Gotham FC Kicks Off 2025 NWSL Season on the Road Against Seattle Reign FC
SEATTLE, WA. (Mar. 14, 2025) - Gotham FC opens its 2025 NWSL regular season campaign on Saturday, hitting the road to face Seattle Reign FC. Kickoff is set for 10 p.m. ET at Lumen Field, with coverage on ION.
Gotham FC has won its last two road matches at Seattle, including a 2-0 victory on Sept. 19, 2024. This marks the 31st all-time meeting between the teams, with Gotham holding a 10-12-8 (W-L-D) record against the Reign. However, Gotham is unbeaten in its last three regular season matchups against Seattle, securing two wins and a draw.
This is the third consecutive season Gotham FC starts a campaign on the road under coach Juan Carlos Amorós, and his team won the first two.
“The style of play that we do, we want to evolve it,” said Amorós. “We’re going to play in the same style we’ve done, but we want to make it even more entertaining. We call it structured fluidity. We try to have our players understand that when they play for Gotham, they play to win but they also play a style that is fun to play and for people to watch.”
The club begins the 2025 season under new player leadership, with defender Tierna Davidson serving as captain in a five-player leadership group.
“Being named as the captain and part of the leadership group is something I feel very honored about,” said Davidson. “Being elected by your teammates is something that is incredibly, incredibly special. It’s the highest honor I feel like I can get from a club.”
Last season, Davidson made 19 appearances, including 16 starts, anchoring a defense that recorded the club’s best-ever defensive season, conceding just 20 goals in the regular season.
Gotham FC has also strengthened its roster ahead of the 2025 season. Among the new additions is forward Gabi Portilho, who signed from Corinthians after a standout 2024. Portilho won the Bola de Prata as one of the top players in the Campeonato Brasileiro and was named to The Best FIFA XI after helping Brazil to a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Midfielder Jaelin Howell joined Gotham in the offseason via trade with Seattle. The 25-year-old is a former Honda Sport Award and MAC Hermann Trophy winner from Florida State, where she won two national championships. At 23, she became club captain of Racing Louisville, highlighting her leadership qualities.
Gotham also signed five rookie players from college this offseason, all with all-conference honors, marking the most rookies signed in a single offseason in club history.
Key Points:
- Gotham FC won 16 of its final 21 regular-season matches in 2024, joining the Orlando Pride as the only teams in NWSL history to achieve that many wins in a 21-game span.
- In 2024, Esther González scored 12 goals across all competitions—the second-most in a single season in Gotham FC history, behind Sam Kerr's 17 in 2017. It also ranks second all-time for goals by a European player in an NWSL season (all competitions), trailing Kim Little’s 17 for Seattle in 2014.
- In its last five road matches of the 2024 season, Gotham FC went 3-1-1.
- Gotham FC was undefeated when scoring first in 2024, posting 18 wins and four draws in such matches.
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