Zambian striker Barbra Banda lifted the Orlando Pride to their first NWSL Championship title on Saturday, beating the Washington Spirit 1-0 in Kansas City.
The Pride had only one prior trip to the playoffs but looked like post-season veterans as Banda slipped one past two-time NWSL goalkeeper of the year Aubrey Kingsbury in the 37th minute and a stout Orlando defence extinguished Washington’s chances.
The Spirit lost all four of their regular season meetings with Orlando over the last two years and could not crack the code this time around, and their frantic attempts late in the match went unrewarded.
Orlando began applying the pressure almost immediately in front of a sellout crowd at CPKC Stadium, as Brazilian veteran Marta drilled the ball straight toward Kingsbury, who flung her hands up to make the stop, in the 15th minute.
The Pride broke through 22 minutes later when midfielder Angelina successfully battled Washington’s Leicy Santos for the ball and kicked it deep down the right side of the field straight toward Banda.
Banda, who had the second-most goals in the league this year with 16, was sharp as ever as she outfoxed defender Esme Morgan in the box and sent a left-footed shot out of Kingsbury’s reach and into the back of the net.
Spirit striker Ashley Hatch nearly had the equaliser eight minutes later but hit the post, and Orlando goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse stopped a powerful header from Rosemonde Kouassi two minutes into the second half.
Ancelotti says ‘ugly’ to speculate about Mbappe mental health
US national team mainstay Trinity Rodman took the final corner kick late in stoppage, but Washington could not put the pieces together and the Pride erupted into celebration as time was called.
It was sweet redemption for years of underperformance for Orlando, who had not qualified for the playoffs since 2017 but finished atop the standings this season thanks to the dynamic duo of Banda and Marta.
The game capped a blockbuster year for the top-flight North American women’s league, which saw record attendance with more than 2 million fans coming through the turnstiles during the regular season.