The Washington Spirit return to the pitch this weekend after a very long summer break to continue their hunt for the NWSL Shield. The break came at a perfect midpoint in the season, as the Spirit have played every team once and have now had the chance to reset before playing them each again.

Before their first match on Sunday, let’s check in on how things have gone so far for Washington and what to expect in the rest of the year.

The big picture

After making the NWSL finals in 2024 and winning the 2025 Challenge Cup, Washington Spirit started their season with high hopes, topping many a season predictions list and aspiring to win their first NWSL Shield.

Now, with half the season remaining, those shield hopes might be out of reach. The Spirit are in fourth place with a record of 7W-2D-4L. This isn’t the worst position to be in, but at 23 points, they are a solid ten points behind Kansas City Current, whose attacking prowess and well-rounded defense may have put them too far ahead to catch.

There’s no need to give up hope yet, though, and the Championship remains well within Washington’s grasp. They’ve continued to be a strong attacking team ranking third in the NWSL in goals scored. The Spirit have shown a flair for set pieces -historically a weakness for the team-, which have led to many of their goals. They’ve also developed an affinity for getting results in scrappy matches — they are second in fouls and third in fouls drawn. Versatility is clearly both a strength and value of this team, which swaps players into different positions based on need and has alternated between at least three different starting formations.

The downside? The Spirit have allowed almost as many goals as they’ve scored, leaving them with a goal differential of just two and a reputation for defensive weakness. The stats back this up: they lead the league in errors, as well as in clearances, reflecting their frequent last-ditch approach to defending. Their defensive woes peaked in late April and May, when they allowed 12 goals in just four matches (though scoring nine themselves).

Standouts

With Hatch out for the season, the team will look to newcomer Gift Monday to take on more of a goal scoring role, as well as the central attacking position. Monday has scored four goals and assisted one so far this year. She’s joined up top by Rosemonde Kouassi, the Spirit’s chief goal creator. A terror on the dribble since her introduction to the NWSL last year, Kouassi finally broke through with her first league goal against Chicago Stars in May, in addition to her team-leading three assists.

On the backline, Tara McKeown has continued to impress with her ability to shut down opposing strikers with her positioning and well-timed tackles. She’s also frequently called upon to start the team’s attack, both passing the ball and taking opportunities to drive it into the attacking half herself.

Injury impact

The most obvious explanation for Washington’s struggles compared with last season has been apparent from the beginning: the team has been absolutely devastated by injuries. Their pre-match availability reports featuring at best eight injured players and at worst enough to make up their own starting lineup. The these injuries have impacted in at least two ways. First, the team couldn’t rely on the talents of star players like Trinity Rodman, Ouleye Sarr, and Leicy Santos. Second, the constant fluctuation of players — the Spirit didn’t start the same eleven once — made it difficult for even the healthy players to establish on-field chemistry with their rotating teammates.

The number of injured players decreased over time (though not consistently), and players like Croix Bethune, Hal Hershfelt, and Kate Wiesner returned by the end of June. But the biggest hope of the mid-season break is that it would give the Spirit even more time to rehab injured players.

There are some encouraging signs. Rodman and Paige Metayer have both joined the team for recent trainings, and Metayer was removed from the 45 day-injury list earlier this week. Both would provide a big boost to the team’s performance. Santos has also returned to the field, although she’ll need to time to rest after playing in this weekend’s Copa América Femenina final and may not be seen at Blizzard Point for a few weeks yet. In contrast to Washington’s yo-yoing availability report of the earlier season, the only addition to that list seems to be leading goal-scorer Ashley Hatch, who announced her pregnancy in July.

Changes at the half

Washington made one big signing during this window: Italian player Sofia Cantore, who recently helped her national team make the semifinals in the 2025 Euros. In that tournament, Cantore demonstrated her wicked crosses and ability to cut inside, making three assists. Cantore will need to rest and secure a visa before she can join the Spirit on the field, but her crosses will be a welcome addition to their attack.

Perhaps the biggest change for the team will be the departure of Jonatan Giráldez as head coach and his replacement by Adrián González. González has been with the team since the beginning of 2024, as an interim head coach and then assistant, so the transition has been smoother than many, but naturally there will be some changes. In an interview with Hey Spirits, he spoke about improving chemistry, trying to have more control over matches (while knowing full control is impossible in the NWSL), and building habits in training that will allow his players to react instinctively to match conditions.

What comes next?

Finding consistency will be key for the Spirit in the second half of 2025, enabling them to improve their pass completion rates and defensive coordination. They’ll also need to be prepared for the first round of 2025-26 Concacaf W Champions Cup, which will be cluttering up Washington’s calendar with mid-week matches this fall. While this team is used to load management, having enough healthy players to rotate will be crucial to ensuring these games don’t hurt their league play.

First up, though, is a rematch against the Portland Thorns, who broke the Spirit’s improbably long away winning streak back, with a 0-2 loss in June. Back home at Rowdy Audi, can the Spirit start a new winning streak? We’ll find out this Sunday.

Lead image, courtesy of the Washington Spirit, shows Gift Monday running with the ball with her teammates and the Portland Thorns behind her.