below the line. Chilufya may have been interested in moving on, Orlando may have decided she wasn’t working out, or this deal could be a precursor to another move for the Pride, atlhough it would have to be from within the league at this point.

The international spot sent to Angel City is presumably so the Los Angeles-based club can remain roster compliant in terms of its international players with the addition of Chilufya. The return Orlando received — $50,000 in intraleague transfer funds — isn’t a large sum for a forward who often starts for a decent national team. Another move would make sense for a Pride side that has three difficult remaining matches and isn’t assured of a playoff appearance, but this trade could also be simply the second domino to fall (the Ally Watt deal with Denver was the first) in what appears will be a transformation of the club before the 2026 season.