NWSL Will Kick Things Off in Kansas City
By Wally Fish
On April 13th, Kansas City will be involved in a little bit of history. That’s the day the National Women’s Soccer League will kick off their inaugural season with a match between FC Kansas City and the Portland Thorns FC. The game which is slated to start at 7:35 pm CT will be the first of the team’s 11 home games. Shawnee Mission North District Stadium will be the venue for all FCKC’s home games, including the opener, and all will be held on either a Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Nicole Barnhart is one of the four USWNT players on the FCKC roster. (Photo Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports)
The NWSL’s decision to hold their opener in town, is just another piece of evidence that Kansas City is quickly becoming one of the premier soccer cities in the country. While other professional women’s soccer leagues have come and gone throughout the years, this one appears to have a viable plan in place to not only survive, but thrive.
Having the backing and financial support of the US Soccer Federation, Canadian Soccer Association and Mexican Football Federation gives the league automatic legitimacy. Each of the league’s eight teams will offer their fan bases a chance to watch players from the Canadian, Mexican and American national teams as well as a slew of truly talented players that until now didn’t have many options once their college playing days were over.
In addition to hosting the league’s first game, FC Kansas City’s two other April matches will also be played at home. All three have a 7:35 pm start time as do three others set to be played later in the season. If evening games don’t mesh with your respective schedules, you will be happy to learn that the other five games will start at 3:10 pm. That gives you plenty of time to take your family to see some world class women’s soccer at a very reasonable* price, grab some dinner after, and tuck the kids into bed at their regularly scheduled time.
*Season tickets can be had for as little as $120
FC Kansas City’s complete 2013 schedule is as follows:
| 4/13/13 | 7:35pm | Portland Thorns FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 4/20/13 | 7:35pm | Boston Breakers | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 4/26/13 | 7:35pm | Seattle Reign FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 5/4/13 | 10:00pm | @ Seattle Reign FC | Starfire Sports Complex (Tukwila, WA) |
| 5/11/13 | 6:35pm | @ Western NY Flash | Sahlen’s Stadium (Rochester, NY) |
| 5/18/13 | 7:35pm | Boston Breakers | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 5/25/13 | 7:35pm | Sky Blue FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 6/6/13 | 9:30pm | @Portland Thorns FC | JELD-WEN Field (Portland, OR) |
| 6/9/13 | 9:00pm | @ Seattle Reign FC | Starfire Sports Complex (Tukwila, WA) |
| 6/13/13 | 6:30pm | @ Chicago Red Stars | Benedictine Sports Complex (Lisle, IL) |
| 6/16/13 | 3:10pm | Portland Thorns FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 6/23/13 | 3:10pm | Washington Spirit | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 6/26/13 | 6:00pm | @ Sky Blue FC | Yurcak Field (Piscataway, NJ) |
| 6/30/13 | 3:10pm | Portland Thorns FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 7/3/13 | 6:30pm | @ Washington Spirit | Maryland SoccerPlex (Boyds, MD) |
| 7/7/13 | 3:10pm | Western NY Flash | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 7/14/13 | 3:00pm | @ Chicago Red Stars | Benedictine Sports Complex (Lisle, IL) |
| 7/20/13 | 7:35pm | Seattle Reign FC | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |
| 7/28/13 | 5:00pm | @ Sky Blue FC | Yurcak Field (Piscataway, NJ) |
| 8/4/13 | 4:00pm | @ Portland Thorns FC | JELD-WEN Field (Portland, OR) |
| 8/10/13 | 5:00pm | @ Boston Breakers | Dilboy Stadium (Somerville, MA) |
| 8/18/13 | 3:10pm | Chicago Red Stars | Shawnee Mission District Stadium |