The rivalry has evolved over the last six years, waning slightly since the Reign’s days atop the NWSL, and being usurped, in recent years, by the Thorns’ dynamic with the North Carolina Courage. But there is still rivalry between Portland and Tacoma, even if the Reign do, now, make their home in Tacoma instead of Seattle.
After more than six years together in the NWSL, there’s too much history for a slight change in geography to matter, much. From Portland's domination against a struggling Seattle in the Reign’s first season to the response of the Laura Harvey era – to Nadia Nadim’s goal in 2016 to the Thorns eliminating the Reign from last year’s playoffs – the history between the two teams is too much to ignore.