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

Welcome to your match preview and live thread as the Orlando Pride (6-7-2, 20 points) head back out on the road to face Utah Royals FC (7-4-3, 24 points). This is the first of two meetings between the two teams with the return game in Orlando scheduled for Aug. 29.

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

History

The original Utah Royals first played in 2018 and 2019 before the team was purchased and relocated to Kansas City. The new owners of Major League Soccer’s Real Salt Lake bought an expansion side, so 2024 was the first season the two teams met since 2019, although this is an all-new side. After going 1-3-2 against the old Royals, the Pride are 4-0-1 against the current iteration of the club, with all games coming in the NWSL regular season. Orlando is 2-0-0 in Utah.

The last time the Pride met the Royals was on Aug. 3, 2025 in Orlando. The visitors led early through Mina Tanaka off an assist from Kaleigh Riehl. But Simone Jackson set up Prisca Chilufya for the 72nd minute equalizer, ensuring the Pride came away with a 1-1 draw. On May 23 in Utah. It was the Barbra Banda show, as the striker became the first Pride player to score a hat trick, doing so in just 38 minutes. Brecken Mozingo scored the only goal for the hosts early in the game, getting behind the back line. But a scoreless second half resulted in a 3-1 win for the Pride.

The first game between the two since this new version of the Royals began NWSL play took place on April 12, 2024 in Sandy, UT. Marta started on the bench and came on for Adriana in the second half. It didn’t take long for the Pride captain to make an impact, netting the game’s lone goal six minutes after entering the match, as Orlando left the Beehive State with a 1-0 victory.

On June 21, 2024 in Orlando, it was a dominant performance from start to finish as the Pride roared to a 6-0 win. Banda started the scoring, and Summer Yates made it 2-0 just before halftime. The Pride took off in the second half with goals by Banda and Ally Watt, along with a Marta brace.

Overview

The start to the second half of the NWSL season has gone about the same for the Pride as the whole year — up and down. They started with a 2-0 loss to Angel City FC, in a game where the Pride defended for nearly the entire 90 minutes. They followed that with a 3-0 win against a red-hot Kansas City Current team, playing possibly their best half of the season in the second 45 minutes. Then, Wednesday night, they fell to expansion side Boston Legacy FC, this time losing 1-0.

If the trend continues, it might bode well for the Pride tonight. They’ve tended to play up or down to their competition. While both Angel City and Boston sit behind the Pride in the standings, the Royals are above them. Given Utah’s current position in fifth place, the Pride seem destined to have a quality performance tonight.

In order to beat the Royals tonight, the Pride will likely need production from Banda. The striker leads the league in goals with 12 and has been the primary source of goals for the team this season.

They’ll also need a strong performance from the back line, but the players that will make up that group is much more of a question. The Pride’s defensive unit has been better since Rafaelle and Cori Dyke have made up the center back partnership. However, Rafaelle was out Wednesday night and Dyke had to move to the left back position, making the center back pairing Zara Chavoshi and Hannah Anderson.

Tonight’s opponent has seen success on both sides of the field this season. They’ve scored 21 goals so far, good enough to tie them for third most in the league. Defensively, they’ve only conceded 16 goals this season, fifth-least in the NWSL.

The Royals are led in the attack by Cloe Lacasse with five goals. She’s followed by Tanaka with four. Lara Prasnikar, Kiana Palacios, Tatumn Milazzo, and Cece Delzer have two goals each this year. Lacasse and Tanaka also lead the team in assists, though it’s the other way around. Tanaka leads the team with four assists and Lacasse has three. Palacios and Delzer follow with two assists apiece so far this season.

As you can see, keeping Tanaka and Lacasse from creating problems for the Pride’s back line will be crucial in keeping the Royals off the scoresheet.

Despite being a relatively new team, the Royals have plenty of veteran leadership in the back, which has been crucial in their defensive success. Mandy McGlynn is the starting goalkeeper in front of a center back pairing that has consisted of Kate Del Fava, Tatumn Milazzo, and Riehl. The three right in front of the goal has made Utah a difficult team to score against.

The Pride will play tonight without Hailie Mace (thigh), Marta (excused absence), Kylie Nadaner (maternity leave), Viviana Villacorta (knee), and Summer Yates (ankle). Utah will be without DeAira Jackson (concussion), Alex Loera (knee), and KK Ream (knee).

Official Lineups

Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.

Defenders: Cori Dyke, Hannah Anderson, Zara Chavoshi, Oihane.

Defensive Midfielders: Angelina, Haley McCutcheon.

Attacking Midfielders: Nicole Payne, Luana, Seven Castain.

Forward: Barbra Banda.

Bench: Cosette Morche, Zoe Matthews, Jacquie Ovalle, Simone Jackson, Ally Lemos, Kerry Abello, Rafaelle, Julie Doyle, Solai Washington.

Utah Royals FC (4-2-1-3)

Goalkeeper: Mandy McGlynn.

Defenders: Nuria Rabano, Tatumn Milazzo, Kate Del Fava, Miyabi Moriya.

Defensive Midfielders: Narumi Miura, Ana Tejada.

Attacking Midfielders: Mina Tanaka.

Forward: Cloe Lacasse, Kiana Palacios, Cece Delzer.

Bench: Paige Cronin, Kameron Simmonds, Lara Prasnikar, Brecken Mozingo, Courtney Brown, Kaleigh Riehl, Mia Justus, Alexa Spaanstra, Madison Hammond.

Referees

REF: Servando Berna.
AR1: Matthew Schwartz.
AR2: Fernando Fierro.
4TH: Brad Jensen.
VAR: Shawn Tehini.
AVAR: Kevin Huet.

How to Watch

Match Time: 8:45 p.m.

Venue: America First Field — Sandy, UT.

TV: Ion.

Streaming: None.

Social Media: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @themaneland.bsky.social on Bluesky and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter (@ORLPride) or Bluesky (@orlpride.com) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go Pride!