Racing Louisville vs Angel City FC
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Angel City FC closed its regular season with a 4-1 win over Boston, extending its unbeaten run to 10 matches.
The fifth seed now visits Kansas City, which beat Racing Louisville 2-0 to clinch home advantage.
Background
Angel City FC is a National Women's Soccer League (NWSL, the top US women's professional league) club that dismissed coach Alex Straus on June 17 after a 1-6-1 stretch going into the summer break, promoting assistant Leif Smerud to interim head coach. Since then the team has gone 8-0-2, finishing fifth with 52 points and 54 goals, tied with Kansas City for the league lead. Racing Louisville FC, meanwhile, ended its 2026 season with a 2-0 home loss to Kansas City Current at Lynn Family Stadium, a result that helped Kansas City clinch a top-four seed and a home quarterfinal.
How it unfolded
- Jul 26, 2026Angel City lost to Racing Louisville FC, its last defeat before a 10-game unbeaten run.
- Aug 1, 2026Angel City and Kansas City drew 1-1 in Kansas City.
- Aug 26, 2026Angel City lost 2-0 to North Carolina, the last time it lost a game.
- Nov 1, 2026Angel City closed the regular season beating Boston Legacy FC 4-1, extending its unbeaten streak to 10 matches.
- Nov 5, 2026Angel City reported it finished fifth with 52 points and 54 goals, tied with Kansas City for the league lead.
- Nov 7, 2026Fifth-seeded Angel City plays at fourth-seeded Kansas City Current in the NWSL quarterfinal at CPKC Stadium, 9 a.m. PT on CBS.
Key terms
- NWSL
- A women's professional soccer league that is the highest level of the United States soccer league system.
- seed
- A stage in a knockout tournament with sixteen competitors, from which winners advance to the quarter-finals.
Source: Wikipedia
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Interim head coach Leif Smerud said he is proud of how the team handled the pressure of needing to win a lot of games, calling 10 matches without a loss difficult in any league.
- Party
- Midfielder Nealy Martin said the only constant is the team itself, and that Angel City trusts its game plan, players and staff to prepare for Kansas City.
- Party
- Forward Claire Emslie said Smerud has done a great job bringing the team together, and that the togetherness and fight show in the results.