With the kickoff of the 2026 NWSL season, the Washington Spirit are back in the hunt, looking for their third straight championship appearance.
After 1-0 losses in the 2024 and 2025 championship games, the team is hoping to run it back, this time ending their season with a victory. Their campaign has been a bit rocky so far, with the Spirit adjusting to offseason roster changes, injuries and a new head coach, but the past few games have looked as though they may be back on track.
In 2021 the Spirit won their first-ever NWSL championship, led by then-19-year-old rookie phenom Trinity Rodman, national team star Kelley O’Hara, and two-time Goalkeeper of the Year Aubrey Kingsbury. It was a monumental season in which the team overcame a coaching abuse scandal and subsequent change, as well as pressure by fans on former owner Steve Baldwin to sell the team. In 2022 he did, to Michelle Kang, now a fan favorite and notable investor across many women’s sports leagues.
The next two years, however, were lackluster, and 2023 included another coaching change due to abuse. Then, under Jonatan Giraldez in 2024, led by Kingsbury, Rodman, defender Casey Krueger, and a stellar rookie class that included midfielders Hal Hershfelt and Rookie and Midfielder of the Year Croix Bethune (all but Kingsbury were also members of that year’s Olympic gold-medalist USWNT), the Spirit roared to an 18-6-2 season, securing the two-seed and home playoff advantage through the semifinals.
Though they fell in the final to the first-seeded Orlando Pride, the 2024 season set record highs in attendance at home stadium Audi Field, affectionately known as “Rowdy Audi” by fans, including back-to-back playoff sellouts. Looking to carry that momentum into a championship, the Spirit kicked off the 2025 season looking dominant, with a Challenge Cup (the NWSL’s early-season tournament) victory over Orlando. However, setbacks came in the form of injuries to Rodman, captain Andi Sullivan and maternity leave by other key players, including Krueger, over the course of the season. Despite these obstacles, the Spirit managed to once again clinch the second seed, and hosted two playoff victories before falling to eighth-seed underdog Gotham FC in the championship game.
At 1-1-3, the Spirit are currently sitting at eighth place in the NWSL standings, with a loss in the season opener on March 13 and three consecutive ties before finally netting a 2-0 victory over Bay FC on the road. After trading Bethune to Kansas City FC in the offseason, and with Kingsbury, Sullivan, Krueger, and captain Ashley Hatch all out on maternity leave, the Spirit attack and midfield have lacked stability and firepower through their first five games. But, their win on April 5 provided some cause for relief, with improvement in both areas. With a 30-game season, there is still plenty of time for the Spirit to make it back to the championship, and hopefully this time, come home with the trophy.
The Washington Spirit’s next home game is on Friday, April 24, at 7 p.m. at Audi Field, against Kansas City FC.
