Pride defeat Spirit and lift their first ever NWSL Shield

Oct 6, 2024; Orlando, Florida; Orlando Pride forward Marta (center) holds the 2024 NWSL Shield. Photo copyright: Mike Watters/Imagn Images.

With a 2-0 win over the Washington Spirit, the Orlando Pride clinched the NWSL Shield on an electric Sunday night in front of their home crowd at Inter&Co Stadium. The victory kept Orlando’s unbeaten season intact, and extended their league best record of clean sheets, with three games still to play in the regular season.

The breakthrough for Orlando on Sunday came in the 56th minute when Brazilian legend Marta calmly converted a penalty kick after Washington’s Tara McKeown took down Pride forward Barbara Banda in the box. While Orlando earned the crucial 1-0 lead, McKeown walked away with a yellow card for the play.

But the Spirit defender’s misfortune didn’t end there. In the 72nd minute, Pride forward Adriana took a shot from outside the penalty area, which was deflected by McKeown and sailed past keeper Aubrey Kingsbury into the net. The goal gave Orlando a two-goal cushion, effectively stifling Washington’s hopes for a result on the road.

Despite the loss, the Spirit still sit in second place in the NWSL standings, even on points with Gotham but with a slight edge on goal differential.

With the NWSL Shield now in their hands, Orlando will soon enter the playoffs as the top seed in superb form, looking to carry their momentum forward into what could be the franchise’s first-ever NWSL Championship.

No team in NWSL history has ever gone an entire season unbeaten, so with three regular season games remaining, the Pride just might have more record breaking to come.