Well here we are, the final game of 2026’s NWSL regular season. The Washington Spirit put themselves in position to need a result in their last match, but have some relief by having to face not just the worst team in the league, Chicago Stars, but a historically bad one at that. Washington’s loss to Kansas City Current last week took them out of the running for the NWSL Shield, but there’s still the matter of finishing top four to secure at least a quarterfinal at Rowdy Audi.

If the Spirit get a little bit of help from Bay FC, who are facing San Diego Wave, there’s still a chance they could finish in second. All that, of course, is contingent on the Spirit taking all three points from their match against Chicago.

What to Expect

Head coach Adrián González will have to do something he hasn’t had to do for, approximately, seven-hundred and ninety-three years: field a team without Hal Hershfelt. The everpresent midfield engine tore her ACL last week against Kansas City. Despite the opposition, the team will have to take the game seriously to figure out how best to make up for Hershfelt’s absence.

After she went down against Kansas City, González brought on Mélissa Bethi to join Leicy Santos and Andi Sullivan in midfield. At that point the Spirit had just gone down 2-1 to the Current, so bringing on another creative midfielder made sense. However, the Spirit weren’t able to find another goal and Bethi struggled to make an impact. She was dispossessed five times (mostly through trying to dribble through a press), was dribbled past five times, and only won 3 of her 15 ground duels.

Leicy Santos has shown the ability to b scrappy enough to play more of a box-to-box midfield role, but by no means can she cover as much ground as Hershfelt. Monique Ngock i the most like-for-like replacement, but has to improve in possession and work on dispossessing NWSL caliber athletes without fouling. Hal had to learn similar lessons, but it took a season or two to get there.

Previously

3-0. Trinity Rodman scored in the first seven minutes, then Andi Sullivan added a penalty before the 35 minute. The Spirit were put under a little trouble by Chicago, including them scoring a goal but having it disallowed for offside. Tamara Bolt came up with a brilliant header in the 85th minute for the Spirit’s third and her first in the NWSL.

Washington Spirit

How They Got Here

Well, by being on of the better teams in the league. The Spirit had a slow start to the season, with it taking them nearly a month before they won their first game (one loss, three draws). After that they went on a run of eleven wins and two losses in thirteen games.

However, things have been more of a mixed bag since August. Their record since has been five wins, one draw and six losses. They seemed to have taken massive strides toward their peak a couple weeks ago when they played their most dominant and complete game of the season against Gotham FC, and finally beating them. The following week, though, saw them take an early lead against Kansas City then cough it up in five minutes as two avoidable mistakes gifted two goals. Washington never recovered, and the loss ended their chance at fighting for the NWSL Shield today.

Some of the late season ups and downs are the result of an ever-changing team. Some players were returning from pregnancies, three new players joined the team in late August/early September, Rebeca Bernal and Gift Monday transferred to other clubs, and injuries to key pieces like Leicy Santos, Kate Wiesner and Deb ABiodun, and now of course, Hal Hershfelt. Leicy recently returned to match action, but the others won’t suit up again this season.

Key Difference Makers

The devastating news of Hal Hershfelt’s ACL injury was countered slightly by the news that veteran defender, Casey Krueger, has been activated from maternity leave.

Krueger had been training with the Spirit, but as we’ve seen from the journeys of Andi Sullivan and Ashley Hatch, no two look alike. While there’s no way to know how many minutes Krueger will be able to play against Chicago (if any), or in the playoffs, but as this was her second child, she’s been through this process before.

The key difference maker for the Spirit will be whoever has to step in for Hershfelt. With Rebeca Bernal moving to Manchester United in August and Hershfelt’s injury, Andi Sullivan is now the only recognized defensive midfielder on the team. Sullivan is also a different profile at DM, and doesn’t quite cover the same range of yards as Hershfelt. However, she is a savvy at pulling strings and playmaking from defensive midfield.

The Spirit must lean into Sullivan’s strengths while finding the right personnel and configuration to cover space defensively. How quickly and thoroughly they solve that puzzle will define how successful they are in the playoffs. And they only have one game against a team that’s not at all representative of the quality of competition they’ll face in their next game, and hopefully, games.

Chicago Stars

How They Got Here

Now is not the time to go on my full rant but here’s a snapshot: A guaranteed recipe for failure is an owner/ownership group who doesn’t invest, recruit, or show an interest or care in their product. This is the top division of club soccer in the United States and one of the best leagues in the entire world, trying to penny pinch your way through seasons is going to set up everyone to fail. That is exactly what has happened to Chicago this year, and in truth for the entirety of Laura Ricketts’ time as owner.

It’s not fair to ask coaches and general managers to overcome deficiencies created by a bad owner. But it’s ultimately not fair to the players, who are sacrificing years of their short careers for an owner who consistently sets them up to fail.

Recently, Ricketts was able to capitalize on Kansas City Current losing Vlatko Andonovski. There’s a chance that next year, if she’s finally willing to write the necessary checks, Chicago will improve. Also, there’s almost no way that they couldn’t. This season they seem guaranteed to end the year being crowned the worst team in the NWSL. Chicago has the most losses in the league, has scored the fewest goals, and conceded the most.

Their goal difference is an astonishing -52 after twenty-nine games. That’s certainly the highest, and by a lot. In 2016 the Boston Breakers posted a -33 in twenty games. Adjusting to a per game analysis to make up for the difference in number of games played, the Breakers averaged -1.65 goals per game, while Chicago is at -1.79. The only way the Stars don’t end the season as, statistically, the worst team to play in the NWSL is to beat the Spirit by three or more goals.

Key Difference Makers

Honestly, Vlatko Andonovski. He offers the Stars a chance to steer into a heading they know will lead to success, with someone at the helm who is good at building both teams and cultures at the club level. There’s a lot of work to be done in the offseason, but he’s already helped bring Racheal Kundananji to Chicago.

She won’t be available against the Spirit due to a CDC rule change during the international break which placed Uganda on a list that requires a 21-day quarantine. Zambia played Uganda a day before the change, but upon attempted reentry into the United States, she—plus Angel City’s Prisca Chilufya and Orlando Pride’s Barbra Banda—was forced into the three-week quarantine.

To more directly spotlight a potential difference maker, well, Chicago has 1/3 of Triple Espresso, former Spirit player Mallory Swanson. In the last match Swanson played in attacking midfield and it didn’t really work, but it is a look the Spirit will have to prepare for in addition to her usual prowess on the left wing.

Availability Reports

Washington Spirit

Chicago Stars

OUT: Ryan Connaughton (Knee), Aaliyah Farmer (Thigh), Jordyn Huitema (Knee – SEI), Natalia Kuikka (Knee – SEI), Rachael Kundananji (Excused Absence)

Location: Audi Field (Washington, DC)
Kickoff time: 5 PM ET
Available TV: ESPN+