Happy Friday! We’re in for a lot of soccer from our local teams this weekend, and there’s just a smattering of news to discuss in the meantime. Let’s get to it!

Loudoun United FC Sign Defender Akil Watts for Remainder of 2026 Season (Loudoun United)
Loudoun United has been making some moves in the last few weeks, currently bringing in former St. Louis City defender, Akil Watts.

Nigeria to miss Women’s World Cup after South Africa and Ghana win play-offs (BBC)
This is the first time Nigeria has failed to qualify for the World Cup. Sad news for Washington Spirit players Deb Abiodun and Gift Monday, but their team just did not look up to it the entire tournament. Rose Kouassi’s Ivory Coast also missed out on a chance to qualify with a loss yesterday.

Trinity Rodman joined Kylie Kelce on her podcast this week, and I, personally, was happy to learn that her coaches ARE working on getting her to chill out a little bit when it comes to fouling issues.

DC Power FC enter 2026 sprint season ready to outrun rest of USL Super League (The DP)
Donald has the scoop on DC Power’s season, kicking off tomorrow evening. Ahead of a planned calendar switch, the Gainbridge Super League will be playing a short fall season, and this Power squad is hoping to improve on past results.

DC Power unveiled some new kits to kick off the season as well:

Archive Collection: Every jersey for the 2026 season (MLS)
If mid-season kits are more your thing, the MLS Archive jerseys are out. Austin FC and Chicago Fire’s are my favorite but also basically the same as each other.

Chicago Stars FC part ways with Marin Sjögren and assistant coach Anders Jacobson amid last place season (CBS Sports)
Chaos continues for the Chicago Stars. They also signed forward Simone Charley yesterday, in a transaction I find a little baffling.

Man City submit £102.5 million bid for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez (Yahoo!Sports)
Chelsea might be losing a big player, but the deadline looms.

Challenge cards in soccer? Inside USL’s NFL-style alternative to VAR and how FVS could offer a cleaner, cheaper replay system (Goal.com)
It’s not uninteresting.

‘Call Her Daddy’ Host Alex Cooper’s Unwell Beverage Business Is Shutting Down (Bloomberg)
RIP to erstwhile NWSL partner Unwell FC.

Finally, your schedule of events for the weekend: DC Power has their home opener, and Saturday night is going to be BUSY!