Following a statement NWSL quarterfinals win for the Spirit at Audi Field, the details of the next playoff game came booming over the loudspeaker. Washington announced the date, time and opponent, encouraging fans to come out next Saturday at noon to watch the No. 3 seed Spirit host the No. 7 Royals.
Conspicuously absent was the location.
For much of the weekend, it seemed likely that if the Spirit advanced to the semifinals, the club would not be able to host at its usual home of Audi Field. The stadium was booked with a different event for Nov. 14: The Division III football rivalry known as the Secretaries’ Cup, between the Coast Guard Academy and Merchant Marine Academy, which has been scheduled for Audi Field since early August. The alternate location for the Spirit was reported to be Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, home of the NFL’s Commanders.
This meant that fans left Audi Field on Sunday believing they would be going somewhere else for the semifinals. Players fielded questions in the mixed zone about the potential of spending next weekend in Landover. More than four hours after the match ended, however, the club released some news. The Spirit would be hosting next week at Audi Field, after all.
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In a statement, Spirit CEO Kim Stone thanked “the collaboration of D.C. United and the generosity of Lafayette Federal Credit Union, who stepped forward to underwrite the additional costs necessary to bring this semifinal match home.” D.C. United operates Audi Field. The Spirit have been full-time tenants of the stadium since 2023.
The club has built a strong fan environment in the building over those last few years. For Spirit matches, this is “Rowdy Audi,” among the most consistently packed (and consistently loud) stadiums in the NWSL. Washington averaged 16,338 fans for home matches in 2026.
“No matter where we play, we know D.C. will come out and support us,” Spirit goalkeeper Sandy MacIver said after the match, before the club announced the venue. “We want it to be at Audi. But some things are out of our control.”
A semifinal at Northwest Stadium might have brought an opportunity for an unusually large crowd. (The building has a capacity of 64,000, compared to just over 19,000 for Spirit games at Audi Field.) It also would have meant playing on a field that is not designed for soccer in a place the club has never hosted a match before. For players, staff and fans alike, Audi Field is home.
Thirteen-year-old Juniper Ho has followed the team since she was 8. She roots for Trinity Rodman, and when she smiles, her braces flash pink, matching her cherry blossom scarf and her fuchsia “Rowdy” baseball cap, a team giveaway designed by Rodman herself as a nod to Audi Field.
During the quarterfinal match, when many fans believed they would not be returning next week to Audi FIeld, Ho told The Washington Sun that it was “unfortunate” the team could have to relocate.
“It’s a playoff game, so I feel like they should be able to play in their stadium,” said Ho, who attended Sunday’s game with her father.
Some fans drew on a larger frustration with the management of women’s sports. The Spirit was not the only NWSL team faced with getting bumped from its home field during these playoffs. And the WNBA was recently consumed with scheduling conflicts and stadium drama in a saga that saw Game 6 of the WNBA Finals played at 12:30 p.m. on a weekday.
“It just feels like women’s sports are pushed to the backburner,” said Maui Smith, who is a Mystics fan but has recently gotten into the Spirit because she wants to support all local women’s teams. “There’s a lot of good energy at Audi Field. We felt it last week and we certainly feel it now in the playoffs.”
Rodman said the players would have been ready to compete at Northwest Stadium. “At the end of the day, as an athlete, you have to take what you get,” she said in her postgame news conference. “If we do have to play on a different field, that’s what we have to adapt to.” She also said the playoff energy is special in the home environment of Audi Field.
“You feel it from the first whistle, just how loud the stadium is,” she said. “There’s just more passion, obviously from the fans, but from us as well.”
This is the third consecutive trip to the NWSL semifinals for the Spirit.
In recent months, D.C. lawmakers have considered putting $300 million in taxpayer dollars towards a renovation at Audi Field. D.C. United has pledged an additional $320 million to the plan that would add seating and a roof to the stadium, as well as housing on a nearby parcel of land.
D.C. United has argued that the renovation will be necessary when MLS moves to a winter-heavy schedule starting in 2028, and said that the improvements will make the stadium a more in-demand destination for events like concerts. But some Spirit fans believe the negotiations should be an opportunity to ensure the women’s team becomes more integrated in the stadium.
“If the D.C. government is going to give Audi Field money to refurbish, there should be protections in place for D.C.-based teams to have priority,” Kevin Minoli, a Spirit season ticket holder, told The Washington Sun.
The Sun previously reported that the Spirit have discussed upgrades, such as their own locker room and the assurance that the team’s schedule won’t be the first to take a hit when construction is underway, in the renovation discussions.
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