1. Champions. It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? The Orlando Pride have done something only a few teams in American soccer have done: win the regular season and the championship. In a thrilling 1-0 win over the Washington Spirit, the Pride became the first team since the 2019 North Carolina Courage to do the double.
2. For the 🐐. The emotions poured out after the final whistle and as the players took the stage, it felt only fitting that Marta was front and center raising the trophy. She said it herself, it's been eight years to get to this point. She's the lone player from that 2017 squad that was the last Pride team to make the playoffs and it's only fitting that this team was able to win two trophies this year with her as the captain leading the way. Having her mom in the stadium to watch her for the first time in person playing for the Pride was just icing on the cake.
3. Barbra Banda is inevitable. The lone goal-scorer in the Championship game did exactly what she's been doing all season long. Her strength in the 37th minute to win the ball down the line, her skill to get past Esme Morgan, and her finishing to score past Aubrey Kingsbury. It was a prototypical Banda goal, and it set the tone for the entire game. Oh, and she naturally won MVP for the game.
4. To go along with Banda's record season for the Pride, her four goals in the 2024 playoffs are the most by any player ever in a single postseason. Game-changer.
5. Take a bow, Anna Moorhouse! An incredible performance in goal, especially in the second half. With Washington chasing the game, they kept putting ball after ball into the box, and Moorhouse, confident and strong in the air, kept them from getting any good chances. Her five saves on the night don't quite tell the story of just how much she did in the box.
6. To go along with Moorhouse's performance, the entire defense deserves their flowers. After being the stingiest defense during the regular season, the entire back line stood up to attack after attack, and by the end of it, kept the clean sheet. I could write so much more about the evolution of this team's defense throughout the year, but this game proved that they were the best defense in the league. Period.
7. Put on for the city. With the Pride lifting the trophy tonight, they became the first professional sports team in Orlando to win a major league title. As Seb Hines said before the game, the city has gone through so much over the years, and to bring not just one, but two trophies back to the City Beautiful is in itself a beautiful thing.
8. Speaking of Seb Hines, he has now become the first Black head coach in NWSL history to win the championship. From taking over the team midway through 2022 to now, he has completely transformed the organization from top to bottom and being able to cap off the season with the Championship trophy was proof of what he and VP of Soccer Operationas and Sporting Director Haley Carter have accomplished.
9. The Pride aren't done just yet. To celebrate the team's success, the Pride will have a parade through downtown Orlando on Monday, starting at 4:30 p.m. ET. The parade will start at Orange Ave. and Central Blvd. and end at City Hall.
