# 2021 Kansas City NWSL season

The 2021 Kansas City NWSL season was the team's first season as a professional women's soccer team. Kansas City NWSL plays in the National Women's Soccer League, the top tier of women's soccer in the United States. The team rebranded at halftime of its final match to the Kansas City Current.

## Background

Kansas City previously had an NWSL team in 2017, when two-time champions FC Kansas City ceased operations and its player-related assets were transferred to expansion team Utah Royals FC. Three years later, the Royals also had to cease operations, and a Kansas City-based ownership group led by financial executives Angie and Chris Long took advantage to secure an expansion team along with the Royals' player-related assets on December 7, 2020. Brittany Mahomes, wife of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and former college soccer player at University of Texas at Tyler, purchased a stake in the team as well.

## Stadium

The team began play at 10,385-capacity Legends Field, a baseball park in Kansas City, Kansas, that was home to the Kansas City Monarchs of the American Association of Professional Baseball. However, the team moved its inaugural home match, scheduled for April 26, to Children's Mercy Park due to delays in construction at Legends Field.

## Team
### Staff

Upon forming Kansas City NWSL, the Longs immediately named Huw Williams, former general manager of FC Kansas City, as the team's inaugural head coach. The team subsequently named the rest of its staff on January 11, 2021.
    As of January 11, 2021.
Technical :
| General manager | Derek Shoare |
| Head coach | Huw Williams |
| Assistant coaches | Natalia Astrain Goran Karadjov Lucas Rodriguez |
| Goalkeeper coach | Alli Lipsher |
| Sports Science and Medical ||
| Sports performance coach | Terrence Kennell |
| Athletic trainer | Bailey Torrez |
| Medical director | Kirk McCullough |
| Team doctor | Meg Gibson |
| Team Operations ||
| Equipment manager | Karly Cebula |
| Team administrator | Jessica Buller |

### Squad

Upon formation, the NWSL awarded Kansas City NWSL with the player rights, draft picks, and other roster-related assets of the defunct Utah Royals FC, which formed the team's inaugural roster.
    As of November 4, 2021.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Nation |
| 0 | GK | Katelyn Rowland | United States |
| 1 | GK | Adrianna Franch | United States |
| 2 | DF | Rachel Corsie | Scotland |
| 4 | FW | Hailie Mace | United States |
| 5 | DF | Sydney Miramontez | United States |
| 6 | DF | Katie Bowen | Scotland |
| 7 | DF | Elizabeth Ball | United States |
| 9 | MF | Lo'eau LaBonta | United States |
| 11 | MF | Desiree Scott | Canada |
| 13 | FW | Darian Jenkins | United States |
| 14 | MF | Gaby Vincent | United States |
| 16 | FW | Jaycie Johnson | United States |
| 17 | FW | Arielle Ship | United States |
| 19 | DF | Michelle Maemone | United States |
| 20 | DF | Mallory Weber | United States |
| 21 | FW | Mariana Larroquette | Argentina |
| 22 | MF | Maddie Nolf | United States |
| 23 | DF | Kiki Pickett | United States |
| 24 | DF | Taylor Leach | United States |
| 25 | FW | Kristen Hamilton | United States |
| 26 | MF | Jordyn Listro | Canada |
| 28 | MF | Addie McCain | United States |
| 29 | DF | Kate Del Fava | United States |
| 66 | MF | Chloe Logarzo | Australia |
| 77 | FW | Jéssica Silva | Portugal |
| 99 | MF | Victoria Pickett | Canada |

## Competitions
### Challenge Cup
#### West Division standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Portland Thorns FC | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 10 | Qualification for the Championship |
| 2 | OL Reign | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 7 | |
| 3 | Houston Dash | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 | |
| 4 | Chicago Red Stars | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 2 | |
| 5 | Kansas City | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 1 | |

### Regular season
#### Regular season standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Portland Thorns FC | 24 | 13 | 5 | 6 | 33 | 17 | +16 | 44 | NWSL Shield |
| 2 | OL Reign | 24 | 13 | 3 | 8 | 37 | 24 | +13 | 42 | Playoffs – Semi-finals |
| 3 | Washington Spirit (C) | 24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 29 | 26 | +3 | 39 | Playoffs – First round |
| 4 | Chicago Red Stars | 24 | 11 | 5 | 8 | 28 | 28 | 0 | 38 | Playoffs – First round |
| 5 | NJ/NY Gotham FC | 24 | 8 | 11 | 5 | 29 | 21 | +8 | 35 | Playoffs – First round |
| 6 | North Carolina Courage | 24 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 28 | 23 | +5 | 33 | Playoffs – First round |
| 7 | Houston Dash | 24 | 9 | 5 | 10 | 31 | 31 | 0 | 32 | |
| 8 | Orlando Pride | 24 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 27 | 32 | −5 | 28 | |
| 9 | Racing Louisville FC | 24 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 21 | 40 | −19 | 22 | |
| 10 | Kansas City | 24 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 15 | 36 | −21 | 16 | |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: October 30, 2021. Source: NWSLsoccer.com

#### Results by matchday

| Matchday | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| Stadium | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H |
| Result | D | D | L | L | L | L | L | L | D | L | D | L | L | W | L | W | L | D | L | D | W | L | D | L |
| Position | 2 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

## Statistical leaders

    As of October 30, 2021, for all competitions.

### Top scorers

| Rank | Nat. | Player | Goals |
| 1 | | Amy Rodriguez | 4 |
| 2 | | Darian Jenkins | 3 |
| 3 | | Mariana Larroquette | 2 |
| 4 | — | 9 players | 1 |

### Top assists

| Rank | Player | Assists |
| 1 | Katie Bowen | 2 |
| 1 | Lo'eau LaBonta | 2 |
| 1 | Victoria Pickett | 2 |
| 1 | Jéssica Silva | 2 |
| 5 | Mariana Larroquette | 1 |
| 5 | Hailie Mace | 1 |
| 5 | Abby Smith | 1 |
| 5 | Mallory Weber | 1 |

### Shutouts

| Rank | Player | Clean sheets |
| 1 | Adrianna Franch | 3 |
| 2 | Nicole Barnhart | 1 |
| 2 | Carly Nelson | 1 |
| 2 | Abby Smith | 1 |

## Awards
### NWSL weekly awards
#### Player of the Week

| Week | Nat. | Player | Won | Ref. |
| 5 | | Elyse Bennett | Won | |

#### Save of the Week

| Week | Player | Won |
| 5 | Abby Smith | Won |
| 7 | Nicole Barnhart | Nom. |
| 8 | Nicole Barnhart | Nom. |
| 10 | Kristen Edmonds | Nom. |
| 14 | Katelyn Rowland | Nom. |
| 16 | Adrianna Franch | Nom. |
| 20 | Adrianna Franch | Nom. |
| 22 | Adrianna Franch | Nom. |

## Transactions
### 2021 NWSL Draft

Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster. The 2021 NWSL Draft was held on January 13, 2021. The NWSL awarded Kansas City all of the defunct Utah Royals FC team's player rights and draft picks upon its dissolution.
| Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | College | Status |
| 1 | 4 | Kiki Pickett | DF | Stanford | Signed to three-year contract |
| 2 | 15 | Victoria Pickett | MF | Wisconsin | Signed to three-year contract |
| 2 | 16 | Lucy Parker | DF | UCLA | Not signed or named to preseason roster |
| 2 | 17 | Addie McCain | MF | Texas A&M | Signed to two-year contract |
| 4 | 36 | Alex Loera | MF | Santa Clara | Signed to two-year contract in 2022 |
| 4 | 36 | Brookelynn Entz | MF | Kansas State | Not signed or named to preseason roster |

### Transfers in

| Date | Player | Pos. | Previous club | Fee/notes |
| December 22, 2020 | Mariana Larroquette | FW | Lyn Fotball | Signed two-year contract; no fee disclosed. |
| January 28, 2021 | Chloe Logarzo | MF | Bristol City W.F.C. | Signed two-year contract; no fee disclosed. |
| March 30, 2021 | Jordyn Listro | MF | Orlando Pride | Acquired in exchange for Kansas City's natural third-round pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft, or conditionally the team's second-round pick in the 2022 or 2023 NWSL Drafts. |
| May 10, 2021 | Jéssica Silva | FW | Olympique Lyonnais Féminin | Signed two-year contract. |
| July 22, 2021 | Kristen Hamilton | FW | North Carolina Courage | Acquired in exchange for $60,000 in allocation money and Amy Rodriguez. |
| July 22, 2021 | Hailie Mace | MF | North Carolina Courage | Acquired in exchange for $60,000 in allocation money and Amy Rodriguez. |
| July 22, 2021 | Katelyn Rowland | GK | North Carolina Courage | Acquired in exchange for $60,000 in allocation money and Amy Rodriguez. |
| August 18, 2021 | Adrianna Franch | GK | Portland Thorns FC | Acquired in exchange for $150,000 in allocation money and Abby Smith. |

### Transfers out

| Date | Player | Pos. | Destination club | Fee/notes |
| July 22, 2021 | Amy Rodriguez | FW | North Carolina Courage | Traded with $60,000 in allocation money in exchange for Kristen Hamilton, Hailie Mace, and Katelyn Rowland. |
| August 18, 2021 | Abby Smith | GK | Portland Thorns FC | Traded with $150,000 in allocation money in exchange for Adrianna Franch. |
| August 24, 2021 | Carly Nelson | GK | FC Nordsjælland | Loaned for duration of FC Nordsjælland's season. |
| September 1, 2021 | Michele Vasconcelos | FW | Sevilla FC | On loan until June 2022. |
| December 20, 2021 | Gaby Vincent | DF/MF | Washington Spirit | Traded in exchange for $25,000 in allocation money and Washington's natural fourth-round selection in the 2023 NWSL Draft. |
| December 21, 2021 | Mariana Larroquette | FW | — | Bought out of the remainder of her contract. |
| December 21, 2021 | Katie Bowen | DF | — | Waived. |
| December 21, 2021 | Michelle Maemone | DF | — | Waived. |
| January 11, 2022 | Darian Jenkins | FW | Orlando Pride | Traded in exchange for $75,000 in allocation money and Orlando's natural second-round pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft. |
| January 21, 2022 | Jéssica Silva | FW | S.L. Benfica | Transferred for undisclosed terms. |
| January 27, 2022 | Rachel Corsie | DF | Aston Villa W.F.C. | Transferred for undisclosed terms. |