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Your bars are truly fire when your words end up on a T-shirt, like Gotham midfielder Jaedyn Shaw’s iconic semifinal quote did.
Today’s Full Time will give you everything you need to know before the NWSL final, including Trinity Rodman’s contract talks, a championship preview and … who threw eggs at Luis Rubiales?
But first, let’s start with the action-packed NWSL semifinals:
Championship Countdown
How did we get here?
Gotham is making a habit of dramatic conclusions.
First, they shocked the No. 1 Kansas City Current in an overtime quarterfinals victory where Shaw warned us about the “underdog” tag. And yesterday, a 96th-minute free kick from — who else? — Shaw sailed over the wall and into the net to set up Saturday’s final against the Washington Spirit.
The 100th-minute save that kept the game out of extra time from Ann-Katrin Berger was the definition of drama. Where have we seen that before? Oh yeah, this summer at the 2025 Euros.
Meanwhile, the Spirit, who tend to embrace the chaos themselves, got things done in 90 minutes against the Portland Thorns on Saturday. While it may not have been the heart-wrenching drama from the quarterfinals, the run from Rosemonde Kouassi to set up Gift Monday’s opening goal was a thing of cinematic delight. This started from a Thorns corner!
Croix Bethune got her first NWSL postseason goal after missing last year with a knee injury, and Trinity Rodman made her return after being sidelined since Oct. 15. (We will get to her contract situation in a minute.)
Melanie covered the Spirit this postseason, and here’s what she expects from the team:
- Biggest strength: The Spirit’s depth and ability to come together regardless of which 11 players are on the pitch make them the biggest threat in the NWSL.
- Biggest weakness: They have a bad habit of delaying their own success. See: their playoff games at Audi Field that rarely end in 90 minutes.
- How they’ll win the final: Score early; this will allow them to lead the game with confidence like they did against the Thorns in the semifinals.
Tamerra, who was in Orlando yesterday, did the same for the Pride:
- Biggest strength: Their ability to interchange, particularly among their attacking front three. That fluidity makes them difficult to defend.
- Biggest weakness: Risky play at the back, and not a ton of pac
- e.
- How they’ll win the final: By pressing the hell out of Washington in every region of the field and denying them joy on the ball. And honestly, given how the playoffs have gone for them, involve Shaw in as much as possible.
🎧 Listen to today’s “Full Time,” hosted by Jillian Sakovits, for a full recap of the semifinals.
Can we call it a rivalry yet?
Yes! We asked this question a year ago when Gotham and the Spirit met in an epic semifinal.
They will meet for the 44th time this weekend — moving past the Cascadia Rivalry between the Seattle Reign and Portland Thorns for most games played between two NWSL teams, according to Opta.
Saturday’s bout is set for PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., at 8 p.m. ET (watch on CBS — try streaming for free on Fubo).
The meetings this year lean in Gotham’s favor:
- They played twice in the regular season — Gotham won 3-0 at Audi Field in April, and they played to a scoreless draw in the return fixture in August.
- They also met in the group stage of the Concacaf W Champions Cup in October, but again, neither team scored.
While familiarity doesn’t necessarily breed contempt here, as of late, it breeds bangers. Rodman acknowledged the perception that the Spirit are on a “revenge tour” after losing to the Pride in last year’s final, but Gotham has some things to avenge themselves … especially against Washington and that 2024 semifinal battle that went to penalty kicks. One thing to note: These teams like to leave it late, so expect some bonus soccer in the forecast.
Our WoSo writers again weighed in with their boldest NWSL Championship takes for me to rank on spice level:
- Melanie Anzidei: We’re reaching penalties after a 2-2 draw, and it will become a battle of the goalkeepers. 🌶️🌶️
- Asli Pelit: Gotham lifts the trophy. Ann-Katrin Berger becomes the hero over Aubrey Kingsbury, saving two penalties. 🌶️
- Meg Linehan: The NWSL goes through a rite of passage for pro leagues: The commissioner is booed during the trophy presentation 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Tamerra Griffin: Despite the record meetings between these two teams, a majority of the game won’t be super entertaining because they know each other so well. I’m expecting most of the chaos to be concentrated in the last 20 minutes or so of the second half. 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Now we just need a name for the rivalry … anything is better than the league’s branding last year of “District vs. Empire.”
The elephant in the room
There’s an ominous question hanging over the championship: Will this be Rodman’s final game with the Spirit?
On Saturday, we reported Rodman’s contract talks reached NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman’s desk. The 23-year-old is a free agent this offseason when her four-year, $1.1 million deal comes to an end, and European teams are circling.
I highly recommend checking out our backgrounder. For now, here are the basics:
- The situation: Rodman earned a significant merit-based raise from that contract extension she signed after her rookie year.
- The problem: The current salary cap in the NWSL, which will rise to more than $5 million by 2030, does not allow for Spirit owner Michele Kang to offer her a competitive rate.
- The solution: I’ll toss this one to Meg …
Meg’s Corner: NWSL’s Rodman Rule
The NWSL has felt for over a decade that it is the best league in the world — top to bottom. Each commissioner has highlighted the league’s parity. The most competitive league week to week, however, does not automatically mean best. For years, we have been saying that global competition must force innovation for the NWSL.
For all the panic about an exodus of American talent, the NWSL has largely shrugged off the narrative and gone about its business. But continuing to spin the salary cap’s impact as a superpower is not going to stop players from heading abroad.
Rodman especially defies that strategy. This could be the NWSL’s “Beckham Rule” moment in reverse, calling back to when Major League Soccer made a salary-cap exception for incoming superstar talent. According to the CBA, the league has the power to do that.
If the NWSL wants to be the best league in the world, it must also retain and attract the best talent. For as much as the league needs to continue to grow the profiles of players like Temwa Chawinga and Barbra Banda, the NWSL needs Rodman, who galvanizes American audiences, in a way it does not need any other active player.
📺 For more, watch Tamerra join our new series, “The Athletic Show,” to tackle the question of why so many players are going abroad.
📺 NWSL Championship
Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on CBS
We are bringing a full crew to the final. I’m currently rushing some last-minute packing, so the only thing I have to say is: Stay tuned to The Athletic and “Full Time” feeds for wall-to-wall coverage. And hopefully a little confetti.
📺 UWCL: Arsenal vs. Real Madrid
Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET on Paramount+
This is another rematch of last year’s quarterfinal, when Arsenal had to overcome a 2-0 deficit before going on to win the whole thing. The way things are going on at Arsenal right now … a win is far from guaranteed.
Full Time First Looks
Rubiales gets egged: Luis Rubiales, the former Spanish Football Federation president, had eggs thrown at him during a recent stop on his tour for his new book, “Matar a Rubiales” (Killing Rubiales). Sorry to get clickbait-y on you, but you won’t believe who threw them.
Whoops: After a bizarre rollout of its new women-focused brand, Sky Sports has axed the whole project three days after launch.
In the suite level: Asli kicked off a series of interviews with NWSL owners by talking to Gotham’s Carolyn Tisch Blodgett, who is as hands-on as they come — and Sunday’s semifinal win only reinforced that.
“It should not end like this”: The Pride and Marta might be out of the postseason, but the Brazilian legend isn’t going quietly.
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