Washington Spirit NWSL semifinal will be at Audi Field

The Washington Spirit will get their Rowdy Audi semifinal after all.

After initial NWSL plans had set the match for Northwest Stadium in Landover, MD, late negotiations between the involved parties allowed for the Spirit to host the Utah Royals at Audi Field, their home for the last four seasons. The game is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 14.

Green Line Soccer had seen NWSL documents breaking down the hosting scenarios league-wide, which had only listed Northwest Stadium as the venue if the Spirit and Gotham were to advance as the two semifinal hosts. However, the Spirit credited D.C. United and club sponsor Lafayette Federal Credit Union with cooperating to ensure that the game could be played in the District.

"We’re excited to host our semifinal at Audi Field next Saturday,” Spirit CEO Kim Stone said in a club press release. "Thanks to the collaboration of D.C. United and the generosity of Lafayette Federal Credit Union, who stepped forward to underwrite the additional costs necessary to bring this semifinal match home."

Between MLS Decision Day and other scheduled events – including a D3 college football game between the United States Merchant Marine Academy and the United States Coast Guard Academy scheduled for Audi Field — the NWSL ran into immense difficulty finding appropriate venues that would be available in the broadcast windows locked into the league's deal with CBS/Paramount, ESPN/ABC, Ion, and Amazon Prime Video.

Within the NWSL, only the Kansas City Current own their stadium. Several teams share owners with MLS or USL clubs that control their home venue, but of that group, only Utah qualified for the postseason.

That left major issues in both the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds. NJ/NY Gotham FC's normal home, Sports Illustrated Stadium, was booked for a friendly between Club América and the New York Red Bulls conflicting with the Saturday window on CBS. Had the San Diego Wave advanced to the semifinals, a San Diego State football game would have held priority at Snapdragon Stadium for the Saturday match window.

With the added pressure to avoid overly early kickoffs on the west coast, the league's venue crunch seemingly necessitated changes. Gotham could have ended up at Icahn Stadium, a 5,000-seat venue on Randalls Island, had certain scenarios played out.

The Spirit had never played at Northwest Stadium previously, though the team held a training session there in July 2019 in order to hold a press conference to honor the World Cup participants on the roster. However, late negotiations between the various parties worked out favorably, allowing for the Spirit to play at a proper soccer venue.