Citi Field will be a site of history on July 15, as Gotham FC will host the Washington Spirit in the Queens Classic. The match is set to be the first-ever women’s sporting event at the home of the Mets, and it’s only fitting to feature last year’s National Women’s Soccer League champions.
Both teams faced off in the championship game last year, with Gotham FC taking a 1-0 win on Nov. 22. This year, the teams have remained at the top of the league table, with the Spirit being in a three-way tie for third place with Utah and Kansas City, with 24 points.
Despite being seventh, Gotham FC doesn’t lag far behind last year’s runners-up. They are in a two-way tie for sixth with North Carolina, with 21 points, and have played one fewer game than Washington.
This will be the first time the two teams have faced off since Gotham FC hoisted the trophy last year. They will have one more match against Utah before the game, but risk entering with just two wins in their last five games if they lose.
The fans attending the match will be able to watch stars like Trinity Rodman, one of the league’s best players. The Spirit forward has five goals through 12 games this season, matching her total from last season.
The match is one of the many that have shown the growth of women’s sports in New York City and overall. The NWSL announced a 10% increase in fans on July 2, as well as 41.7% increase in views.
With the game at Citi Field, which seats more than 40,000 people, it could be the largest women’s sporting event in the city. The city has seen a rise of women’s sports over the years with the Liberty winning the 2024 WNBA Championship. The Liberty have also been top 3 in attendance for the past three seasons.
Last year’s championship was Gotham’s second title in a three-year span, after defeating Seattle 2-1 in 2023. The city’s teams haven’t just found success; when Unrivaled touched base at the Barclays Center in March for the semi-finals, there were nearly 20,000 people in attendance to watch their favorite players dazzle in the 3v3 league.
The game is expected to be well attended, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani assuring that it will be one of the most accessible for New Yorkers. Nearly 4,000 tickets are being sold at a discounted price, and 34,000 tickets have already been sold for the event.
The 34,000 tickets will shatter the record for the most attended women’s sporting event in New York City. That record was last held by the US Open in 2023, when Coco Gauff captured the title in front of 28,144 fans.
Next week’s game will give Queens a glimpse into the future of Gotham FC soccer, as the team is set to move across the Hudson to the borough in 2028. The team currently plays in Harrison, New Jersey, and will still remain across the river as its training facility will be in the state. But, the team will move course to Etihad Park, which it will share with New York FC.
The move was announced on Monday and will place Gotham FC in a venue with 25,000 seats. New Jersey has always been part of Sky Blue FC’s history, starting as Sky Blue FC in 2009.
They rebranded as NJ/NY Gotham FC in 2020. The training facility in New Jersey helps keep the team’s roots while still expanding into New York.
Gotham still has a game against Utah on Friday before heading into the Queens Classic. The game will air on ESPN at 8 p.m., with a chance to continue the path that women’s sports have taken in recent years.
For more on Gotham FC, visit AMNY.com
