Welcome to your preview and match thread as the Orlando Pride (0-1-1, 1 point) travel away for the first time in 2026 to face Chicago Stars FC (1-1-0, 3 points) at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium (8 p.m., Victory+). This is the first of two meetings between the two teams this season with the return game in Orlando scheduled for July 24.

Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game.

History

The Pride and Stars have played every season since Orlando’s entrance into the NWSL except 2020. The teams have played 23 games, with the Pride going 8-13-2. The Pride are slightly below .500 in Chicago, going 5-6-0.

The last meeting between the Pride and Stars took place on Sept. 7 in Evanston, IL. The first half ended scoreless, but the teams made up for it in the second 45 minutes. Sam Staab gave the hosts the lead but Carson Pickett equalized a few minutes later. The tie score didn’t last long as a minute later Jameese Joseph made it 2-1 Chicago. Goals by Bea Franklin and Julia Grosso put the game away, despite Haley McCutcheon getting one back. A late conversion by Ludmila secured the 5-2 win for Chicago.

The first game last season took place March 14 in Orlando. It was a dominant performance by the Pride as they struck early through McCutcheon, and Ally Watt doubled the lead before halftime. A Hannah Anderson own goal, a Julie Doyle strike, and a Barbra Banda brace saw the Pride come away with a 6-0 win.

The Pride and then-Red Stars met first in 2024 on March 29 in Orlando, the Pride took the lead early through a Taylor Malham own goal, but Mallory Swanson equalized in the 64th minute, resulting in a 1-1 draw. The teams then met in Illinois on Sept. 8, 2024. Marta’s goal was the difference as the Pride came away with a 1-0 win.

The Nov. 8, 2024 meeting was the Pride’s first-ever home playoff game and they dominated. Watt set up a McCutcheon goal to give the hosts the lead, and Barbra Banda netted a brace with a goal on each side of halftime. Marta made it 4-0 with a penalty, sealing the result. It would’ve been a clean sheet, but Anna Moorhouse cleared the ball off of Joseph and into her own net, capping the scoring in a 4-1 Orlando win.

The teams first met in 2023 on May 27 in Illinois. Orlando dominated the entire 90 minutes, with Chicago only getting two chances on its home field. But the Pride struggled to hit the target, and Yuki Nagasato’s goal was the difference as the Pride fell 1-0.  The Aug. 20 return matchup was the debut of Pride center back Rafaelle, and the Brazilian scored to give Orlando the early lead. The hosts continued their attack, resulting in four more goals. Messiah Bright scored a pair, new signing Mariana Larroquette scored her first Pride goal, and Mikayla Cluff capped off the night with a goal as the Pride won 5-0.

The first meeting of 2022 took place on May 22 in Orlando. Sarah Griffin gave the visitors the lead, and Bianca St-Georges and Swanson made it 3-0 Chicago. It appeared as though the Red Stars would run away with the game, but the final 10 minutes saw three goals and two penalties for an exciting finish. Sydney Leroux missed a penalty, but Amy Turner scored the Pride’s first goal late. Swanson converted her penalty moments later, and Leah Pruitt scored her first goal for the Pride a minute after that in a 4-2 Red Stars win. The second meeting of the 2022 season was on June 12 in Illinois. Swanson capitalized on an early Pride turnover and the Red Stars held on for the 1-0 win.

The teams met three times during the 2021 season but didn’t play until Aug. 8 in Illinois. Jodie Taylor and Leroux scored for the Pride before halftime. The 2-0 win ended a six-game winless streak and was the first NWSL victory for interim head coach Becky Burleigh.

The second meeting was held Oct. 13 in Bridgeview, a rescheduled game that was originally supposed to take place Oct. 2. Kealia Watt scored early and the Red Stars defended that lead for 84 minutes on their way to a 1-0 result. The teams met again Oct. 29, 2021, in Orlando in the final game of the regular season. The Red Stars controlled the game and Watt scored the lone goal in a 1-0 Chicago win.

The Pride and Red Stars didn’t play in the 2020 Fall Series, so the last meeting prior to 2021 came in 2019. The teams first met June 30 at Exploria Stadium. Goals by Chioma Ubogagu and Marta were topped by a Sam Kerr hat trick as the Red Stars won 3-2. The teams met again Aug. 21 in Bridgeview. The Pride took a 2-0 lead with goals by Rachel Hill and Ubogagu. Tierna Davidson cut the lead in half for Chicago, but the Pride won 2-1. 

The third meeting in 2021 took place Sept. 11 in Orlando. Casey Short stole the game for Chicago with the game’s lone goal five minutes into second-half injury time as the Red Stars won, 1-0.

The 2018 NWSL season saw the Pride and Red Stars meet three times. On May 2 in Bridgeview, Hill and Ubogagu scored in a 2-0 Pride win. They met in the same location May 26, with a Leroux brace and goals by Hill, Alex Morgan, and Dani Weatherholt leading to a 5-2 Pride win. The Red Stars were led by a Kerr brace in a 3-1 Chicago victory on Aug. 25 in Orlando in the third meeting of 2018.

The Pride and Red Stars met three times in 2017 — the first year that they played that many games against each other. A Christen Press goal on July 1 lifted Chicago to a 1-0 win. On July 22 in Bridgeview, a Press brace led her team to a 2-1 win. The final meeting came a week later in Orlando. Morgan and Sofia Huerta traded goals in a 1-1 draw.

The Red Stars won both meetings in 2016 by 1-0 final scores.

Overview

It’s been a disappointing start to the season for the Pride this year. The team started the season with a two-game homestand, losing 2-1 to Seattle Reign FC and drawing 1-1 with league newcomers Denver Summit FC despite dominating chances and firing more than 20 shots in each match.

As expected, the defense has been somewhat of a concern. Right back Hailie Mace has been forced to play center back in the both games due to the departure of Emily Sams and the pregnancy of Kylie Nadaner. Hannah Anderson was ready to enter the lineup Friday night, but an injury to Rafaelle saw yet another regular center back unavailable.

On the positive side, Banda has come back from last year’s injury like her usual self. She’s been a handful for opposing defenses, creating several chances. Both Pride goals this year have come from the striker. Another good sign Friday night was Jacquie Ovalle and Banda combining for the goal. The record-signing of Ovalle was meant to provide more support for Banda. They didn’t always look on the same page in the season opener, but the duo looked much more in sync against Denver.

Tonight, they’ll look to provide more magic moments for the Pride as they take on Chicago away from home. The Stars’ season got off to a disastrous start, losing 4-0 to Angel City FC. But they bounced back Sunday afternoon, defeating the defending shield-winning Kansas City Current 2-1 at home.

The bad news for the Stars — and good news for the Pride back line — is that Swanson is still out after giving birth in November. But that didn’t hinder the Stars the last time these teams met and the Pride defense is weaker this time around.

Brazilian striker Ludmila is gone, having moved on to San Diego, and was replaced by Canadian Jordyn Huitema. However, Joseph and Grosso, who caused problems for the Pride last year, are still in the team. Together with Brianna Pinto, they form an attacking midfield that can cause problems for the Pride back line.

Defensively, the Stars boast one of the league’s best goalkeepers in Alyssa Naeher and one of the best center backs in Sam Staab. But they can be vulnerable on the outside, as shown by Angel City’s attack on opening weekend. However, pushing Ryan Gareis forward made them much stronger on Sunday.

Last year, Chicago conceded a league-high 54 goals. While they’ve addressed some of those issues and only gave up one to the Current, that game was played without Kansas City star striker Temwa Chawinga, and they gave up four to Angel City. The Pride have one of the most dangerous strikers in the league in Banda, making this a great opportunity to score multiple goals for the first time this year and claim their first win of the season.

“If you win a game off data, on stats, then we would be six points up. Unfortunately, that’s not how the game works, so we’re looking at how we convert our good opportunities into goals and be defensively solid as well,” Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said ahead of tonight’s game. “Although we had a lot of good momentum in the game, we don’t want to allow teams to get a foothold in the game either. So, being more switched on, not allowing teams to get any sniff at our goal, that will give us a good foundation to go on to win the game.”

The Pride’s availability report remains unchanged. Kerry Abello (hip), Zara Chavoshi (lower leg), Cosette Morche (ankle), Nadaner (maternity leave), Nicole Payne (knee), and Viviana Villacorta (knee) are out, and Rafaelle (thigh) is questionable. Chicago will be without Kathy Hendrich (lower leg), Huitema (hip), Natalia Kuikka (knee), Halle Mackiewicz (hand), Swanson (maternity leave), and Taylor Wood (knee).

Projected Lineups

Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.

Defenders: Cori Dyke, Hannah Anderson, Hailie Mace, Oihane.

Defensive Midfielders: Haley McCutcheon, Angelina.

Midfielders: Jacquie Ovalle, Summer Yates, Ally Lemos.

Forward: Barbra Banda.

Chicago Stars FC (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Alyssa Naeher.

Defenders: Tessa Dellarose, Sam Staab, Bea Franklin, Michelle Alozie.

Defensive Midfielders: Manaka Hayashi, Maitane Lopez.

Midfielders: Ryan Gareis, Julia Grosso, Brianna Pinto.

Forward: Jameese Joseph.

Referees

REF: Matt Thompson.
AR1: Tom Felice.
AR2: Sarah Gaddes.
4TH: Calin Radosav.
VAR: Elton Garcia.
AVAR: Kevin Huet.

How to Watch

Match Time: 8 p.m.

Venue: Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium— Evanston, IL.

TV: None.

Streaming: Victory+.

Social Media: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @themaneland.bsky.social on Bluesky and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter (@ORLPride) or Bluesky (@orlpride.com) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go Pride!