Match Preview: Kansas City Current return home to host Utah Royals

KANSAS CITY (March 28, 2025) – After a 2-0 win in its first road test of the 2025 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) regular season, the Kansas City Current (2-0-0, 6 pts., 2nd place) return home for its second match at CPKC Stadium this year. Kansas City will host the Utah Royals (0-1-1, 1 pt., 9th) on Saturday night at 6:30 p.m. CT. Action will broadcast nationally on ION with JP Dellacamera and Jill Loyden on the call. Locally, the match will be simulcast on KMCI, 38 the Spot. Fans in Kansas City can also listen to Dave Borchardt and Jillian Carroll Letrinko call the action on 90.9 The Bridge or on the KC Current App in English, Spanish or Portuguese.

Kansas City enters Saturday’s contest fresh off a 2-0 shutout over 2024 NWSL runner-up Washington Spirit on March 22 at Audi Field in the nation’s capital. Midfielder Lo’eau LaBonta capitalized on a second-half penalty kick in the 56th minute, making her the seventh player with 10 PKs for a single club in NWSL history. 2024 NWSL MVP and Golden Boot winner Temwa Chawinga gave the Current an insurance goal with two minutes left in 11 minutes of stoppage time as the latest regular season goal in club history. The forward has now scored in each of her last seven regular season appearances.

Also of note from the Current’s last outing was head coach Vlatko Andonovski reaching a major coaching milestone. He coached his 200th match across all NWSL competitions (regular season, playoffs, challenge cup, fall series, summer cup), becoming the fourth coach to reach the mark. Additionally, forward Flora Marta Lacho made her KC and NWSL debut as the first player from Angola to do so and midfielder Rocky Rodríguez made her 150th career appearance.

HISTORY BREAKERS
On March 26, the Kansas City Current, Palmer Square Real Estate Management and Marquee Development broke ground on the next phase of the KC Current’s generational investment in the Berkley Riverfront and downtown Kansas City, Mo. This comes just 12 months after the opening of CPKC Stadium – the first stadium in the world purpose-built for a women’s professional team – and signals the Current’s continued and unprecedented investment in women’s sports and the Kansas City region.

Building on their partnership with Port KC and shared vision for a world-class riverfront neighborhood, the Current are embarking on a multi-phased, $1 billion privately financed project that will continue its efforts to transform the Missouri Riverfront, extending the fabric of downtown Kansas City to its waterfront. The recent groundbreaking encompasses a $200 million phase that has 429 multi-family homes, 48,000 square feet of retail and 2+ acres of riverfront gathering space, including a new town square and a riverfront promenade. Components of the project will be delivered throughout 2026.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
Kansas City Current forward Temwa Chawinga – Temwa Chawinga has scored in 15 of her last 16 regular season matches. She has also netted a goal in her last seven regular season games, marking the second longest streak in NWSL history behind her league-record eight-match run. A goal by Chawinga on Saturday would tie her own NWSL record of eight which she first set from June 9 to Sept. 7, 2024. Chawinga is also the NWSL single-season record holder for goal contributions with 20 goals and six assists in 2024. She continued to etch herself in the history books by becoming the first player in NWSL history to score 20 goals in a single season as well as score against every NWSL team since the league expanded to 10+ teams.

Utah Royals midfielder Mina Tanaka – Mina Tanaka logged her first goal of the 2025 NWSL campaign last weekend against San Diego Wave FC. She has now recorded two goals in her nine matches thus far with the Royals. Representing Japan internationally, Tanaka was named the 2025 SheBelieves Cup MVP as the tournament’s leading scorer with four goals and three assists over three games. She had a brace in each of Japan’s four-goal outings against Australia and Colombia and helped Japan end a five-year streak for the U.S. as champions.

ON RECORD WATCH
After becoming just the 12th player in NWSL history to reach 15,000 minutes played, more history is on the horizon for midfielder Vanessa DiBernardo. She is one assist away from sharing a piece of the NWSL regular season assist record. With 30, she is currently one behind Sophia Huerta and Jess McDonald who co-own the record with 31. DiBernardo also owns the Kansas City Current franchise record for NWSL regular season assists with eight, a record she shares with Debinha. In 2024, DiBernardo dished out a team-leading six assists and holds the distinction of scoring the first-ever goal at CPKC Stadium.

Also on record watch is forward Temwa Chawinga. Her tally last weekend against Washington was her seventh consecutive regular season appearance scoring a goal, a streak that dates back to Sept. 20, 2024 (she did not dress for last year’s regular season finale on Nov. 3, 2024). Chawinga is one goal away from tying her own NWSL record of eight.

BIA IS BACK
The wait is over: forward Bia Zaneratto is back. Zaneratto, who signed with the club on Jan. 22, 2024, was placed on the season ending injury list in November with a foot injury. Prior to her injury, she had five goals and four assists in 16 appearances during the 2024 season. Internationally, Bia has represented Brazil since the age of 14 beginning at the 2008 FIFA U-17 World Cup. She embarked on her senior national team career three years later and has scored 36 goals in 103 caps. She is a veteran of four FIFA World Cups (2011, 2015, 2019, 2023) and two Olympic Games (2016, 2020).

KEEP ON MARCHING ON
The first month of the NWSL regular season has brought historic success for the Current. Kansas City has played six NWSL regular season matches in March and, in those matches, boasts a 5-1-0 record. That 83.3 winning percentage is the highest of any NWSL team in a single month (minimum five games played in the given month). The Current have now won five consecutive games in the month of March, a streak that began in 2024.

GOT THE CALL UP
The NWSL will pause for the FIFA international window from March 31 to April 8 following this weekend’s matches, and several Kansas City Current players have been called up by their respective national teams. Forward Michelle Cooper, midfielder Claire Hutton and defender Alana Cook were named to the United States Women’s National Team. Goalkeeper Lorena was called up by Brazil, forward Nichelle Prince will be with Canada and midfielder Rocky Rodríguez got the invite from Costa Rica.

The U.S. and Brazil will square off at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Saturday, April 5, at 4 p.m. CT and Tuesday, April 8, at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif. at 9:30 p.m. CT. It will be the first meeting between the two sides since the gold-medal clash at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris which saw the Americans prevail, 1-0. The game at SoFi Stadium will be the first-ever women’s professional sporting event at the venue. Prince will head to her home country of Canada for two matches against Argentina. The opening contest will be at 9:30 p.m. CT on Friday, April 4, in Vancouver at BC Place before Canada makes its way to Langford to play Argentina again on Tuesday, April 8, at 9 p.m. CT at Starlight Stadium. For Rodríguez, Costa Rica’s first match is set for 6 p.m. CT on Saturday, April 5, at Estadio Jose Rafael "Fello" Meza Ivankovich in Cartago. The team will then play three days later at Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto in Alajuela with kickoff slated for 8 p.m. CT.

Additionally, forward Mary Long and defender Katie Scott received an invitation to the U.S. Under-18 Women’s Youth National Team training camp next week in Fayetteville, Ga. They are part of a 24-player squad selected by U-18 head coach Jen Klein, and their camp will be held concurrently with the U.S. U-19 training camp.

WAYMAKER NIGHT, PRESENTED BY UNITED WAY OF GREATER KANSAS CITY
In collaboration with United Way, the Current’s official charity partner, we are honored to celebrate Kansas Citians who are making an impact in their community during the March 29 match against Utah Royals. Join us as we recognize outstanding community leaders making an impact on multiple organizations around Kansas City. Fans in attendance will receive a custom, co-branded rally towel.

PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION NOTICE 
Fans attending Saturday’s match are encouraged to arrive early to avoid potential delays. CPKC Stadium gates will open at 4:30 p.m. CT. Due to the city’s ongoing KC Streetcar construction on the Grand Boulevard Bridge, matchday parking and transportation will be affected.

On-site parking at CPKC Stadium is sold out. Parking passes will not be available for purchase on-site, and fans without a prepaid parking pass will be directed to off-site options. Fans with prepaid parking passes purchased can access on-site parking lots at CPKC Stadium three hours prior to kickoff, beginning at 3:30 p.m. CT for Saturday’s match. To ensure a smooth on-site parking experience, please have your parking pass displayed on your mobile device upon arrival.

The Current continues to offer a free matchday shuttle service to fans. The shuttle location at 7th & Main will be the only operating location for shuttles. The Current will not operate the 2nd & Grand location until streetcar construction is completed on the Grand Blvd. Bridge in Spring 2025. Shuttle buses will pick-up and drop-off fans at this location on matchday two-and-a-half hours before kickoff, beginning at 4:00 p.m., and the last shuttle will operate two hours after the end of the match.

The Current encourages fans looking to use the shuttle service to park in lots near the 7th & Main shuttle location. Only parking lots at CPKC Stadium are owned and operated by KC Current. For more information, visit the CPKC Stadium Transportation Hub.

AVAILABILITY REPORT
OUT: Gabrielle Robinson (SEI – Knee), Alex Pfeiffer (SEI – Knee)
QUESTIONABLE: Rocky Rodríguez (Thigh)
INTERNATIONAL DUTY: None

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.