Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we'd be honored to duck and cover when Caitlin Clark shanks a drive on the golf course. It's Thursday, November fourteenth, and on today's show, we're going to be joined by the athletics Meg Linahan to discuss all things NWSL playoffs, end of season awards, and the latest on dronegate and the San Diego Wave. Plus a new women's league arrives, Bluer skies ahead, and dreaming of a new head coach. It's
all coming up right after this welcome back slices. Here's what you need to know today to the WNBA, the Atlanta Dream announced that the franchise's next coach will be Carl Smesco. Smesco spent the last twenty three years as Florida Golf Coast head coach, leading that program to a six hundred eleven and one hundred twelve record and ten
nc DOUBLEA appearances. Smesco has the third highest winning percentage among active coaches in NCAA Division One women's basketball, behind only Gino Oriema and Kim Mulkey, and he is actually the only coach in Florida Golf Coast women's basketball history. He was hired in two thousand and one ahead of the team's inaugural season. The Eagles played in Division Two from two thousand and two to two thousand and seven before moving up to Division One in two thousand and eight.
In a statement, Smesco said, quote, the w has intrigued me as a possibility for a long time. When this opportunity came up, it really seemed like the right place, in the right time. I had great conversations with the general manager and with their ownership, and this is the right move for me right now. End quote. Smesco phills the void left after the Dream fired Tanisha Wright last month after the franchise lost in the opening round of
the WNBA Playoffs. Shortly after Smasco's hiring was made public, Florida Golf Coast announced that former player and current assistant coach Chelsea Lyles would become the program's due head coach. To soccer and the Canadian drone scandal, which made headlines during the Paris Olympics. On Tuesday, Canada Soccer fired coach Bev Priestman following the conclusion of an independent review. Assistant
coaches Jasmin Mander and Joseph Lombardi were also fired. All three were previously suspended by FIFA for a year and sent home from Paris after New Zealand complained about a drone surveilling their practice ahead of a group play game against the Canadians. The investigation reported that there's no evidence that similar surveillance was used at the twenty twenty one Tokyo Olympics, where Canada won gold, or that the players saw the footage. We'll talk more about those findings later
in the show with Meglenahan. To the NWSL, the league has announced the finalists for its end of year honors. The NWSL uses a two round selection process. In the first round, players, owners, GMS, coaches and media select the nominees using a weighted scale, and fans get to join the voting process in the final round. That means your voice can be heard by voting for individual awards Best eleven First Team and Best eleven Second Team by Friday at three pm Eastern. We'll link to the voting site
in our show notes. As for those individual awards, a couple will point out here MVP Race, Kansas City Star, Tenwa chewinga winner of the Golden Bood Award for most goals during the season, is obviously in the mix. There. She's joined by Orlando Prides Barbara Banda and Marta, the Washington Spirits Trinity Rodman, and the Portland Thorne Sophia Smith. For Rookie of the Year, you've got Washington Spirit midfielder Kroy Bethune, who won NWSL Rookie of the Month honors
four times this season before she got hurt. She's joined by Kansas City Current midfielder Claire Hutton and Ali Sentner of the Utah Royals. The league also announced the nominees for Defender of the Year, Midfielder of the Year, Coach of the Year, and Keeper of the Year. We'll link to all those nominees in the show notes. Also an NWSL news, the Kansas City Current announced that Caitlin Carducci
is officially the club's GM. Carducci has been working as GM in an interim capacity since May after Camille Ashton resigned from the post to tennis and to the Billie Jean King Cup. The opening tie between Spain and Poland on Thursday was postponed to Friday due to severe weather that brought heavy rain to the region. In a statement, organizers of the event said, quote, this decision has been made based on guidance from the relevant authorities to ensure
the health and safety of all participants and attendees end quote. Lacrosse, The Premier Lacrosse League, an eight team men's league that was it in twenty eighteen, announced that it's launching a new women's professional league that will begin play next spring, starting at the PL Championship Series in February. The women's league will initially feature four teams in cities to be announced, and has already garnered commitments from top players, including Charlotte
North and Izzy Skain. College Volleyball, we got a blockbuster doubleheader tonight as number two Nebraska takes on number sixteen Minnesota eight thirty pm Eastern. For that one, Huskers haven't dropped a set since October twenty six. That match will be followed by number six Wisconsin facing number twenty three USC at eleven pm Eastern. Badgers lead the overall series with the Trojans five to three. Both matchups available on
the Big Ten Network. To the PWHL. Some news that'll make gamers pretty happy, the league announced Thursday, it's entered a multi year partnership with EA and that the PWHL's players and teams will be included in NHL twenty five,
which launches December fifth. All right, if you listen to yesterday's show Slice, as you heard us mention Caitlin Clark playing in the Onika, and from the looks of social media, she had some six shots and definitely some fire kicks, but she also had one notable shank or was it a slice right off the opening tee that nearly took off the head of a spectator or two? It's twenty
twenty four, so everyone's got a phone. There are a lot of angles of the shot out there, but the best one is someone who caught the errant ball screaming right at him from the spectator side. So we'll link to that video in the show notes. Caitlyn even liked it. She commented, this is the greatest video ever. I'm so real good stuff. We got to take a break, but we wanted to give you some context quick before our
interview with Meglenahan. Just in case you need it. Here's a quick refresher on the current situation involving the San Diego Wave. So back in July, former Wave employee Brittany Alvarado spoke out against the club and team president Jill Ellis on social media, alleging a toxic work environment. She was subsequently sued by Ellis for defamation. Last month, Alvarado and four other Wave employees filed a lawsuit against the team and the NWSL for over fifteen claims, including discrimination,
sexual harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination. The lawsuit doesn't name Ellis as a defendant, but it does include examples meant to highlight her role in creating a quote abusive and toxic workplace culture end quote. Now, we haven't learned much more since the lawsuit was filed, and due to the ongoing legal proceedings, the San Diego Wave inn NWSL have previously declined to comment on specific claims in the suit.
We're going to get into all that, plus NWSL, SEMIS and more when Meg Lenahan makes her Triumphit return to the show That interview's coming up right after this. She's a senior writer for the Athletic who covers the US women's national team, the NWSL, and all things women's soccer. She also co hosts the fantastic weekly podcast Full Time with Meg Lenahan. Her wife and her dog have matching puffy coats, and she wants to know if you're filling
out your full time playoff bingo card. It's Meg Lenahan. What's up, Meg?
They do have matching puffy because I also have a blue one. I was just not in that particular photo slash wearing that coat at that time, but we all have blue puffy coats.
Honestly, I wanted to ask you, and I felt like it would only be right if you did, but I didn't see photographic proofs. So you know, my reporting duties required me to only report on your wife and your dog having the same coat. But I'm gonna need a shot of all three of you. Please, can we okay? I'll work out, Thank you, Thank you. Before we talk playoff matchups, I want to get into the news of
the week. Bev Priestman, the coach of Canada women's national team, was suspended after the drone surveillance incident at the Paris Olympics and was fired on Tuesday after an independent review, along with assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joseph Lombardi. They're also fired Canada Soccer releasing findings of the investigation. What did you make of the report that's come out and the resulting decision.
Yeah, I mean I don't think there was anything truly surprising in that report. I feel like I was actually a little underwhelmed. Also, when you read it's just so hilariously redacted, it's like, okay, but we actually know a lot of what you've redacted, so thank you. I guess like it doesn't really matter, but yeah, I mean it is. It is interesting just in terms of clear sort of you know, the higher brass at Canada Soccer wasn't really
aware of it that obviously. I don't think that there was a path for any of those three people to
come back to Canada Soccer even after what happened. But I do think the bigger question still is, like have they actually gotten to the root of this practice because John Herdman wasn't available, like the timing didn't work for an interview, and I think that is still kind of the number one question hanging out there of who started it, Because it's not that I want to like absolve Bev Priestmen of what happened at the Olympics or in other cases, but I just don't want her to like get the
hook for something that is not just her. And I think that there is maybe a chance for an easy scapegoat here. And so this is one where it's like I would like a yes and out of Canada Soccer, right, I would like to see you know, and they I think they have kind of promised more, but I don't think this can be the end of Canada Soccer trying to figure out culturally what enabled this behavior for so long and it major targe, like.
Just again, the audacity is so baffling.
And the fact that you know, I mean, it was kind of a meme at the time, but it's like you're gonna spy on new Ze, like you're gonna do this and still play like that, okay.
Right, Yeah, we love a yes and around here. And I was feeling the same way reading the results, where it was why would someone say Canada Soccer's been doing this forever if they haven't. So when the result comes out, it's like, yeah, there's no reason to believe the men were doing this and that it was existing. I don't know, I want more, Yeah, I want more out of this to know exactly who knew and who knew? What? Are
there any wave updates? While we're talking about news, this feels like a story that's been sort of boiling, but we haven't gotten a lot of progress on exactly what's happening for either of the wave or the people accu using. Jill Ellis, do you have anything for us on that?
Yeah, I mean not really. I think now that there's a lawsuit in motion, I think that does kind of change the scope of reporting. I mean, I think we've seen that a few times in the NWSL where lawsuits have just actively no one will really talk right and like that even comes from a leak point of view. So I think, you know, I have been working quietly. The part of the challenge of timing as always is you know, playoffs and trying to manage all these things
at the same time. But I think there are stories around because again I don't think it's just necessarily a wave problem. I think that's the one, to your point, that boiled up fastest and hardest. But there are culture issues, I think probably in every single front office, because it's not just even an nw CELL issue. It's really a sports industry issue of like what has been normalized, and so I think there's even a challenge of just how
can you resolve some of these issues outside of lawsuits? Right, how could you proactively address some of the culture things that are probably happening, whether that's I mean straight up toxic environment, but also just like working conditions in this industry are kind of infamously not pleasant, and so I
think that there's a few different things happening. But when it comes to San Diego, I think it is a little bit tougher, just because now with a lawsuit ongoing, everyone has a lawyer that really does I think, change who is willing to talk and why, and like there's just it's all risk, no benefit at that point, and so that things change.
I think if you haven't been in a situation like that too, it feels right and true to say whatever it needs to be done to get the truth out, whatever needs to be done to get people held accountable. It's easier said than done. I'll tell you from experience with the Red Stars. I was getting hounded as the public face of the new ownership that had joined and why am I not speaking out about stuff? And I was getting threatened behind the scenes repeatedly with legal threats
that I didn't know how true they were. I didn't know how real they were. I was told I was behold into an NDA, but I never saw it or signed it, so I knew somehow that didn't feel legally binding. But I don't have the money to have a bunch of lawyers fight that either. People don't realize even if you're in the right, you have to spend all the money on the lawyers to fight the other lawyers, and then if nothing comes of it, you've still spent all that money.
And I also think that there is a push for people to see stuff like on social media that's like a very definitive opinion and first of all, like I'm not really allowed to do that in my job, but second of all, like a I'm off Twitter now, so that has already kind of been for you. Yeah, honestly, I have not missed it. It's actually kind of like
you realize how much your brain has been poisoned. And so anyway, different different podcasts, But yeah, I think there is this sense of, you know, a pressure to want to say something right, and I super understand that, but I think it's also a lot easier for folks who aren't in like a reporting situation to be able to
say things like that. Whereas you know, even when the lawsuit was filed, just in terms of like it's got to get covered, it has to go through multiple levels of editorial review before it can get published, all of that kind of stuff, and so there are sort of guardrails on what like, I can certainly have a private opinion, right, but the sharing of the private opinion.
Is a little bit different now.
And they're there for a reason, and they're there for a reason because it does matter when people with journalistic integrity and agency and voice say something more so than when someone on the internet expresses an opinion and later says, oh, I didn't know that. My bad, Yeah I didn't have that information.
Yeah.
I think there's like there's absolutely you know, having read the lawsuit, there's a there's a ton of concerning things. But also now it is kind of you know, I think there's alternate processes that these things can go through, and generally, you know, the reason why I did so much reporting for the NWSL is because it was not going through one of those like more formal weather that was an internal nw CL process or whether it was
a lawsuit or whatever it was. Right, those avenues had not worked slashed, the pl didn't elect to go for them. They elected to go for this sort of external communication strategy, and so it's not this is where it is kind of maybe not a yes, and right where once it gets into one of these sort of paths, the other
ones get harder. Like I can have a whole bunch of conversations behind the scenes, but that does not necessarily mean it's going to get into a place where it can be reported and get past you know, the number of editors to get passed.
Yeah, for sure. Other news this week, the NWSL announced the finalist for the awards MVP, Defender of the Year, Midfield of the Year, Keeper of the Year, Coach of the Year, Rookie of the Year. Any major surprises in those nominees as far as you're concerned.
I don't know if there's a surprise.
I mean, I was certainly, I guess I was surprised to see Marta in the top five finalists for MVP. I think that maybe betrays a little sense of sentimentality on the voter's point, but I.
Don't hate it.
I certainly am a big Marta supporter and I think honestly, she's played out of her mind this season, so I agree with that. I was a little surprised. I think more in terms of who wasn't on some of these lists. I think Abby Dahlkemper the way that she changed BFC's entire second half of the season. She was on my top five to head into that ballot for Defender of the Year, and then the other one that I was honestly very surprised by is no Taylor Flint in Midfielder
of the Year. I feel like we were maybe running a little bit of an unofficial campaign. She was on full time. Yeah, she's just I think she's really like
completely turned around her entire game. When she first kind of got put into that holding midfielder positioned with the US womens national team in New Zealand ahead of the World Cup, I think everybody's looking at Flacko being like, sir, well, it's happening, and it's been such a transformation at Racing Louisville, and so she was very much in my top five from Midfielder of the Year and to not see her there, I am a little disappointed on that one.
I think some of them not surprises at all, Naomi Germa trying to get a third Defender of.
The Year, but one where it's like, as much as I fully, like fully fully respect Naomi Germa, it's kind of hard with thee it's hard with the team she's on, and it's not that she's had a drop in quality, but you look at the other four candidates for Defender of the Year and it's like, okay, all four of those in terms of performances and the teams that they're on, Like this is I think maybe some of the same situation where Becky Souerbun kept getting nominated for Defender of
the Year and at some point finally had to like put out that statement and be like I love the energy that you all have, but also there are really other, like you know, deserving candidates in this pool, and you need to think about how you're voting. So I think, you know, Kaylee Kurtz North Carolina really interesting one. Emily SAMs, I think maybe has a little more momentum from that sort of award season, you know, conversation to.
They if they cancel each other out though, when you have two Pride players, yeah, will Kylie and Emily cancel each other out in terms of voting, or will people think that they were such a two headed monster that neither is deserving.
I mean, that's actually I think we'll get into this on my podcast a little bit too, because I think
Orlando isn't the only team that has that problem. Like you look at Gotham and it is really hard I think where a lot of players got left out of these individual awards because that team is such a comprehensive team, and also players sort of move in and out of roles, and it's a little tougher when you think about like a Yasmine Ryan who's had such a really good season, or Neilie Martin again in my top five for Midfielder of the Year, not there in the list, and so
and these are players that aren't like the big name, you know, splashy signings in the off season. But it's tougher when I think you have that sort of like team team vibe to pick out names for individual awards. So I think there is maybe a little bit of a risk for I mean, we were even having an internal debate of Emily SAMs versus Kylie Strawman, who's had the stronger season.
It's tough.
Yeah. I also I knew Kroy Bethune would be in Rookie of the Year. I think she'll win Rookie of the Year of the month four times every time she was available and not injured. But also very impressive to be out for Midfielder of the Year as a key with a shortened.
Season legit very I mean truly one of the best breakout performances we've ever seen in the n of cell. I'm not actually that surprised that she's on Midfielder of the Year. I think, you know, I even saw cases for her to be in the MVP conversation as well. But I do think, and I said this from the point of her injury on, like she did enough I
think to earn that award. There's just no one that even touched right that agreeable and not not anything against the other two candidates in that category, because I think both were like very stellar players who did very important things for their team, but Corey Bethune was one of those ones where just also if you see her in person, it's like, yeah, what is happening right now?
I can't wait to see her back out there. Okay, let's talk playoffs four teams remaining before we get into strategy. Let's say we've got some listeners here that don't have a vested interest in the semi final. We want to give them a chance to pick a squad and start bandwagoning with two weeks left. So I need a sentence per team to sell our unaffiliated slices on cheering for that for that squad. So Washington Spirit.
Washington Spirit.
I mean, I do think it is just coming down to a if you want to see them go all the way, you want to be part of that championship celebration. Because I don't know what kind of party Michelle Kang is going to put on in DC, but I feel like it's going to be legitimate one, and you.
Want to be a part of that. And maybe you want to wear a cape.
Agreed, She wears a lot of capes. She does. Kansas City Current.
Kansas City Current. Honestly, what I'm fascinated to see with Kansas City Current is if they beat Orlando in the semifinal, they're actually going to be the quote unquote away team, So they're going to be forced to be in the away supporter section.
And if they're a stadium.
It's just a little chaotic, and I enjoy the vibes, but I do think go for the current. Go for the the current. Obviously Temwatt, but I will say also if you are someone who maybe thought Vlaco got a little bit of a rough deal with the US women's national team, it is also the Vlaco and Aanofski.
You go there, you go, all right, New York, New Jersey, Gotham FC.
I mean, you're rooting for a super team right in theory, but I do think this is the most comprehensive team. Also again, potential celebration. They did not do one last year, but like I am rooting for if Gotham wins at all, we go.
Ellie cameo.
I was gonna say, you can't throw a party for the Liberty like you just did and then not follow it up.
If Gotham so, I mean, like again, I would like to maybe see an NW CELL parade down the canyon of here, like you want to talk about first in the nw CELL that honestly something too.
I want to see Ellie and a soccer kit.
Yeah, yeah, let's go.
Uh finally, Orlando Pride.
Orlando Pride, I mean then you are a fan of excellence, right. They have been gold standard all this season. And I think there is also again to our earlier point about Marta being an MVP candidate. You want to see Marta win another trophy in this country. She loves a trophy. The celebrations are gonna be epic. Yeah, there's not a bad choice out of these four if you're a neutral.
Yeah. And I think also Orlando, like being such a downtrodden team for so many years, not only do you get your roop for Marta, but one of those teams that like, you know that they've got fans that have been sticking with them for years through the tough times. Kind of cool to see a team like that. You know.
Also for listeners of this show, if they're the slices, like all you got to do is get an Orlando Orange kit and then you're said.
Oh, look at you, look at you. Okay, let's talk about these games. Saturday, Audi Field, twelve pm, Eastern Washington. Host got them what needs to go right for the Spirit to win.
They've got to probably just like get past the injuries, right. I don't think that was the cleanest game for them against AFC that was the one where everybody sort of tapped an upset. And now, to be fair, I don't think there's any such thing as an upset in these two games, right, Like, yes, it seeds one through four, but these were the clear four best teams of the year. I don't know if we can call any of these whoever wins an upset. Any one of these teams deserves
to go through. For the spirit Andy Sullivan, that injury I think is still one of the biggest ones. But Sar being out, I mean, they've just kind of Cory Bethune again, like they've lost a lot of very key players.
So for me, Lacy Santos was the difference maker last weekend, and I think you need to get another big performance out of her, changing the game, being able to control the temple, being able to find those spaces in those little pockets in the midfield, and that's really tough to do against that Gotham team, but she can do it.
What needs to go right for Gotham to win.
They've got to be I think, honestly a little more ruthless having been at that quarter final. They love to be pretty right, like it is a little frustrated watch them sometimes where it's just like just someone take the shot, like just right, and I like it's it's fun to watch.
But also I think there is this sense of they Ella Stevens, like again, every time I see her in person, I'm just like, you have such tremendous skill, and sometimes I'm just like you just have to like, oh, I just need you to make a slightly better.
Decision and you would have a goal right now.
And so that, to me, I think is the key for Gotham is just really dialing in on the ruthlessness, set set that game from the jump and just put your foot on their necks, like truly, that's that's the vibe for Gotham in order to advance well.
And Gotham benefits from the later in the season and the more tired everyone is because they honestly have a bench full of starters.
Yes, I mean we saw like Delaney sheehan coming in changing the game for them. I mean again, I have never just being at the Championship last year, the rain vibes were great, right like Pino last game, like obviously I know, right until two and a half in, but
like Gotham walking into the room for media day. I have never experienced that sort of vibe with a team, and the end of his they were just such a team in a way that I it's so hard to explain, but like they so clearly were in it and bought into the system, and it didn't matter who got the glory. It was all about the team result. And I think
this is a little bit of an extension of that. Obviously, they have stacked in some more talent and we saw it coming through with Tieranna Davidson and Roosevelt getting those goals, right, like it has paid off. But it's really the Neely Martin's, the Yasmine, Ryan's, the Delaney she hands, Like those are the players who are making all of this work. And so I like I do lean Gotham, but also Gotham has not won at Audi Field this year.
Yeah, so yeah, all right. Sunday, Interra and Co Stadium in Orlando, three pm, Eastern Pride hosting the current what needs to go right for the Shield winners the near ran the tablers Pride to finish the season off with a win and chance at the title here.
Yeah, I mean, I think more of the same of what they got out of the quarterfinal I mean they owned the midfield against Chicago. You got Barbara Banda off the jump doing stuff right, and so Banda has been quiet post Olympics. I think there are a lot of questions that she's obviously dropped off in the MVP conversation and then quarterfinal happens and it's like, oh, here's the reminder, right,
like here we go, here's what she's capable of. And so I think that really is just can you get Barbara Banda involved from the jump and forcing Kansas City into making mistakes? But this is really one where, you know, the last we had, there's some spice between these two teams, and I think Orlando has owned the spice battle, yes, and so just again doing more of the same for Orlando.
Yeah, for those who don't remember, tell everyone about what Marta did after one of their previous meetings and how current right.
So, I mean, the whole story of the first half of the season was Orlando Casey two unbeaten teams. Orlando comes in to Kansas City's beautiful little stadium and wins, and Marta is in pure Marta mode, shushing the crowd, and it did not go over well. Michelle Cooper had some thoughts, right.
Like.
She did rock a bait. Yeah, I mean just like truly truly.
Went for it in all Marta glory. And then we got the second meeting in Orlando, which was this very cagey zero zero draw, and I think everybody is kind of expecting to see the Cagenus come back out in this matchup. But I'm honestly like, these are two teams between Barbara Banda and Tumwichwinga, like you can do heavyweight punch for like, that's the game I want to see, but also to jump ahead and get into what Kansas City needs to do, right, Like, yeah, we did see
the return of that sort of Gwendinofski. I will settle for a single goal and then might knuckling it the rest of the way. And I don't know if you can get away with that against Orlando. I don't know if cagness will pay off in this game, right, It could, It could, but I.
Mean prefer right, we would all like to see eight thousand shots apiece from these superstar strikers. But to your point, it is so easy because of the pace of both Temwa and Barbara and because of their skill sets to make a tiny little mistake. They got out ahead, they beat your defenders to the ball, and it's a one v one against the keeper and it's over. Right. If that's so easy to happen, the game plan of sit back, almost low block style and hope that no one makes
a mistake might be smarter. Then let's have a shootof and see who gets the most.
Yeah, I mean it is going to be really you know, like maybe first half is super cagy and second half
opens up a little bit. I mean, this could be one of those like very cliched tale of two half games, but I do I think everybody is hoping for fireworks to like that's truly this should in many ways be a final, right, Like this is kind of the narrative game of this postseason, And so it is a little disappointing to not have it happen again in Kansas City and have Orlando come in and have maybe this potential repeat of do you get the narrative of Orlando shushing the crowd in a championship game?
So it is a little bit of a bummer.
But again, like there's no wrong answer, right, what is really I always try to resist predictions, and these semi finals I think are truly impossible to predict because it's just like, yeah, the parody narrative is obviously dead this season, but like, if you want to talk about parodies the team right here, it's.
The parody at the top. Yeah, and to your point, like there is a great argument for like Temwell versus Barbara Kurrent versus Pride been like at the top all season long, But then you're also ignoring that Gotham, once they adjusted to the new faces, to your point, might actually be the deepest and most talented.
Yes, I mean back half of the back half of the season, the way that like they just really since July and to August like truly turned it on. And I mean they've had some extremely comprehensive performances, right, and like you look at the Summer Cup final where they played against Kansas City and they were missing literally everyone on that team, Yeah, and what that did to them and the fact that they were still honestly like not
as bad as they could have been. Right, Yeah, it is going to be really I mean, any matchup that we get out of these semifinals is going to be good and interesting. I have been joking that like any matchup out of these semifinals also gets you like a good pr team too, Like all the four meeting teams are easy to work with, which is like a benefit to the reporters.
But they've all got names, they've all got stars.
Yeah, I mean there's no I think that there is obviously the sentimentality in Marta potentially winning a championship in this league, but really, you've got the narrative of Gotham going back to back. You've got the narrative of the spirit kind of coming back and having the head coach of FC Barcelona come in mid season and the way that they've you know, survived injuries that you have Kansas City and everything with Kansas City to watchewinga right, like at their.
Stadium, the first purpose built stadium for women's team, Yeah right, really at a million times and getting to lift the trophy at that stadium in front of the crowd that sold out every game this season.
Right, Yeah, I mean there's no I don't loss, there's no losers. It's it's all going to be just like I hope, truly enjoyable soccer to watch from here.
I'm headed to Spain here, which means I will actually be in a foreign country when these games hit, I'm gonna have to figure out how to watch them and how to see what happened. But I'm going straight from there to KC four Championship weekend. And I haven't been to an NWSL Championship weekend since the Red Stars fell to the Spirit and a Thriller in Louisville in twenty
twenty one. That was a blast. I was making pyramids at three in the morning the night before the game with you know, the head of the NWSLPA and causing trouble little on the next morning, not gonna lie, Yeah, and then immediately got on a plane after the game and had to fly home from my husband's birthday party that I was potentially gonna miss if I didn't, if I didn't high tail it back. But I've heard even in the couple of years since then, it's gotten even better.
There's more going on, there's more events, there's more activation. So tell us a little bit about what goes down at the at the championship weekend and what you've heard about plans specifically for Casey.
Yeah, I mean, I do think obviously Casey is a little bit of a smaller town like Louisville, right, I think it's it's going to be pretty easy. Casey's also just like a soccer town, So I do feel like Ndbusel is going to take over for that weekend a little bit. But yeah, I mean there's actually just compared to I mean I was at the first end of b Cell Championship. It was lame as hell and there's nothing right. It was literally the game and that that
was it. And so to have more events to have, you know, I think a lot of podcasts are going to be recording Sam Muis, Kelly O'Hara, like all of these folks are going to be in. There are parties, there are you know, like there's the Skills Challenge, there's obviously like the media, we all have a million things to run around and do. But also just the fact that Kansas City has its own stadium, like you can
actually have stuff. In the fact that they're right on the river, there's going to be space to spread out a little bit. And so I will say, like I have finally learned my lesson in terms of trying to be irresponsible adult and not drink my way through that way, because like early endsl championships were very rough for me, and I'm a little too old for that now, but yeah, it really like especially for when you're working, you know, twelve plus hour days and it's like, okay, I can't
get up the next morning and function. But yeah, it's honestly like, I know the Blue Crew Casey supporters group is going to be all out. They've got some spaces already planned for this sort of thing too.
But I would like to see I mean, we've all been talking about river goals all season. You know how they always have these like fan activations where you can like try to score a goal. We need to do a fan time river goal. I mean you could put some nets out there so the balls don't you know, actually.
They fish them out, like the one, the one that tem Wall scored, they fished it out so they got it all right.
Well, I would like I would like that instead of like a dribble around the cones, I would like a river goal participation element to this.
This is that there's still time to address.
Only I'm gonna call it Jessica Berman. I'll give her my pitch. Okay, final question. There's only two weeks left in this season, and while I hate to do this. I have to ask you, do you know what next your schedules coming out?
I do, yeah, hopefully sooner, hopefully. But this is I mean, like to turn it more. Are serious for a second, like, this is the challenge, right, And we saw this in San Diego at the end of the year with the fact that the stadium conditions were not ideal enough to even play a game. NBSEL has very limited availability in those stadiums, and so I think it does as the league expands to it only gets harder. And I will tell you I do not envy all.
The schedule makers.
Yeah, it goes through a machine first. Yeah, the after part where you have to go to like every team and you're like, what does this work?
Does this work?
Like?
That sounds like my nightmare. So kudos to Vicky and crew at the end of USEL who it is a very thankless job and obviously there's a lot of complaining that happens around it.
So well, Meg, we always love to have you on. We know you're so busy and you are have been for a long time sort of single handedly holding up the women's soccer infrastructure in our country. Thankfully, more people are joining the party, but you're still the go to and I know so many people try to get your services and your insights. So thanks for coming on. Everyone, go listen to Full Time with Meg Lenahan, read her work on the Athletic and get a Bingo card. Right.
You guys put out full time Bingo cards for people to play along with the playoffs.
So I do think we are refreshing the Bengo card for this week. So and I think we'll have some awards chat on full Time so I think we might have a little awards card as well. But we're trying to come up with our own awards, so if anybody has any ideas, okay, well we are open to them, okay.
Love that. We've also been considering an end of the year awards ceremony here at Good Games, so we will all be thinking together and looking for those updated Bingo cards to play along. Thanks Meg, Thank you, Thanks again to Meg for joining us. We got to take another break. Stick around, Welcome back slices. We've got some news from the grove. The Good Sports. Y'all are coming through with
some good name suggestions for our little trio. Keep them coming. Okay, So the news we've made the leap to Blue Sky producer Alex and Meglenahan got the party started and I followed belatedly, Sure, but I followed and Mish has two so you can now follow all of us over there. I haven't yet deleted Twitter slash x, but I'm hoping to be part of a larger migration and be able to find all my favorite teams, leagues, athletes, reporters and fun follows over under bluer less Fascist Skies. Join us.
We'll link to our accounts in the show notes, and besides following us there, we've got one more good game play of the day too, play nwsl bingal with the full Time with Meglenahan crew. The quarterfinal round card included some fun spaces like hal Hirschfelt, Yellowcard, Brandy Chess, Dain Sighting, check and check. We can't wait to see what's on
the card for the semis. We'll link to the full Time Instagram account in our show notes and we'd always love to hear from you, so hit us up on email good game at wondermedianetwork dot com or leave us a voicemail eight seven two two oh four fifty seventy and don't forget to subscribe, rate and review. It's easy. In fact, listener Matt Douglas emailed us to give us
a review of sorts. He responded to another Slice, Alexandra Hand, who rode in and admitted to being new to the w but wondered if the Connecticut Sun might ever move to a bigger city. Well, Matt has thoughts his review, know nothing new, w fans trying to take the Connecticut Sun away from us. I have to assume his rating would be zero one of five stars, Matt continues. Number one, the Sun are the only professional sports team owned by a native tribe. Please keep your grubby colonizer hands off
our team. Two. Yes, it's an arena that's under ten K, but I've never seen that arena at less than seventy five percent capacity in the ten plus years I've been going to games there. Three, there's support for women's basketball and Connecticut from the Sun and Yukon all the way down to high school. The arena has been used for
tournaments and state championships for quite a bit. Now, hope this helps Matt from Connecticut and unasked for unofficial Good Game Connecticut's un correspondent, Thank you, Matt, check is not in the mail. Just you know, FAYI, we don't have a budget for correspondence yet, but we'll hang on to your resume. Oh and by the way, Matt, you might want to talk to your girl Djen A. Carrington. She posted on Twitter in response to a report that Jason Tatum might be trying to get a WNBA team in
Saint Louis. Quote, what about a bid to move a team to Boston? Smiley faced Djona. I know you're a free agent, but the Sun still has your rights. You better be careful girl. All right, now, it's your turn slices. Head to Apple Podcasts, scroll down to stars, give us a five and review. Please, thanks for listening. See you tomorrow. Good Game, Meg, Good Game, Women's Lacrosse League. You you redactions
in juicy investigative reports. Good Game with Sarah Spain is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Production by Wonder Media Network. Our producers are Alex Azzie and Misha Jones. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz, Jenny Kaplan and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rutterer, Britney Martinez,
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