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KC NWSL to open 2021 Challenge Cup @ Portland Thorns

KC NWSL will be on the road for the first two games and will close at home for the remaining two.

By Cindy Lara
Lo’eau LaBonta will be a key player for KC NWSL
Thad Bell

Updated 3/12/2021: The game against OL Reign was moved to 7:00 PM on Monday, May 3rd.

The NWSL released the full schedule of the 2021 Challenge Cup today. The 21-game tournament kicks off on April 9, 2021.

The tournament, which began in 2020 as part of a trimmed down season due to COVID-19, will return and see the league’s 10 teams organized into two divisions, East and West. Each team will play four matches, two of them in home markets, as approved by the NWSL’s Medical Task Force, followed by the top team from each division competing in the final slated for May 8, 2021 on CBS. The championship site will be determined by the league at a later date.

KC NWSL will play its first match since joining the league in December 2020 against Portland Thorns FC on April 9 at Providence Park at 9:30 p.m. CT on Paramount+, the premium streaming service from ViacomCBS.

Update schedule as of Friday, March 12.

Following their match in Portland, Kansas City will travel to Chicago and face the Red Stars on April 20 before playing their first home game at Field of Legends on Monday, April 26, 2021 vs. the 2020 defending NWSL Challenge Cup champions the Houston Dash. Kansas City will close out the round-robin portion of the tournament at home against OL Reign on May 3.

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