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Photo via Kansas City Current
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – With the National Women’s Soccer League commissioner and the league’s Shield on site, the Kansas City Current made history yet again, defeating Seattle Reign FC 2-0 to capture their first major trophy on Saturday at CPKC Stadium.
“It’s unreal,” defender Ellie Wheeler told reporters after the match. “I think it’s just so special and so deserving for how much work we put in and just how we look towards every single game and the focus we have… We’re definitely gonna, you know, acknowledge what we’ve done and the history we’ve made, and celebrate that, and then obviously get back to work, but enjoy it while we can.”
As the 10 minutes of stoppage time ticked away, the humongous teal Tiffany & Co. box made its way down to the pitch. The CPKC Stadium crowd roared, the platform appeared and the Current lined up in their freshly-printed Shield-winner shirts – which promptly sold out at the team store within 20 minutes of the ceremony ending.
Kansas City now has an untouchable 53 points and a 17-2-2 record with five matches remaining in the regular season. Winning the Shield also guarantees bids to the 2026 NWSL Challenge Cup and 2026-27 Concacaf W Champions Cup.
“We work for things like this, moments like this all season,” head coach Vlatko Andonovski said after the match. “It’s a justification of the work we’ve done this year and last year.”
Back in early May, the Reign were the first team to shut out the Current, winning 1-0 at Lumen Field. It was Kansas City’s second consecutive loss, dropping the Current to 5-2-0 at the time. They went on to outscore their next four opponents 10-3 and start an eight-game winning streak. The club’s unbeaten streak now sits at 14 matches.
The Current had a few early chances, including an Ally Sentnor shot blocked in the second minute, one wide-right by Nichelle Prince in the seventh, and another by Robinson in the 10th. Temwa Chawinga, making her return from a knee injury, had another good look in the 13th that went wide right.
Debinha broke the drought, burying a penalty kick in the 34th minute. The penalty, a handball in the box, was assessed after confirmation from VAR. The Current carried that lead into halftime with a 13-0 advantage in shots and 66% of possession.
The second half started much slower with a litany of breaks for players down on the pitch and the Current exhausting their substitutions by the 73rd minute. Kansas City also appeared to lose veteran defender Hailie Mace to an ankle injury, forcing her to exit in the 62nd despite entering the match at the beginning of the second half.
Chawinga scored the go-ahead goal in the 74th, collecting a carom after Bia’s shot was blocked. She headed it past goalkeeper Claudia Dickey and the CPKC Stadium crowd erupted into a spirited rendition of “Happy Birthday.”
It’s the first Shield of Andonovski’s decorated NWSL coaching career, which includes a pair of Championship titles in 2014 and 2015 with FC Kansas City. The Seattle Reign captured the Shield in those two campaigns.
