So, Gotham FC just squeezed out a 1-0 win against our Seattle Reign in the NWSL quarterfinals this past Sunday, and what did their coach do right after? Juan Carlos Amoros basically apologized for the state of the pitch, telling everyone he felt “the obligation to almost apologize for the state of the pitch.” Can you believe that? After beating *our* team, he had to apologize for the field they played on!
That Pitch Was a Straight-Up Disaster
Amoros wasn’t kidding, either. He flat out said, “I think at this level, in this kind of game, as a league, we should be having a better surface.” And he’s not wrong. The grass at Sports Illustrated Stadium, their home field, was apparently a “dull stretch of grass with yellow-green splotches.” Yellow-green splotches! That’s what our Seattle Reign had to play on in one of the most important matches of the NWSL season. It overshadowed the whole game, dominating post-match conversations among players and staff. This wasn’t just a slight cosmetic issue; it put the entire league on course for a wild downsize for Sunday’s playoff semifinal between Gotham and the Kansas City Current. Just 24 hours after Amoros’s apology, Gotham made the move. The semifinal is now at Icahn Stadium, a 5,000-seat venue on Manhattan’s Randall’s Island that they’ve only played at twice before. Sports Illustrated Stadium, which holds 25,000 fans and has been Gotham’s home since 2021, was available, but player safety concerns forced this last-minute switch. What a mess.
“Not the Standard This Club, This League, or Our Fans Deserve”
You know it’s bad when the captain steps in. Tierna Davidson, Gotham’s captain, laid it out in a statement, saying, “What we got was a field that is not the standard this club, this league or our fans deserve.” She’s right. No player, especially in a professional playoff game, should have to deal with a field like that. This whole situation highlights the “logistical nightmares” unexpectedly disrupting the NWSL’s postseason, a back-and-forth between Gotham and MLS’ Red Bull New York, who are the primary tenants and operators of Sports Illustrated Stadium. Apparently, RBNY even put in a new pitch during the MLS World Cup break, finishing it up by July 25. But with 17 other matches guaranteed on that field, plus potential postseason runs for both teams, it seems like that new pitch just couldn’t handle the workload. It’s a tough pill to swallow for fans, too, as Davidson admitted, “A smaller stadium means many of you will not be there, and that is the hardest part of this decision.”
This is wild. Our Reign fought hard on that questionable field. Now Gotham has to play their semifinal against the Kansas City Current in a much smaller venue, all because their home turf wasn’t up to snuff. Here’s hoping the NWSL figures this out fast, because players and fans deserve better than yellow-green splotches deciding the fate of a playoff game.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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