Laces Out Loud

Week 19 is in the books, and somehow the NWSL playoff picture is still evolving.

Gurushabd is back from Spain and Portugal with tales of tapas, dangerously affordable espresso, and one surprisingly difficult mission: finding a women’s FC Barcelona jersey in Barcelona. Then we turn our attention stateside, where the WAFCON stars are making an immediate impact, Barbara Banda is back, Orlando has made a surprising coaching change, and the race for the final playoff spots is getting very crowded.
We also dive into the Emma Sears trade rumors and where she could fit if her time in Louisville really is coming to an end. Denver? Seattle? Kansas City? Somewhere else entirely?

But the biggest flowers this week belong to Ashley Sanchez. With 15 goals, the Golden Boot lead, and North Carolina looking like an entirely different team, we ask the increasingly obvious question: Is Sanchez the NWSL MVP frontrunner—and how much more does she need to do to earn another USWNT call-up?

Plus: the Chawinga sisters remain a cheat code, Angel City is making a run, Seattle has finally climbed above the playoff line, Louisville keeps finding new ways to break our hearts, and we make our picks for who will still be in the top eight five weeks from now.

🎧 From the fans, for the game—this is Laces Out Loud.
📸 Instagram: @lacesoutloud
📧 lacesoutloudpod@gmail.com

What is Laces Out Loud?

Laces Out Loud is an NWSL and women’s soccer podcast about the game on the field and the forces shaping it off the field. The show blends match analysis, supporter passion, and bigger-picture conversations about player welfare, league growth, media coverage, business, technology, and soccer culture. We are here for the goals, the tactics, and the chaos - but also for the questions that determine whether the women’s game can grow with the ambition, care, and investment it deserves.

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

American tourists arrested in Spain for violently assaulting a Spanish retail associate for not having women's soccer jersey in sack. Welcome back listeners to another episode of Laces Out Loud. The gang is partly back together. Always, I am Pammatha, and I'm here with my OG conspirator, Gurusapid.

Gurushabd:

Hi, Pammatha.

Pamitha:

How's it going? Welcome back.

Gurushabd:

Thank you.

Pamitha:

We have so much ground to cover, and there's a lot that we want to hear about your trip. We have just finished Week 19 of the NWSL season. The chaos and intensity continues for everybody who is keeping up. It's a loaded top of the table, and it's still anybody's game. And we had a lot to cover.

Pamitha:

We got some coaching changes that have happened in the last couple of days, a golden boot race that's heating up. Plus, you know, I'm not really up on the socials, but I hear that there's a US women's national team star that might be flirting with another team. We'll get into that. But Yeah. Let's let's let's take a let's take a trip across the pond.

Pamitha:

Let where where were you, Guruschavan?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Yeah. I've been excited to talk to you. We were in Spain and Portugal for two

Pamitha:

weeks. Wow.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. It's a fantastic time.

Pamitha:

How much tapas did you eat?

Gurushabd:

Oh, so many patatas bravas. Yes. Yes. And I love the olives over there. I don't know, it's the small things.

Gurushabd:

One of our favorite things is, you know, an espresso is under €2 over there.

Pamitha:

My gosh.

Gurushabd:

-It's a harsh reality coming back, and, you know, it's 4 or $5 for an espresso or an Americano here. It's criminal.

Pamitha:

That's bonkers. Yeah, that is criminal. That's a great way to phrase it. It is criminal. Wink wink.

Pamitha:

Nod nod. Yeah.

Gurushabd:

The biggest hating us today.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Well, anyway, this is why we this is why we watch the beautiful game to take our minds off of our Yeah. Affordability crises. So how was how was Barcelona? How was the trip?

Gurushabd:

Barcelona. That's amazing. But, of course, Barcelona. There's soccer stores everywhere. Yeah.

Gurushabd:

So, mainly Barcelona SC. You act I didn't actually see that much national team jerseys and

Pamitha:

Really?

Gurushabd:

You know, national team stores anywhere even after they just won the men's World Cup.

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

Barcelona That's a shops everywhere. One of the shops I went into, three stories with escalators, just a massive place, displays everywhere.

Pamitha:

Is it just like

Gurushabd:

probably went to

Pamitha:

Is it like, an FC Barcelona store? Like, three stories of? Yeah.

Gurushabd:

Just FC Barcelona.

Pamitha:

Oh, gosh. So, like, jerseys, shorts, sneakers, cleats, balls, the whole nine yards?

Gurushabd:

Everything. Purple tank tops, I tried to get Matt to get one. He said no. And then we saw a man in that purple tank top later that day in the streets.

Pamitha:

You're like, See, Matt? See? That could've been I

Gurushabd:

was like, See? Yeah. So, three stories. I think I scoured each floor twice. I was on the hunt for a woman's jersey.

Gurushabd:

I was like, Okay, Itana Bonmaty, top player, has won the Blond d'Or three times in a row. They're ranked the number one women's club team in the world pretty often. You can't buy one premade.

Pamitha:

What do you mean? Like, they didn't have any in stock because they sold out?

Gurushabd:

Right, you would think. No, they have a printing press downstairs, and if you buy a jersey, you can, you know, go get her name put on it, but it's just not on the shelves. That's a I asked someone that worked there, like, hey, can I find a women's jersey? And she's like, No, but you can get it printed. And I kind of wanted to push a little bit.

Gurushabd:

I didn't wanna make, like, her uncomfortable. I was trying to be, like, friendly about it, but I didn't wanna be, like, that weird foreigner.

Pamitha:

You know, front page news story.

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

American tourists arrested in Spain for violently assaulting a Spanish retail associate for not having women's soccer jersey in stock. But also, just just to clarify, when you say, like obviously, was joking because we talked about this. So, like, not only not in stock, like, not carried, but they did carry all of the men's players on FC Barcelona?

Gurushabd:

You know, they picked, like, the top four players, Lamine Jamal and a few others.

Pamitha:

So Gotcha. Okay.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Not every male player.

Pamitha:

But they had male player journeys Well, ready to

Gurushabd:

had male Yes. So many different ones, and not a single female player ready to go. Especially since they have one of the top players in the world.

Pamitha:

Yeah. That's crazy. And, you know, you mentioned that Spain just won the men's World Cup. Spain is also the reigning women's World Cup champion.

Gurushabd:

Yes.

Pamitha:

So you would think that they would have that on offer.

Gurushabd:

It's surprising.

Pamitha:

That's crazy. Did you so you didn't push back on the Associated. Did you end up getting a jersey?

Gurushabd:

I did not.

Pamitha:

Oh, that's okay. Too many espressos, and saving up for too saving up for an espresso budget when you get back, of course.

Gurushabd:

You know, Matt and I travel lightly. He travel, too, so we have to, you know, pack sparingly and buy things sparingly.

Pamitha:

That's fair. No shade whatsoever. Did you notice, like, anyone as you were going around Portugal and Spain, like, the did you see any representation of, like, either the, you know, the women's national teams of Portugal and Spain or any of the women's clubs? No. Really?

Pamitha:

That's just that's surprising. Oh my gosh.

Gurushabd:

I know.

Pamitha:

That's a stark it's a stark difference to, like, what we see here, you know? Like, I Right. I don't you know, you're you're far enough outside of Seattle, I don't I don't wouldn't expect that you would see, like, Seattle rain stuff where you live, but I don't know if you do or not.

Gurushabd:

There I didn't see any Seattle rain things in the airport in Seattle. I was looking.

Pamitha:

K.

Gurushabd:

I only saw the Seahawks.

Pamitha:

Okay.

Gurushabd:

Well So I also didn't see the MLS team.

Pamitha:

Okay. That's fair. Or the Mariners, which everybody rejects, but that's totally But

Gurushabd:

have heard the Denver Airport has Denver Summit Park.

Pamitha:

Right, right. And I don't know about the Washington area airports, but you walk around this town and in surrounding areas in Northern Virginia and even parts of, I guess, Northwestern Maryland, you will see Washington spirit gear, and not just being worn by myself and Ali, like, you'll you'll see it out One of my favorite things to do is to if I see a Washington spirit sticker or someone wearing it in the car, I will definitely, like, honk and point at my own, and then there's this, like, wonderful, like, Oh, you too? Me? Oh my gosh, it's so great. And then, you know, obviously, we don't crash and we keep driving, but that's really disappointing that you didn't have that in Spain.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I I was disappointed, and I was hoping, you know, I don't know, maybe in the next two, three years that will change?

Pamitha:

I hope so. It's hard

Gurushabd:

to know. And we are growing.

Pamitha:

And we are growing. Yeah. Well, you're not the only person who made a return back to The US from an overseas engagement. The NWSL saw a whole host of WAFCON superstars who just finished completing competing in the African nations competition coming back and making a difference. And, of course, in the lead with my bias, the Washington spirit, two such players making their debuts for the team.

Pamitha:

First, the Cameroonian champion, Monique Ngoc, who is the woman of the competition, of the WAFCON competition, made her debut for the Spirit. And history, Melissa Betty, the first Algerian player in the NWSL, took the field, and I gotta tell you, immediately made their presence felt. The spirit had a couple of unfortunate injuries. We're waiting to hear back as of this recording, the extent of Ashley Hatch's injury and Kate Wiesner's injury, but Betty stepped in and was like, Yep, okay, no problem, I got this, and was like, everywhere. And then and Gakkim in was the same thing, and those of us in the stands were like, Quick, we gotta write new songs.

Pamitha:

So that's that's what we're up to.

Gurushabd:

Well done. I love seeing players just able to step in on a new team and fit right in.

Pamitha:

Oh, yeah. It's great.

Gurushabd:

But yeah. I think they're feeling a lot of energy coming off that tournament. They're all coming back playing well. And what just last night, you know, on the Boston Legacy, they did lose pretty badly to Angel City, but she did get a goal in. Yeah.

Gurushabd:

So she's doing well herself.

Pamitha:

She's a standout for that team, no question.

Gurushabd:

Totally.

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

And then, on the other side, trouncing them with Angel City, Chaluffia got a brace. Hey. And almost a hat trick coming off.

Pamitha:

That's good. I mean, you know, I feel bad for the folks up in Boston. They're not doing very well this season in their inaugural season, but I think a healthy Angel City and a competitive Angel City is good for the league. So Yeah. Yeah.

Pamitha:

Good to see you look like that.

Gurushabd:

And, yeah, I mean, random, Boston's coach is from Lisbon. Oh. She, yeah, she came over from coaching in Lisbon. So maybe she just needs to give them some of that. They have a pastry over there called Pastel de Nada, a little custard tart, and maybe she just needs to give them some of that magic, get them going.

Pamitha:

You know, we are

Gurushabd:

think that was my favorite thing I found.

Pamitha:

We are a secret food podcast as long time listeners know. That sounds delicious. I should have asked you. I asked about tapas. I should have asked what's the best thing you ate on your trip.

Gurushabd:

Pastel de Nada Okay. Gotcha. In Portugal.

Pamitha:

With a side of Jenny's ice cream. Still not sponsored.

Gurushabd:

Yes. And then, yeah, also from Wafcon, we'll get back to that, Tamwa Chewinga has scored, and then, of course, Barbara Banda.

Pamitha:

Wait, before we get to Banda before we get to Banda and her, like, continued dominance, can we just take a moment and just pay, like, respects to the Chewinga sisters? Like, it's like they're they're they're a cheat code wherever they go. If you were if you were playing a video game, and you got, like, to just put two players on your team that you could trade from anywhere, you would put both Taimou and Tabitha Chewinga on your team, and then go undefeated for, like Yeah. Seven seasons in dynasty mode, right? Like, that's what you would do.

Gurushabd:

I mean, I saw someone posed a question which NWSL player would you clone and have a team of 11 of that player. Yeah. And my first thought was Chewinga.

Pamitha:

Sure. Except you don't need to clone her because you've already got Tabitha.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I'm gonna just put 11 okay. Five and six Chewinga sisters of each. Yeah. But they're good on defense, they're good on offense.

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

You know?

Pamitha:

I mean, like

Gurushabd:

It's my clear runner.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Like, supreme positioning, like, physically dominating, able to, like, move in space, get the ball to tee. Like, it's this is sort of what we've been talking about, and, you know, Ali is not here to represent her position, I'll just very briefly say, this is why it's so strange that Kansas City isn't basically repeating its success this season from last season, and with all of the talent assembled on that team, it's it's it's it's remarkable. It's it's it's I don't know what's going on in Kansas City.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I I feel like with everyone that's on their team, though, it's something where just the energy, everything could come into place.

Pamitha:

-Mm

Gurushabd:

-And they'll they could just go on a winning streak, go on a tear and be back on top next season.

Pamitha:

-Sure. -It Sure.

Gurushabd:

I feel like they just need to flip something.

Pamitha:

Sure. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Pamitha:

Well, I think yeah. And and, you know, it's easy to see a turnaround coming when you're making changes in the roster, when you're making changes at the top, but also like when your star players come back and start playing well. Like, I I cut you off when you were gonna talk about Barbara Banda, but like, she's kind of the team watching for Orlando. Right? Like, Orlando also, I think, has had a run of, like, really good good depth position players, still very sort of disappointed in the their victory over the Washington spirit.

Pamitha:

But, you know, you gotta respect you gotta respect what they put together, but now things seem to be changing.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. So Band is back, but they've let go Seb Hines, their head coach.

Pamitha:

Did not see that coming.

Gurushabd:

Didn't have that on our bingo. And, I mean, they've been so successful. He's led them to a shield winner, a championship. And I don't understand, I guess, what makes a team decide to let a coach go midseason when they've had success in the past.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Mid season and still where are they in the rankings? Are they are they just in or are they just out?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Just

Pamitha:

outside. They're they're twelfth right now.

Gurushabd:

Oh, twelfth. Kinda tied with the Houston Dash, but just five points out of being in playoff contention.

Pamitha:

Yeah. It's I don't know why they did this, to be honest with you. And I, you know, I haven't read all of the reporting. I haven't seen that there may be anything behind the scenes. It just seemed very out of the blue and and reactionary.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Sometimes I feel like, is it just tastiness, kind of grasping at straws instead of kind of being with someone who's taken you really good places? Yeah. Yeah. I don't know.

Pamitha:

Who and who stepped in?

Gurushabd:

So their interim coach is Yolanda Thomas, who has been an assistant coach, I believe, since 2023 on Orlando, so she was there for their championship season. And she is from Sweden. She was a player there Mhmm. And then has coached for a bit in The US. And I always wonder when a coach steps in as interim coach, are they shooting to be the head coach position?

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

Like, does that go through their mind? Like, Okay, I'm coached now. If I do well, maybe they won't look for a different head coach.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Like, this This is my my audition, Yeah, if this you is

Gurushabd:

my audition now. I'm doing well. You can just keep me on Yeah. If she even wants that. And it made me think of that new Ted Lasso character, Alice Chilton, where she thought she would be head coach of the Lady Greyhounds.

Pamitha:

Yes.

Gurushabd:

And then they bring Ted in.

Pamitha:

Spoiler alert for the first episode of Ted Lasso. Spoiler alert. Also not sponsored. Yeah. Man, if we get that Apple money, watch out.

Gurushabd:

Oh, Apple.

Pamitha:

Well, let me ask you this. Right? Because I think Washington went through something similar when Adrian was initially the interim coach, and then he took over. And obviously, we've seen we've seen great success with him in that role. But there's also, I think, the larger issue of promoting women's head coaches in the NWSL.

Pamitha:

And so for Orlando to move on from Seb Hines, who has a lot of success in on his resume, it's it's a head scratcher that is mid season. If they decided at the end of the year they wanted to move on and elevate Yolanda Thomas, great. I can I can understand that I can get behind that? Try something new, shake up the culture, bring in a coach that's been part of the system, as you said, for quite some time. The mids the midseason move, I'm not sure I understand the rationale behind it, and it's just likely that we just don't know everything.

Pamitha:

I would I'm just gonna say I would be very disappointed if at the end of the season, no matter where Orlando ends up in the standings, if they decide to move on from Yolanda Thomas to another male coach. Like Yeah. You know what I mean?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I mean, unless if Orlando and Angel City just swap coaches and Alex Strauss goes to Orlando and said bye goes I to Angel

Pamitha:

mean, that'd be that'd be worse, right? Like

Gurushabd:

I think it would be. But yeah, I would hope if Yolanda Thomas wants that head coaching position, that this is her I mean, I think it's not fair to have an end of a season be your trial period.

Pamitha:

Yeah. I mean, that's fair too.

Gurushabd:

You know, you're coming in at the end. But, you know, see how things work in off season, and if she wants it, that she actually has a true shot at it.

Pamitha:

For the sake of the health of the sport and the health of their players, I hope they make the right decision. Same thing with Angel City. Smirood, right, that's the interim coach?

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

Leaf?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Leaf. Yes. Leaf. Yeah.

Pamitha:

I mean, I hope he I mean, you know, they're they're put they're fighting just as well, and, you know, maybe if he's the right guy, great, but if not, I'm sure there's a lot of other really qualified female coaches out there who would jump into that Angel City roster and make an impact.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Yeah. I there's gotta be a lot of female coaches who want that opportunity

Pamitha:

Yeah. You're you're right.

Gurushabd:

And have earned it.

Pamitha:

You are right. Well, Orlando and Angel City are currently just outside the top eight. We know who's number eight. I know you know who's number eight, Guterschaub, and

Gurushabd:

Oh, Seattle finally made the bubble.

Pamitha:

Alright. So who who is presently chasing Seattle to get into the playoffs going into week So

Gurushabd:

yeah. So we've got Orlando at 12, with 26 points, kinda tied with Houston there, and then Denver Summit at 10 with 27 points, Angel City at nine with 29 points, and then Seattle at that eighth place with 31. So all of those teams are kind of in it. The bottom four, I don't think they're gonna break through.

Pamitha:

Yeah. That's Oh. Louisville, Bay, Boston, Chicago?

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

You don't think Chicago with their negative 34 goal differential isn't gonna make a run?

Gurushabd:

Man, and what's going on in Chicago?

Pamitha:

Oh, I don't know. It's bad. And it's it's not like they're devoid of talent, but it's just bad. Yeah. Yeah.

Pamitha:

I

Gurushabd:

That's the hard part. All of four of those teams have some talent.

Pamitha:

Yeah, yeah,

Gurushabd:

yeah, yeah. They just can't fit all of it together.

Pamitha:

I I don't know. Chicago is such a head scratcher, because their talent is like national team level, like, talent. Like, Boston, you can forgive.

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

Bay, you can forgive. They've as we've talked about with their friends on Bay, they're they're sort of perpetually rebuilding. Yeah. But, yeah, Chicago's a head scratcher, and they're to be that bad is like, something is really not good in that organization right now.

Gurushabd:

And I know you, above all, are very surprised that racing Louisville has not built off of their momentum from last season.

Pamitha:

Yeah, I know. What the heck, Louisville? Come on.

Gurushabd:

What's happened there? They're just kind of just self crumbling.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Self crumbling is such a great way of phrasing it. You know, they're they say they snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. They they keep beating themselves a lot. Right?

Pamitha:

They're the games that they should be winning, games that they should be competitive, or at least, like, you know, finishing with a draw, they find a way to lose it. And you could see it in the players, like, the reactions from from the stands, you can see the reactions on the field, like, how do they find those sums of themselves in this situation? Right? Time and time again, they cannot close. Don't know.

Pamitha:

Like, they've they've got pieces, but they're they're just not consistently finishing. And I don't know where that comes from. I don't know if the and, you know, you would think they brought in the right coach to reset that culture. Like, I've not been to the stadium, but, like, we know from we know from folks that have gone to play for that organization that they thought it was a really good culture, and a really good, like, fan culture, and, like, a really good place to be. It's just not living up to the hype.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I Yeah. I don't know what they could do to also turn it around. Yeah. Know, they lost all their international players, and now Emma Sears wants to jump ship.

Pamitha:

Yeah. No. For sure. Right? Like, we'll let's talk about let's talk about Emma Sears for a second because she wants to go play for a competitor.

Pamitha:

Right? And so, like, if we look at the top of the table, Gotham and their interesting circumnavigation of the financial rules, you know, they're not a good fit. Washington, god, I would love to see her play for us, but I don't think she's a good fit for Washington either. Utah, same. Don't think she's a fit in the number three.

Pamitha:

San Diego, I could see the case. Portland, I can see the case at five. North Carolina's got something special. We'll talk about North Carolina in a second. That's six and six and on the rise even though they dropped the the game last weekend.

Pamitha:

Kansas City, again, I wouldn't be surprised if Kansas City takes a big swing to try to bring her in because that seems that seems to be what they do, and then it doesn't work out. But, like, Kansas City, that would be dangerous. What do you think about them and Seattle climbing into that, like, climbing onto your roster? Would you take Emma Sears?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Oh, I would definitely take her. Yeah. But I don't know. Like, I feel like Emma Hayes or not Emma Hayes, Laura Harvey Mhmm.

Gurushabd:

Is really building something with our young players there.

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

And the growth we've seen just from last season with our young players, I don't quite know if she would disrupt that, but we are losing Jess Fishlock to retirement, so she there is a forward opening right there.

Pamitha:

That's interesting. I think we can manifest that.

Gurushabd:

Oh, I would take an MS Sears, of course.

Pamitha:

Well, it's funny because, you know, you're talking about building the team through it's like youth development. I feel the same way about what Hailey Carter's been doing for the spirit. Right? Like, I would love to see MS series come to the spirit, but she's doing such a great job cultivating our younger talent and finding international stars to come to the roster, so like, it's not like it's a need. And frankly, I'm not entirely sure she would be a good fit for what we as But, a team you know, she was seen in Denver.

Gurushabd:

Yes. There's rumors she is looking at Denver.

Pamitha:

What do you think about a Lindsey Heaps and Emma Sears national team reunion for the Denver Summit?

Gurushabd:

I think they would also be really lucky to get her. They have a lot of forward talent, though, in Costner and now Janine Sonnas, their defender, is scoring goals.

Pamitha:

Oh my god. Sonnas is, like, a revelation, like, good like, holy cow. Does does Sonos remind you a little bit of Kelly O'Hara, or is that just me?

Gurushabd:

Oh. Yeah. Yeah.

Pamitha:

Yeah?

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

Comment below if you think I'm crazy.

Gurushabd:

But I think, you know, I think we should see an emissiere sighting in Seattle.

Pamitha:

Well, so our own personal preferences aside, I think it makes a lot of sense for her to go to Denver. Denver's competitive this year. Denver's building something they could build around her. And I don't know what they would have to give up in order to get her. I don't know, honestly, if it makes that much of a difference for their ability to win the whole thing this year, but I think it would definitely set them up for success.

Pamitha:

And from a from Sears' perspective, I'm looking around in Louisville, and I don't see the growth. And all of the hope from last year, the run that they made last year, for them for it to fizzle so spectacularly, it's gotta be it's gotta weigh on you as a competitor.

Gurushabd:

Oh, it's so hard losing week after week. And

Pamitha:

Yeah. And the way they lose.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. That would be really hard to be on that team.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Yeah.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I wonder how positive they're staying, really.

Pamitha:

You mean if they're gonna stay in Louisville?

Gurushabd:

I'm I mean, that but, like, how positive is their locker room? Oh, sure the, you know, captains are doing their best. But

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

It's just so hard to when you're that when you're a professional, you're competitive to lose. It's hard enough when you're just playing rec club Yeah. And you're in your early twenties and competitive and fiery to lose.

Pamitha:

Well, and and honestly, like, it's gotta be in the back of these players' minds that the team may not be in Louisville in the long run. Right? Like Mhmm. These are these are players that have Yeah. Brought their lives to play for this team.

Pamitha:

Right? That's what happens. Like, you don't you don't just commute to your team from, you know, wherever you are. You build a life. Yeah.

Pamitha:

And Yeah. That that's might that might get uprooted. Like, I think the the owner was on record earlier in August by saying, like, relocation is not off the table.

Gurushabd:

Right.

Pamitha:

What signals are you sending? Right? Like, what what does that actually mean?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. So they're all

Pamitha:

It's a mess.

Gurushabd:

Poor players of Louisville.

Pamitha:

Yeah. I know. I I I've been thinking what it means to run a league that really puts the interests of the players first. And I don't, you know, there's I think every league will tell you that they do, but I don't know how much of them actually are are like authentically doing so at like a deep level. You see a lot of other organizations not in the sports world.

Pamitha:

You see a lot of other organizations that wrestle with this paradigm of do we want to make our employees happy versus do we want to protect like a c suite that is just making these decisions. There's a lot of data that seems to indicate if you put your employees first, if you put the people first, you will find success. Yeah. I don't I wonder what that model looks like copy pasted into a a sports league, you know?

Gurushabd:

Right. And I feel like with MS Sears, when you're a player that's trying to get a spot on the US women's national team

Pamitha:

Yeah.

Gurushabd:

Versus a player who's you know, you're just gonna play in the NWSL. You're good with that. That's where you are. But the players that are shooting to go to the World Cup next year and what Emma Hayes looking at them Yeah. I think a trade for them looks a lot different than a trade for a nonnational team player.

Pamitha:

Yeah. You're so right.

Gurushabd:

So she's gonna want yeah. To get on a team with heaps, to get on a team with other national players, and kinda get that rapport with them, and be with other players that can highlight her talents.

Pamitha:

Yeah. I I you're a 100 right. I think there's a friend of ours that criticized that she doesn't she isn't a good finisher. I disagree. I just don't think she's been put in the right place to succeed.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. When she's on the US women's national team, great finisher.

Pamitha:

Absolutely. So speaking of another great finisher who should be on the US women's national team and should have been a mainstay on the US women's national team since 2023, Vlotco, Ashley Pickle Sanchez.

Gurushabd:

We

Pamitha:

said we were gonna get back to North Carolina. I I got this personal bias aside, I'm amazed at how much I have come around on North Carolina as an organization, as a fan base, as a roster. It's wild to to think that I will be sitting here telling you how great North Carolina is. North Carolina has great Gudersheben. Like, really, really good.

Pamitha:

I know that they're only, like, seventh in the standings right now, but watching them play is really exciting, they're very consistent, they don't give up, they've got a great mentality, and it starts with Ashley Sanchez. Golden Boot leader with 15 goals, Ashley Sanchez. The leader in the clubhouse for MVP, if people actually know what they're talking about, Ashley Sanchez. She's been she's been incredible.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. She's had a standout season.

Pamitha:

Bam. Historic. She's one goal away from she's breaking one goal away from breaking Mhmm. The NWSL goal scoring record for an American player, and we're in week 20.

Gurushabd:

In a season?

Pamitha:

In a season. Sorry. Yes. In a season.

Gurushabd:

Okay.

Pamitha:

I think I got that stat. But it's it's it's remarkable. Yeah. It's remarkable.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. She's having a breakout season, and her teammate is also in the golden boot race all of a sudden.

Pamitha:

Yeah. And and, like, literally out of nowhere, in first season in the NWSL, Evelyn Ejey. Right?

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

Yeah. The Swedish superstar? Is that fair to say?

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. She's from Sweden, and I think she's only there because they brought in Mac a Swedish coach.

Pamitha:

Oh, yeah. In oh, yeah.

Gurushabd:

That's right.

Pamitha:

First year coach. I yeah.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. First year coach. He's bringing the Swedes back.

Pamitha:

So Mac Lynn joined in January. Shortly thereafter, Evelyn EJ joined, and now they are going toe to toe with Kansas City. They're in the playoff hunt. They've got Mhmm. Two players in the top five and goals scored.

Pamitha:

They they had a they they shook up their roster too. Right? Like, they got rid of some mainstays in in Mhmm. I don't know if people expected this level of success from them at the beginning of the year, and yet here they are.

Gurushabd:

They certainly weren't on my radar to be a playoff team.

Pamitha:

No. I don't think I knew Evelyn EJ, until we went down well, that's not true. I I remember watching them actually in the season and thinking, oh my goodness. Who is this rookie? Not understanding that she's not a rookie.

Pamitha:

She played for AC Milan for two seasons before she came over here. She's just a rookie in the NWSL. So just a first year player in the NWSL. Remarkable. And then watching her in person, it is scary.

Pamitha:

Right? Like, having her basically match Trinity Rodman step for step, scary. And she's the second best player on the team? Oh my god. Right?

Pamitha:

Yeah. Ashley Sanchez gets the ball, anytime she gets the ball in the in the box, I expect that there's a goal scoring opportunity coming, and she's delivered, and she deserves it. We loved her here when she was on the Spirit. I can only imagine what we would be if we still had her. Know she I know she did not want to go, so it it really is a sore spot for Spirit fans that she's not doing she's not having the success with us, but Mhmm.

Pamitha:

So very happy for her and proud for her.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. So do you think her being the leader right now, having this outstanding season, you do think Emma Hayes is gonna be looking at her to bring her into the next camp?

Pamitha:

I really hope so. I really hope so, because I I can't I cannot think of a good reason why she wouldn't get a call up. I don't think that there are existing players on the national squad that are materially better than her. Right? I think it would be at I think it would be at worst in open competition, And that's good because it's they're all at a very high level, and it still doesn't make any sense to you know, I know for Ali and myself and others that she didn't get a look in 2023, and she was told she wasn't getting a look in 2023.

Pamitha:

Like, why would you why would you stunt a player like that? Like, it doesn't make any sense. She's paid like, shouldn't have to pay your dues. Right? If you're good, you're good.

Pamitha:

So I hope Emma Hayes sees it, and I hope she gets into camp and she delivers because she deserves to be on that team.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. I mean, it would be great if she made the World Cup team. But, yeah, first, she needs to get into camp and show that she has the chemistry with the other players and delivers there.

Pamitha:

And her and Trinity were BFFs, and, you know, I can't I don't pretend to have, like, an inside line to either of them, but I I can we saw her play a national team game, and she's just she just seems like a great teammate. Right? So I I gotta imagine she will have that chemistry if she gets onto the onto the national team squad.

Gurushabd:

I would think so. I'd I'd like to see her in the World Cup next year. I think there should be room for her.

Pamitha:

Yeah. I hope you're right. I hope you're right. And, you know, by the way, you know, we were just dumping on Louisville for being as poor as they are in Chicago. Mhmm.

Pamitha:

Turnarounds are possible, and North Carolina is that example. Like, they finished ninth last year, and I know that they're only seventh now, but they look far more competitive this season than they did last season. Right? New coach, new international player, and all of a sudden, you've got a Golden Boot leader and an MVP front runner. Like, it's it's it's possible.

Pamitha:

So hopefully, other teams take note.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. It's totally possible season to season. Mhmm. I mean, look at the current Shield winners halfway through this season.

Pamitha:

Last year.

Gurushabd:

Last year, and now, you know, they're sitting in seventh, and they were out of the playoff bubble earlier this season.

Pamitha:

Yes.

Gurushabd:

So teams can switch so quickly. And I I just want a season coming up where Chicago isn't last.

Pamitha:

Oh, I know. Well, I mean, it might be this season. It might be it might be this season still. They you know, it could be Boston.

Gurushabd:

Maybe. So Welcome to the league, Boston.

Pamitha:

Yeah. Unfortunately. Well, here, let let's get out on this. Right now, I think I think we talked about this earlier before we started recording. I think we both agree that the bottom four teams are out of it, and from 12 to nine, there's a competitive group of teams that could potentially jump into the top eight.

Pamitha:

Looking at the looking at the standings now, five weeks from now five weeks from now, is there anybody in the in that nine through 12 that you can see making the jump into the top eight, And is there anybody currently in the top eight who's gonna drop out?

Gurushabd:

I could see Angel City making a run for it. I know I said that last year too. Mhmm.

Pamitha:

Okay.

Gurushabd:

I'm actually not sure. Is there still room at some point for players to move before playoffs? Okay. I mean, that's fine for us to say too. Like, we'll look into it.

Pamitha:

Okay. Yeah. And I don't I don't wanna say something just for the sake of saying something. I I tend to agree with you.

Gurushabd:

She could call

Pamitha:

I find it difficult to believe that Casey will can fall off. See And I think that's partly Like, I I think that that is just,

Gurushabd:

like, Casey's always been the emergency was in middle the Denver.

Pamitha:

Like, of course, Casey's gonna make the playoffs.

Gurushabd:

That sounds familiar.

Pamitha:

I I can see Seattle Casey struggling. I don't know why, but I don't have as much confidence

Gurushabd:

Yeah.

Pamitha:

In Portland, as other people do. And again, that might just be bias, but I think Portland is the only other Portland is the only other team that stands out to me of, like, I could see them fall out of this. And but Angels Angel City is the only team that I can see that would, like, be able to make the jump up as currently constituted. Now if MSURs gets traded to Denver, then I think that's a there's a recalculation. And yeah.

Pamitha:

I don't know. We'll see. We'll revisit this in five weeks.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. But I I think the seventh and eighth position are still open and up for grabs.

Pamitha:

It's a great it's a great season. At a minimum, I'm glad that both your team and our team are are in it.

Gurushabd:

I'm so glad we're in it right now. I'll hold on to that. And I love how Seattle's playing. Yeah. It's the season's been great.

Pamitha:

Yeah. I'm happy for you. I know that at the beginning of the year, there was a little bit of there was optimism, but it was unfounded.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. Yeah.

Pamitha:

It's just

Gurushabd:

Well, we, like, started off great. We had a dip. We did great again. We're having a little roller coaster of a season.

Pamitha:

Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Why does adulting always get in the way of the fun things that we wanna do?

Gurushabd:

Oh, I know. Yeah. And thank you to you and Ally for holding it down and interviewing the creator of SheScores.

Pamitha:

Oh, she Dana Lerner. She was fabulous.

Gurushabd:

Yeah. That was a great episode and I'm kind of yeah. She said she didn't have a job at the time and was able to do that. And I was like, my job is just the thing holding me back. I

Pamitha:

love it. That is one way to be inspired by that. Yes. That's fantastic. Oh, man.

Pamitha:

I will say for like, you and so many other people I know are in that exact same spot. And so, friends and listeners, we love your support. Thank you for listening for thank you for listening to us and being along for this journey as we sort of try to normalize and get our stuff together. It's been fun, and it will continue to be fun. We've got a couple of really cool ideas that we've been talking about off air that we're excited to bring you in the coming weeks, and so stay tuned.

Pamitha:

That takes us to the end of this episode. Thank you everybody for listening. Gurus Chabad, where can they find us on social media?

Gurushabd:

You can find us on Instagram at Laces Out Loud.

Pamitha:

And you could always write into us at LacesOutLoudpod@Gmail.com. That is LacesOutLoudpod@Gmail.com. Alright. Take us out.

Gurushabd:

Everyone, be kind, be good to each other, and from the fans for the game, we'll see you next time on Laces Out Loud.