Seattle Pride is over, but celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community is a year-round affair. Reign FC will be embodying this mantra on August 1 with its upcoming Pride match against Los Angeles’s Angel City FC.
The team’s unusual scheduling decision resulted from forces outside its control. FIFA had taken over Lumen Field for the majority of June, for both stadium renovations and Sounders matches. Once the Club World Cup had passed, however, a league-wide break during the month of July would be in effect.
As the result of an unusually crowded calendar, the team has exclusively been playing on the road since late May. A Pride game held away from home just would not be the same, so the Reign chose to wait until their first game in August to celebrate the Queer community in their own stadium.
Like last year’s Pride match, there will be opportunities to interact with local nonprofits, such as the Lavender Rights Project, Entre Hermanos, and the Ingersoll Gender Center, among others. An auction will raise funds for Lambert House, a community center for LGBTQIA+ youth.
An all-new addition to the festivities will be a celebration of Seattle’s drag scene. Fans can expect to see prematch performances by local drag queens and kings alike, alongside family-friendly activities like face painting, merch giveaways, and photo ops.
During the match, the Reign will continue their summerlong mission to keep their place as the league’s sixth seed. They are tied for wins in a neck-to-neck race against Racing Louisville FC, separated only by the draws they have accumulated instead of losses. Had the Reign not scored last-minute goals against Gotham FC and the Chicago Stars this season, they might have fallen from playoff contention.
Thankfully, the team’s still fighting as they return for the second half of their season, but it will only take one loss to knock them out. In the past, Seattle has overwhelmingly won their games against Angel City, 8 to 3. However, in the post-Rapinoe era, LA has managed to pull off some upsets.
During their last matchup in March, for example, Angel City found an unexpected boost of energy from their supporting cast toward the end, and rookie Riley Tiernan closed the game out with a successful, straight-on shot. The Reign lost 2-1. This time, they cannot afford to make the same mistake.
Hopefully, with the support of their enthusiastic home fans, dressed in blue, gold, and the colors of the rainbow, they will come out on top. The game starts at 7:30 p.m. PST. Fans can attend in person at Lumen Field, or watch it live on Paramount Plus.
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