Racing Louisville FC’s away gauntlet rolls on. In the second leg of this season-long three-game road swing, Racing ventures east to the nation’s capital — Washington, D.C. — for an 8 p.m. meeting with the third-place Washington Spirit Friday at Audi Field.
Louisville is amid its toughest stretch of the campaign, facing each of the NWSL’s top four sides in the first four weeks back from the summer break. After a visit to D.C., Racing will make the trip out to Southern California, where it’ll meet fourth-place San Diego Wave FC before it returns to Lynn Family Stadium on Aug. 29.
Bev Yanez’s team is coming off a 1-1 draw at the defending champion Orlando Pride, a game Louisville nearly won before a late own goal helped the hosts salvage a point. It was a match owned by goalkeeper Jordyn Bloomer, who made history on multiple fronts between the visitors’ sticks with two regulation penalty saves — a performance that earned the 27-year-old the NWSL Player of the Week award.
Racing’s (6-6-3, 21 points) third draw of 2025 kept it in seventh position — above the playoff line — and within four points of the table’s top five. It’s currently five points better off than it was at this point last year. Each result in this final stretch brings Louisville closer to a historic first postseason appearance.
Racing will aim to take one step toward that goal Friday in a venue that’s averaged just over 15,700 fans per game this year. The Spirit have given those fans plenty to cheer about lately, scoring eight goals over its last three home matches — two of which finished as wins for the hosts.
Washington (8-4-3, 27 points), now led on a permanent basis by Adrián González as of July 18, most recently drew its East Coast rival, Gotham FC, 0-0, before a packed Sports Illustrated Stadium. The Spirit registered just three shots on target, while finishing with an expected goals (xG) below one for the third time this season. One of those other occurrences was the club’s first meeting with Louisville — a 2-0 result in favor of the Spirit — on April 12, where Washington tallied two goals from a season-low 0.6 xG.
The scoreless draw did, however, represent Washington’s eighth match without defeat across its last nine league games, dating back to May 10.
While the Spirit have amassed the fourth-most goals in the NWSL, their attack hasn’t been the most potent as of late. The club has been held without a goal in three of its last four games, with each instance occurring away from Audi Field.
Follow along…
- The game will be streamed on Prime Video, which is available online at Amazon.com/PrimeVideo or via the app on multiple platforms, including Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV. Fans can also listen to the match on Sports Talk 790AM or 790louisville.com.
- For the starting lineup and in-game updates, follow @RacingLouFC on Twitter and Racing Louisville FC on Facebook. You can also find us at @racinglouisvillefc on Instagram.
Story lines…
Not in Bloomer’s house: Jordyn Bloomer has integrated almost seamlessly into her role as Louisville’s starting goalkeeper. She took over the duties between the sticks for an injured Katie Lund on May 2 and hasn’t looked back. The 27-year-old has produced several standout displays since that first NWSL start, but last Saturday was her most impressive yet. Bloomer was a history maker in Orlando, marking herself as the first Racing goalkeeper to save a penalty in league play and the first NWSL keeper to save two in the same game. Those remarkable feats were recognized this week as she earned the league’s Player of the Week, presented by AT&T. It’s the first time a Louisville player has achieved that honor since 2023.
EJ, oh, she’s here to stay: Ellie Jean isn’t going anywhere. The 28-year-old Connecticut native penned a new deal with Racing earlier this week, keeping her in the Bluegrass State through the 2028 campaign. Jean, now in her second season in Louisville, has established herself as a regular in the club’s defense, with a career-high 12 starts. In addition to scoring a goal in a June win over Utah Royals FC, the center back ranks fourth on the team in clearances (52) and second in blocked shots (8).
Stepping right in: After three months out of Racing’s starting XI, midfielder Marisa DiGrande made an immediate impact when called upon last time out. The Northwestern product registered Louisville’s lone goal against the Pride in first-half stoppage time — her first since last year’s home win over Chicago. Beyond the calm finish to give Racing the lead at the time, DiGrande tied for the team lead in duels won (6) while drawing the most fouls (4).
The Canadian assist queen: Even while flexing into the defensive line, Janine Sonis still found a way to add to her assist tally last week. The Canadian set up DiGrande brilliantly for the opening goal for her fourth assist of 2025 — a career-high NWSL mark. More notably, Sonis is now tied with Jess McDonald for the Louisville single-season assist record.
Scott enters the chat: Ahead of its trip to Orlando, Racing added some depth to its defensive ranks through the rest of 2025. Katie Scott, an 18-year-old rookie out of Penn State University, joined Louisville on loan for the home stretch from the KC Current on Aug. 7. The versatile player was an unused substitute at the Pride just two days after her move was confirmed.
Battling against history: Racing’s third-lowest points per game average against any NWSL opponent since entering the league comes versus Washington (0.64). It owns a 1-6-4 record all-time in meetings with the Spirit. The club’s only triumph over Washington was in the first-ever regular season encounter between the teams in 2021 — a 2-0 win for Louisville at Lynn Family Stadium.
