Racing Louisville FC opens the 2023 campaign with a 7 p.m. ET Sunday kickoff at Houston, taking on the Dash at Shell Energy Stadium in the Lone Star State.
Racing enters the new year with its sights set on playoff contention, hoping the handful of impressive new additions joining a strong returning core can push Louisville’s squad up the table after finishing ninth in 2022. Coach Kim Björkegren’s squad went 3-1-2 in preseason public exhibitions, including a 2-1-1 mark against NWSL competition.
Starting against Houston is a tough proposition. Racing is 1-3-2 all-time vs. the Dash, with the lone win coming in 2021. Louisville and Houston drew 1-1 in Kentucky and 0-0 in Texas last regular season, with Racing keeping the clean sheet despite playing with 10 women for 48 minutes after Satara Murray’s second yellow card.
Houston is coming off its first playoff appearance in club history. The Dash finished tied for third in points and claimed the No. 4 seed in the NWSL Playoffs, but the Kansas City Current topped Houston, 2-1, in dramatic fashion in the opening round.
This weekend marks a new era for the National Women’s Soccer League with the introduction of video assistant referee, better known as VAR, to assist on-field officials with video review. The NWSL’s VAR system will only review four types of incidents: all goals (including potential offside), penalty calls or non-calls, red cards (not yellows) and mistaken identities.
Follow along…
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @RacingLouFC on Twitter and Racing Louisville FC on Facebook. Also find us at @racinglouisvillefc on Instagram.
• The game will stream live on Paramount+ in the United States (commentators: Mike Watts, Jordan Angeli) and for free on NWSLSoccer.com internationally.
Player Availability Report
Jaelin Howell (questionable, left leg)
Julia Lester (out, left ankle)
Emina Ekic (out, left ankle)
Thembi Kgatlana (out, left ankle)
Nadia Nadim (out, left knee)
Story lines…
Renewed hope: Racing returned the core of its 2022 squad, extending the contracts for star goalkeeper Katie Lund, standout midfielders Jaelin Howell and Savannah DeMelo and the versatile Lauren Milliet. The team traded for several league veterans, including reigning NWSL Best XI left back Carson Pickett, winger Paige Monaghan and center back Abby Erceg, one of the most decorated defenders in league history. Brazilian international Ary Borges, Finnish international Elli Pikkujämsä, Nigerian international Uchenna Kanu, South African international Thembi Kgatlana and Ohio State grad Kayla Fischer have all added punch to Louisville’s roster as new signings. As many as seven newcomers could make their debuts this weekend in Houston, with Kgatlana still out while she rehabilitates a torn Achilles from last summer.
Big numbers: Defenders Abby Erceg and Carson Pickett, acquired this offseason in a blockbuster trade, are both on the verge of passing big marks in their NWSL careers. Erceg needs to play just 59 minutes to hit 13,000 minutes in the league, another milestone for the 2018 NWSL Defender of the Year who has won three championships. Pickett is also closing in on 10,000 minutes, needing 343 this season to reach the five-digit figure.
Build on 2022: A number of Racing Louisville players enter the new campaign off standout numbers from the previous year. Carson Pickett led the NWSL with a career-best six assists, topping her 2021 in which she delivered five assists. Second-year midfielder Savannah DeMelo was the only player in the NWSL to score multiple goals off direct free kicks, drilling two of them in the regular season. Goalkeeper Katie Lund set two NWSL records last year, making 12 saves in a game and 112 saves over the regular season.
Racing goes global: Racing Louisville is the first club in NWSL history to feature players from six different continents on its roster. The Louisvillians already had an international flavor last year, with four continents represented. But the additions of Brazilian midfielder Ary Borges as well as Nigerian forward Uchenna Kanu an South African forward Thembi Kgatlana nudged Racing to six continents. Abby Erceg, New Zealand’s all-time caps leader, reinforced Australian midfielder Alex Chidiac as a second representative from Oceania.
World Cup year: This is a big year for women’s soccer, with the 2023 FIFA World Cup set for Australia and New Zealand from July 20-August 20. Racing should be well-represented at the planet’s biggest competition. There are nine current internationals on Racing’s roster, and as many as seven of their countries have qualified for the World Cup. The NWSL will only play one regular-season game in the World Cup window, instead scheduling half of the NWSL UKG Challenge Cup matches for that period.
Yanez’s first: New assistant coach Bev Yanez will make her touchline debut with Racing Louisville this Sunday after joining Kim Björkegren’s staff this winter. Yanez, a 10-year pro who starred for the club now known as OL Reign, added much-needed league experience to Racing’s technical staff. She was a 2015 NWSL MVP Finalist who scored 27 goals in her time in the NWSL and its predecessor, the Women’s Professional Soccer league.
