Kansas City Current Squares off with North Carolina Courage at CPKC Stadium
NWSL Kansas City Current

Kansas City Current Squares off with North Carolina Courage at CPKC Stadium

Published on August 29, 2025 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Kansas City Current News Release


KANSAS CITY - The Kansas City Current (14-2-1, 1st place, 43 pts.) returns home to close its August slate with a rematch against the North Carolina Courage (5-6-6, 9th place, 21 pts.) for Week 18 of the 2025 National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) season. Kickoff on Saturday, Aug. 30, is set for 6:30 p.m. CT at CPKC Stadium. Limited tickets are available for purchase HERE.

The match will broadcast on ION with Maura Sheridan and Jordan Angeli on the call, and will also air on the World Feed with Matt Pedersen and Saskia Webber. Jillian Carroll Letrinko and Dave Borchardt will call the game on 90.9 The Bridge, and fans can also tune in to hear the match in English, Spanish or Portuguese on the KC Current App.

LAUREN HOLIDAY IMPACT AWARD FAN IMPACT CHALLENGE

Saturday will serve as the Kansas City Current's appreciation match for the 2025 Lauren Holiday Impact Award, presented by Nationwide. Midfielder Claire Hutton is the Current's nominee for the prestigious award that honors players making a significant impact in their community. Hutton will wear a commemorative Lauren Holiday Impact Award armband during the match. More information about Hutton's nomination can be found HERE.

The Fan Impact Challenge for the 2025 Lauren Holiday Impact Award is now open. Hutton is supporting MINDDRIVE as her community partner. Fans can vote once per day on the NWSL's LAUREN HOLIDAY IMPACT AWARD MICROSITE until Aug. 30 at 10:59 p.m. CT. The nominee with the most votes will be announced as the Fan Impact Challenge winner and receive a $10,000 donation to a charitable organization of their choice.

CURRENT VS. COURAGE

All five meetings between Kansas City and North Carolina since the start of the 2024 season have been won by the home team. The Current won all three home matches against the Courage in all competitions last year, keeping clean sheets in all three. The last meeting between the two sides at CPKC Stadium was in the quarterfinals of the 2025 NWSL Playoffs - the first home playoff match in club and stadium history - where the Current prevailed, 1-0, after forward Temwa Chawinga scored in the eighth minute. Last year's regular season match between KC and NC at CPKC Stadium resulted in another 1-0 Current win with midfielder Debinha scoring the lone goal in the 52nd minute. Debinha joined the Current in 2023 from the Courage; forward Haley Hopkins and defender Hailie Mace also formerly played for North Carolina.

TOP OF THE TABLE

The Current remains at the top of the NWSL table for the 13th week in a row. The club has 43 points through Week 17, 12 points ahead of second-place Washington Spirit. Those 43 points are the most through 17 matches of a season in NWSL history, one ahead of the previous record of 42 first set by Seattle in 2014 and then matched by North Carolina in 2018. Additionally, the Current has a plus-24 goal difference entering Week 18. The next closest teams, Orlando Pride and San Diego Wave, have a plus-9 goal difference. Kansas City has scored 34 goals this year - six more than Washington Spirit and San Diego Wave - and has a league-best 10 goals allowed, three fewer than Orlando.

HOME SWEET HOME

Saturday will be the Current's 30th match played at CPKC Stadium - the world's first stadium purpose-built for women's professional sports - across all competitions since its opening on March 16, 2024. The club owns an impressive 24-1-4 record all-time across those 29 matches, including a 15-1-4 mark in 20 regular season home games. The Current has scored at least once in all but one match played at home. The team has won 16 of its last 18 home matches across all competitions, having out-scored opponents 44-9 in that stretch. Additionally, Kansas City is the only team which remains unbeaten at home this regular season.

Forward Temwa Chawinga has been involved in at least one goal in 16 of her 20 NWSL regular season matches at CPKC Stadium, totaling 21 goal contributions (17 goals, four assists). She has contributed to 25 goals (19 goals, six assists) in her 25 matches at CPKC Stadium across all competitions. The 2024 NWSL MVP and Golden Boot winner has been directly involved in at least one goal in all but four of her 25 matches played in Kansas City across all competitions.

GOLDEN GIRL

Entering Week 18, forward Temwa Chawinga leads the NWSL Golden Boot race with 11 goals and two assists. She scored her 11th goal of the 2025 regular season - which marked her 35th career goal across all competitions - last weekend at Portland. She became the first player in league history to score in six consecutive regular season road matches, something no other player has done more than four straight. Chawinga's next game-winning goal will set a new NWSL single season record of seven, surpassing the mark she shares with Crystal Dunn (2015), Midge Purce (2021) and Barbra Banda (2024). Earlier this month, she was nominated for the Ballon d'Or, a prestigious annual international honor for the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season. It was the first such nomination of her career.

IRON SHARPLES IRON

Through Week 17, a total of 11 players across the league have logged every minute of the 2025 NWSL regular season (1,530 minutes), including Current defender Kayla Sharples. The club has yet to have a player with an ironwoman season. Sharples' active streak of 1,530 consecutive regular season minutes played ranks second in club history and first in a single season. She has started 25 straight regular season matches, just three off the club record. With two goals and an assist, Sharples is one of six defenders across the NWSL with multiple regular season goals and at least one assist. She also tops KC Current's roster with 75 clearances and 12 blocks.

DYNAMITE DEFENSE

Kansas City has a league-leading 10 shutouts and has conceded just 10 goals, the fewest goals allowed in the NWSL thus far. Those 10 shutouts, shared by goalkeepers Lorena (9) and Laurel Ivory (1), broke the club record for single season shutouts of nine set in 2024. The NWSL regular season single-season record for least goals conceded is 17, set by North Carolina in 2018 and matched by Portland in 2021. Kansas City's regular season shutout streak currently stands at 452 minutes, which started in the 90th minute vs. Racing Louisville on June 14. The team is just one minute from equaling the longest shutout streak in franchise history - 453 minutes, all with Lorena in net - which was set earlier this season.

The Current's defensive unit has not shied away from offensive action either. Current defenders have combined for four goals and 11 assists in 17 regular season matches this season. Kayla Sharples, one of six players on the roster with multiple goals this season, has two goals, both off headers, plus one assist. Izzy Rodriguez has a team-leading five assists, which ranks first in the NWSL. Hailie Mace and Rodriguez co-own the club record with 10 regular season assists. Elizabeth Ball scored vs. Louisville on Aug. 1 in what was her 100th regular season cap and Ellie Wheeler had a goal and an assist vs. Portland on Aug. 23.

FIRST HALF DOMINANCE

The Current has been dominant in the first half this regular season, outscoring opponents 21-1 before the break. Thirteen of KC's 34 goals this year have been in the opening 25 minutes with seven in the first 15 minutes of play, both which are the most of any team in the league this year. The Current has scored four times in the opening three minutes of matches this season, something no other team has done more than three times in a single regular season in NWSL history. Kansas City has scored three or more goals in the first half on four occasions this year, all at CPKC Stadium: Portland on March 15, Utah on March 29, Bay on May 11 and Louisville on June 14.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Kansas City defender Ellie Wheeler - Last weekend, Wheeler scored her first goal of the year - which was also the second goal of her career - just 55 seconds into the Current's match at Portland. That was the second fastest goal in club history and the third fastest in the NWSL this year. She also dished out the first assist of her career against the Thorns. On the defensive end, Wheeler is part of a Kansas City back line which has 10 shutouts on the season and has conceded just 10 goals, both which lead the league. She has played in 15 matches with starts, including the last three.

North Carolina midfielder Jaedyn Shaw - Shaw has contributed to at least one goal against 13 of the 14 current NWSL teams, only failing to do so against Kansas City. With one on Saturday, Shaw would become the fourth player to record a goal contribution against all 14 active NWSL teams, joining Debinha, Yuki Nagasato and Ashley Sanchez. Shaw, who the Courage acquired from San Diego Wave back in January, has played in all 17 regular season matches this year with nine starts. She has two goals and an assist and scored in North Carolina's most recent match against Chicago Stars FC.

Limited single-match tickets for 2025 regular season home matches are now on sale to the general public. The best way to ensure you won't miss a second of the action at CPKC Stadium is by joining the Current Club, the Current's trailblazing fan membership experience. Focused on ensuring fans continue to be able to access exclusive opportunities, members can unlock special benefits like priority access to single match tickets, members-only gifts and discounts, access to live and virtual events, exclusive content and more. 2025 Season Ticket Member Account Holders are already enrolled in Current Club at no additional cost. Click HERE for more information about the Current Club.

Check out the Kansas City Current Statistics

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National Women's Soccer League Stories from August 29, 2025


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