The 2025 NWSL championship trophy glistened under the Sports Illustrated Stadium lights Saturday night.
“The champions return” illuminated on the big screens overlooking the field.
One by one, members of last year’s Gotham FC team walked across the stage as club owners Carolyn Tisch Blodgett and Ed Nalbandian presented them their rings.
“I love it,” Lilly Reale said as she pulled the ring out of the box to show it off. “It’s gorgeous, such a pretty ring … This is amazing. As good as it gets, really. I’m so happy with it.”
Saturday’s ring ceremony, following Gotham’s 0-0 draw with the North Carolina Courage, was the coronation of a team that paved its own way, sneaking into the playoffs as the eighth and final seed. Gotham slayed the 2025 NWSL Shield winner Kansas City Current before lifting the trophy in the Bay Area.
“When we look across the pitch, we see dominance, we see grit, we see greatness,” Ali Krieger, a member of Gotham’s 2023 championship-winning team, told the crowd. “We see a dynasty in the making.”
Gotham, winners of two of the past three NWSL championships, see themselves as a budding dynasty.
But there’s a lot of work that still needs to be done.
“The goal is to be consistent and those consistent performances hopefully will result in wins, which results in trophies,” said Tierna Davidson, who appeared in her first match in nearly a year after being sidelined with a torn ACL. “We are a club that likes to take it one step at a time and is really committed to putting in the work and to get it done the right way. I think that we understand that last year ended in a really great way for us, but we didn’t consistently put performances together that we wanted throughout the year and so I think that in order for us to even come close to touching something called the dynasty, we have to be a lot more consistent and we have to prove game in and game out that we are that kind of team and I think that’s what we’re striving for. And we have to do that starting every weekend.”
Saturday’s home opener was a tale of two halves.
Gotham appeared a step slow in the first half. In the second, they seemed to up the intensity.
Gotham had the time-of-possession edge but struggled to generate good looks. Part of that was because of the way the Courage repeatedly blew up what Gotham were trying to do.
The Courage outshot Gotham 13-10. But Ann-Katrin Berger remained impervious as Gotham have yet to allow a goal in either of their first two games.
“I thought for the most part, I thought we played very well,” Jaelin Howell said. “We need more shots on goal. It can’t be the same story as last year that we’re struggling to score and we know that as a team. So, moving forward, we’re going to continue to push for that.”
Added Reale, “It’s still early in the season, so I think we’re still just trying to get into season really and just figure out what works and what doesn’t. We definitely grew from the last performance, but to still have that composure in the final third. I think us as a team and as a whole are just looking to see a little bit more of that each game.”
Saturday’s ring ceremony would’ve been sweeter had Gotham won. But they still relished the moment.
Those who weren’t members of last year’s team watched from the sidelines, hoping to take part in another ring ceremony next year.
“Everyone out there that was just on the stage are my inspirations,” rookie Jordynn Dudley said. “I want to work hard for them so we can do it again this year.”
