The Kansas City Current celebrated the grand opening of CPKC Stadium, the inaugural stadium constructed exclusively for a National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team, in grandeur on Saturday. They clinched victory against the Portland Thorns with a thrilling 5-4 win, equaling the league record for most total goals in a match.
“I think this game was brilliant, to have both teams score, because I don’t think one person that was here in this stadium is not going to want to be back for the next game,” Lo’eau LaBonta, the Current’s captain, said.
“They are going to tell more people. Everybody’s going to want to come now because that was a show.”
The match signaled the dawn of a new era for various stakeholders, heralding the return of former U.S. women’s national team head coach Vlatko Andonovski to the NWSL and his adopted home, alongside implications for the team and the league.
CPKC Stadium, with a price tag exceeding $120 million, primarily relied on private funding. Complementing this investment, the owners of the Kansas City Current constructed an $18 million training center inaugurated in 2022, with plans for further expansion in the pipeline.
The presence of a capacity crowd of 11,500 fans at the stadium’s opening on Saturday underscored the team’s unprecedented commitment to providing top-notch facilities for a women’s soccer team.
“It’s so much more than I expected,” NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman told ESPN at halftime. “We’ve been saying if you build it they will come, internally, and then coming here and actually seeing what it means to actually invest in brick and mortar physical infrastructure, it’s a game-changer.
“They have changed the footprint of this city forever, and I think it will have an even greater impact than anyone can imagine.”
Vanessa DiBernardo, midfielder for Kansas City, broke the deadlock 22 minutes into the match, igniting the crowd and eliciting enthusiastic reactions from Current co-owners Angie and Chris Long.
Brittany Mahomes and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, also co-owners of the Current, joined in the jubilation with jumping celebrations.
Seizing the momentum, the Current capitalized with two more goals within the next 12 minutes. By the 68th minute, Kansas City surged to a commanding 5-1 lead, with 16-year-old Alex Pfeiffer etching her name in history as the youngest goal scorer in NWSL regular-season history.
Despite what seemed like an insurance goal from Pfeiffer, the Thorns mounted a spirited comeback, led by braces from forwards Sophia Smith and Janine Beckie, adding intensity to the game.
Andonovski, renowned in the NWSL for his teams’ solid defensive strategies, admitted feeling “terrified” at conceding four goals on Saturday.
Nevertheless, he expressed satisfaction with his team’s resilience in grinding out a victory in a hard-fought match, securing three crucial points on a historic occasion.
“If we can describe this team, it has to be like we’re describing Kansas City,” Andonovski said. “It has to be hardworking, resilient, with flair, grit, literally in people’s faces.
We showed it today. We were not good in moments there. We didn’t win because we were so good or so much better than Portland; we won because we were Kansas. The stadium reflects the essence of Kansas City, situated on the southern bank of the Missouri River. Its distinct teal color, evident from the seating to the bathroom hand soap, adds a unique touch to the facility.
For players and coaches who experienced the NWSL’s modest beginnings, Saturday marked a significant milestone.
Vanessa DiBernardo, a league veteran of 10 years, reminisces about starting her professional career at a 3,000-seat college football stadium in the Chicago suburbs.
<“[From] where we started with this league and where we are now it just shows the growth and how much the players have put in and really pushed the standard and how much we’ve had to really fight for ourselves,”
DiBernardo said. “And it’s just the start. We have grown in our voice and [we’re] just pushing the limit, and I think today was just a special first experience and it’s a day that we won’t forget.”
Andonovski holds the distinction of being the inaugural coach of the city’s original NWSL franchise, FC Kansas City, established in the league’s debut season in 2013.
However, the team met its demise in late 2017, having played in a high school football stadium located outside the city. Following the disappointment of last year’s World Cup, Andonovski made a comeback to both the league and Kansas City. He was drawn back by the vision of the Longs, who aimed to elevate the Current to the status of the world’s premier team.
