
The road to Catarina Macarioâs first Champions League final with Lyon
Macario leads Lyon in Champions League goals with seven.
LOS ANGELES — For the first time since 2009, Los Angeles fans watched a womenâs professional soccer team play a regular-season match, as Angel City FC defeated the North Carolina Courage 2-1 on Friday night. ACFC announced its NWSL entrance in July 2020, but as the team took the field in front of a sellout crowd of 22,000 at Banc of California Stadium for its home opener, after the anticipation and the build-up of the past year, it all started to feel real.
Thousands of fans arrived as much as four hours before kickoff to revel in the historic moment together, playing games, dancing to a live DJ and chanting âDalĂŠ, DalĂŠ, ACFCâ with drumming accompaniment. The on-field pregame festivities included pyrotechnics and a live musical performance replete with a 40-piece marching band.
ACFC defender Vanessa Gilles kept the good times rolling, sending the crowd into a frenzy in the third minute when she headed in a precise centering pass from Jun Endo on the right flank for the first goal in regular-season franchise history. As the fans cheered their teamâs 1-0 lead, Gillesâ teammates wrapped her in a swaying group embrace before the Canadian jogged back to midfield, raising her arms triumphantly.
No better way to start this game off! @weareangelcity | #AngelCityFC pic.twitter.com/q7MgSl2H91
— National Womenâs Soccer League (@NWSL) April 30, 2022
Arturo Gutierrez, his wife and two sons (ages 9 and 11), decked out in matching ACFC scarves and kits, were four of the 22,000 who lost their minds on the Gilles goal. The family from nearby Lynwood has season tickets in the supportersâ section, where Arturoâs son, 11-year-old Arturo Jr., plays the drums.
âWeâre super excited,â Arturo Sr. said. âItâs nice being able to see him happy. It makes me happy.â
Arturo Sr. said he and his wife speak to their sons âall the timeâ about the importance of supporting women.
âIâm a real soccer fan,â he said, âand itâs important to support the women. They need that from us. Not having a womenâs team is not right. We finally got one, and weâre here to make history, bro.â
Ten minutes after Gilles made history with the franchiseâs first goal, ACFC struck again. Receiving a pass from Savannah McCaskill, Endo met the ball with her left foot and directed it across her body and into the bottom right corner of the goal.
No End(o) in sight for Jun đ ââď¸@weareangelcity | #AngelCityFC pic.twitter.com/SAjXeqF59g
— National Womenâs Soccer League (@NWSL) April 30, 2022
In Endoâs first 13-plus minutes of NWSL regular-season play, the 21-year-old — who before tonight had never played for a team outside of Japan — factored in both goals to give ACFC a 2-0 advantage. Meanwhile, in the stands behind the opposite goal, an ACFC supporter waved Endoâs native flag of Japan.
Twelve-year-old Farrah Pulido of El Monte soaked in every moment of the match with her mom, Ivette, who received two tickets from her boss, a season-ticket holder who could not attend Fridayâs match.
âWeâre both big soccer fans,â Ivette said. âI grew up watching it, and now so does Farrah, and itâs always been all about the men. Finally, we have a womenâs team.â
Farrah, who is a goalkeeper for the SC Blues club soccer team based in Irvine, naturally loves watching fellow goalies.
In the 38th minute, she witnessed ACFC goalkeeper DiDi Haracic dive to her left and deflect a dangerous shot out of play.
Holy HaraÄiÄ đ¤Żđ¤Żđ¤Ż@weareangelcity | #AngelCityFC pic.twitter.com/1h3uyFM8h0
— National Womenâs Soccer League (@NWSL) April 30, 2022
âDiDiâs save was absolutely world-class,â ACFC head coach Freya Coombe said after the match. âIâd like to say that weâve never seen that before, but I think that we all had in the Portland Challenge Cup final where she did exactly the same thing. DiDiâs proven herself in those big moments.â
Haracic saved three of the four shots on goal she faced Friday night.
The Courage dominated possession in the second half but only capitalized on one opportunity. Brazilian national team star Debinhaâs score in the 51st minute marked her fifth straight game with a goal.
In the final 10 minutes of the match, the stadium rocked with âLetâs go, Cityâ chants until ACFC officially secured its first regular-season victory, persevering through several Courage rushes, especially during the six minutes of stoppage play.
âThe crowd was unreal tonight,â Coombe said. âIt was the best environment Iâve ever coached in.â The ACFC manager said she noticed âsomething specialâ about the fan support when the players came out for warm-ups.
âThe support from the fans has been unwavering,â said Coombe, âItâs definitely having an impact on the players on the field. Theyâre living off that energy âŚWeâre really grateful to have the number of fans we do, but also the passion and intensity of the fans.â
âIâve never played in front of a crowd this big. Not on my side,â ACFC midfielder Dani Weatherholt said. âIt was an unreal feeling to have all those people backing us ⌠This community loves soccer. Itâs very evident.â
Chris Weyant-Forbes and her partner, Al Weyant-Forbes, were among the ACFC backers in the stadium, wearing matching shirts that read, â#EQUALITY IN WOMENâS SPORTSâ on the front, and âWE DESERVE TO BE HEREâ on the back. Al works at Riverside City College, where the womenâs basketball team has had trouble getting access to the weight room and other college facilities. The women were regularly getting bumped in favor of the menâs teams, which led players on the team and the coach to speak out and later sue the college.
âThe coach had these shirts made up, and we are wearing them,â Chris said, âbecause thatâs bullsât!â
Chris and Al discovered ACFC through a Los Angeles Times article, prompting them to attend their first game last Sunday, a Challenge Cup match in Fullerton. They had such a good time that they decided to come to opening night all the way from their Riverside home, a nearly two-hour drive from the stadium without traffic.
âI think itâs really cool that the team is predominantly women-owned and -operated,â Al said. âI love that theyâre doing programs for girls to get into sports, and Iâve read that they do programming for women who retire from professional sports and give them career development so they can still work in sports. I just think itâs rad what Angel City Football Club is doing.â
ACFC captain and L.A. native Ali Riley feels just as strongly about the teamâs mission as the fans.
âI saw a lot of families,â Riley said. âI saw a lot of men, women. The point is that womenâs soccer belongs, and it belongs in this city. And I think for this club to do it is perfect, because itâs not just about inspiring young girls. Itâs also about impacting the community and helping underserved communities. Thatâs really a big part of what motivates this team. For us to get that win tonight, with 22,000 people, I hope we really sent a message.â
Message received.
Joshua Fischman is a contributing writer at Just Womenâs Sports covering Angel City FC and the Los Angeles Sparks. He has covered basketball for Vantage Sports and Hoops Rumors and served as co-host of âOn the NBA Beatâ podcast. Joshua received his masterâs in Sports Media from Northwestern Universityâs Medill School of Journalism. Follow him on Twitter @JJTheJuggernaut.
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