After all, Lauren Holiday retired from Kansas City, Amy Rodriguez was off for pregnancy, and there were other players that retired from that team. Kansas City would not threaten the league championship this year.
So, no one was standing Seattle’s way for NWSL domination, except maybe themselves… and the Portland Thorns FC.
The NWSL scheduling gods decided this year that all teams play each other twice, home and away. But each team also had a “rival” where they played 4 times. So, Washington Spirit played Sky Blue FC 2 games each at home and away, plus FC Kansas City vs Chicago, Orlando vs Houston, Boston vs WNY Flash, and Portland vs Seattle.