By Rory Carroll
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Angel City FC, already one of the most talked about teams in Los Angeles sports this year, are poised to make their mark on the global stage with international matches beginning next week.
The NWSL team’s debut season has come with all the buzz of a Hollywood blockbuster as A-list celebrity founders such as actress Natalie Portman helped to ignite a loyal fanbase that has sold out the glamorous Banc of California stadium several times.
Now it is looking to take on the world, first with a friendly against Mexican professional team Tigres Femenil on Aug. 10 before facing the Mexican Women’s National Team on Sept. 5 in the inaugural Copa Angelina. Both matches will be held in LA.
“We want to position Angel City Football Club on the global landscape of women’s soccer,” Angel City founder Julie Uhrman told Reuters in a recent interview.
“We knew that we always wanted to play teams around the world to bring attention and awareness to women’s sports but also to Angel City Football Club and our amazing athletes.”
LA’s proximity to top tier Mexican clubs made Angel City’s southern neighbors the obvious starting point and a natural fit given the strong Mexican-American community in Los Angeles.
“We want to be able to lean into that community, teach them about who Angel City Football Club is, and obviously try to grow our fan base.”
And that is just the start. Matches against European, Asian and African teams could be on the horizon as “lots of conversations are happening,” Uhrman said.
“The expectation is that this is multi-year. We’re going to play here, we’re going to play abroad, maybe we’ll bring other teams into this cup,” she said.
“We want to challenge the status quo and provide something that is not only exceptional to the fans but allows the ability for communities to come together, allows for the ability of these teams to learn from each other, and allows the best soccer to be played on the global stage so everyone can watch.”
Next up for Angel City is a visit to Orlando to face the Pride on Sunday as the team continues their playoff push in the second half of the season.
(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
