The Washington Spirit sealed their spot in the NWSL playoffs after beating league leaders Gotham 1-0 on Saturday in DC.
Lucia Di Guglielmo’s first ever NWSL goal was enough to secure all three points for Spirit, who record back-to-back wins for the first time since the beginning of September.
It’s the third consecutive time that these two sides have played out a 1-0 scoreline, but this time, it was Washington on the winning side.
The result has considerable implications for Adrián González’s side. It secures a spot in the postseason, and it proves that they can slay Gotham, a feat they haven’t completed since 2024. It also prevented Gotham from securing the Shield and cut their lead over the San Diego Wave to just one point with two games to go.
The match - a rematch of the 2025 NWSL Championship - saw an athletic, motivated Spirit side face off against a less energetic but well-organised Gotham. Gotham may have dominated possession, but the home side was by far more effective when they did have the ball.
From the jump, Washington played with a dynamic confidence that’s been rare over the last few months. With September signing Clara Luvanga making her first start for the side, as well as Trinity Rodman and Sofia Cantore putting in dynamic shifts on the wings, the Spirit had a high press that frequently challenged Gotham’s bread and butter: their high defensive line.
Luvanga at the No 9 also provided an effective outlet when Washington needed an option. Throughout the match, Rodman and Luvanga proved they have a good connection. Once Luvanga adapts her finishing skills to NWSL defences, she’s posed to do some real damage, just ask the Houston Dash.
It wasn’t just Washington’s front line that looked revitalised. With Leicy Santos back in the lineup for the first time since the start of August, the midfield looked extremely balanced. Hal Hershfelt put in a great shift breaking pressure and preventing turnovers, while Andi Sullivan’s distribution shone through.
For Gotham, who registered five shots to Washington’s 13, Rose Lavelle’s machinations on the right side were pretty much the only attacking threat. Striker Sam Kerr was isolated all game, desperately missing Jordynn Dudley and Jaedyn Shaw alongside her. Dudley, the rookie winger, has given defenders immense trouble all season long but was placed on the season-ending injury list during the international break, while Shaw picked up a knock during the international window and wasn’t fit enough to feature off the bench.
The best chance of the first half came in the 44th minute, when Cantore crossed in a ball to Rodman who got a head to it. The ball looked destined to loop over Ann-Katrin Berger and into the far post, but the German keeper made a spectacular diving save. Rodman kept pushing, however. Soon after, she won a duel with Jess Carter and looked to be heading to goal, but the ref called a foul, much to Rodman and the crowd’s displeasure.
The second half saw the introduction of Mélissa Bethi, one of Washington’s summer signings, in exchange for Santos, who is still coming back from injury. Bethi thoroughly proved her utility as a playmaker for Washington.
In the 69th minute, she sent a penetrating ball up to kickstart a breakaway for Luvanga. However, centre back Tierna Davidson recovered and disrupted Luvanga enough for Berger to pick it up.
But a mistake by Davidson in the next minute led to Washington’s golden opportunity. Her misplaced pass from the back found Cantore, who collected the ball and despite pressure attempted a through ball past the back line. Taryn Torres was smart to it, but her sliding block sent the ball to Bethi. The Algerian chipped an aerial ball over Gotham players and to an incoming Lucia Di Guglielmo. The full-back trapped the ball and, in a moment of grit, fought Torres’s pressure to stick it into the back of the net for her first NWSL goal.
The goal was Washington’s first against Gotham in the regular season since June 2024, and their first goal at Audi Field in nearly two months.
Washington did not let up despite taking the lead. Shortly after Di Guglielmo’s goal, Rodman took the ball on the counter, cut inside, and managed a shot. It was again blocked by Davidson, but it found Bethi again, who took a shot that rattled off the crossbar.
Gotham made some attacking-minded subs in order to drum up an equaliser, the most effective of whom was new signing Olivia Wingate, but ultimately Sandy MacIver and her back line managed the clean sheet without much wavering.
“I think what happened today, my first goal, is because of all the work we did all season,” Di Guglielmo said after the game. “I’m really happy that it happened today. It’s kind of a dream. Everything is perfect. But I also think that when you work consistently all season, then things like that happen.”
Saturday’s results were not what Gotham wanted. “We have a lot of work to do,” coach Juan Carlos Amorós said of his team’s Shield push.
“The Shield is still in our hands. We have two more games to go, and if we win those two games, we win the Shield,” O’Sullivan said. “We need to keep our heads up and move on from this and focus on next week.”
Jaelin Howell concurred: “Going forward - we’ve been in a position before where our backs are against the wall - we have to lean on each other, and I have no doubt that we’ll be able to do that.”
Washington, who kept themselves in the Shield race with the win, will do everything they can to put up a fight. There is much that has been made of the budding rivalry between the clubs. Indeed, defeating Gotham has seemed to be Washington’s white whale for the past couple of years.
But for Sullivan, her team has a lot to be proud of, regardless of who was on the other side of the pitch. “The quality of what we brought, I think, is the most important thing for us,” the captain said. “But yeah, it feels a little bit good to do it against Gotham because we’ve struggled against them for a little bit.”
“Today we wanted to feel that joy, that energy, that feeling that we are able to beat any team, being brave, being proud of every single player, every single fan that came today,” González said after the match. “And I think it’s important for us, for the club, for the fans to have a performance like this. And also, clinching playoffs for the third season in a row is not easy.”