Spirit Fans Bring Sustained Support to USWNT World Cup Watch Parties

Aug 10, 2023

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On Friday, July 21, the United States Women’s National Team, aka USWNT, began its campaign for an unprecedented World Cup three-peat in New Zealand with a 3-0 win against debutants Vietnam. D.C.-area fans clad in team jerseys past and present—many in the current vintage with its controversial “paint splatter” motif—flooded Navy Yard’s Bullpen for a watch party hosted by local NWSL team the Washington Spirit. Despite significant overlap with Nationals fans and a disappointingly small screen for such a large venue, the space buzzed with cautious optimism that the four-time World Cup champions remain the team to beat.

“The U.S. is still top dog, and everybody is going to play their best against us,” says fan Anna Falcone, part of a quartet of “99ers” who fell in love with the team that won the 1999 tournament played here in the USA. Emma May, president of business operations for the Spirit and a professed 99er herself, agrees. “I think from a talent standpoint, we have the best team in the world,” she says. “The question is, are we going to be able to gel at the right time? I think we will.”

Amid the general confidence and half-filled cans of Topo Chico Hard Seltzer sailing through the air after each goal, there was recognition that the field has grown in strength in the four years since the USWNT’s last triumph. “The rest of the world is catching up,” admits fan Maddie Meckes, “but it’s a good thing because women’s soccer is way more supported in the rest of the world than it has been in the past.” Fans list former world champions Japan, European champions England, old foes Sweden, and 2019 runners-up the Netherlands (which the USWNT faces in their second game on Wednesday, July 26, at 9 p.m. local time) as the top teams to watch.

Even as the rest of the world aims for the USWNT’s crown, D.C. can rightly claim to be one of most exciting hubs of women’s soccer activity in the world. Much of that comes down to the Spirit’s owner, entrepreneur Michele Kang, one of many high-profile investors who moved into the sport following the 2019 World Cup. Kang began as an investor and bought the club outright in 2022. She recently made waves by establishing a new entity that will take over the women’s club of French giants Olympique Lyonnais; soon, the Spirit will be part of an international, multi-club organization.

For Spirit staff and fans, Kang’s vision makes for a bright future. “What Michele wants to do with this team and globally is unbelievably inspiring, and it makes us want to deliver nothing but the best all of the time,” says May. “Mostly, we’re really here to deliver it for the players. That’s the most important piece of all of this.” Seven current Spirit players are at the World Cup, four of whom—including young star forward Trinity Rodman—play for the USWNT.

Sticking with the players is what kept die-hard fans like Courtney “Drums” Buchanan and Jessica Reemsnyder going through several tumultuous years. The Spirit won the 2021 NWSL Championship in the midst of a season rocked by COVID-19 and staff turnover prompted by a league-wide reckoning with abuse and misconduct. They then finished second-to-last the following season, and currently find themselves comfortably in fifth place. Fan groups such as the Spirit Squadron, of which Drums and Reemsnyder are members, were bastions of support for the players—but were not shy about expressing their dissatisfaction with the club’s old leadership.

“There were games when we didn’t chant because we were so fed up with what was going on,” says Drums. “So it was hard for us to stick through it, because we just had to hope that it would get better at some point.” While Kang’s leadership is obviously a boost, Reemsnyder is quick to point out the significance of their bond with each other and the players. “A lot of it was the members sticking together and still supporting the team for the players, regardless of the front office,” she says. The group sent care packages to players during COVID, and even wrote them a letter ahead of their silent protests to make it clear that their fight was with the organization, not the personnel on the field.

For Drums and Reemsnyder, the Spirit Squadron has been a vital source of community. Drums started following the Spirit during the first NWSL season, back in 2013, while she was still living in Pittsburgh; she came to so many games that her friends eventually talked her into making the move to the District. Reemsnyder cites the group’s general openness as a key factor in helping her settle in the area, and part of what makes the collective special. “If you want to go to a game but you don’t have anybody to go with, you can always come sit with us and we’ll be friends,” says Reemsnyder. “The only thing we care about is if you’re a good person,” adds Drums. “Don’t bring any hatred of any kind and otherwise we’re good.”

While the opportunity to indulge national pride is an obvious selling point of the World Cup, events such as watch parties and partnerships with area pubs also serve the Spirit’s larger goals. “We want to ensure we are tying our community to the global football community,” says May. “But at the end of the day, we’re here focused on building the National Women’s Soccer League and building the Washington Spirit.” Even though she’s only been in her role since October, May can already see progress. “When I got here, I saw very little Spirit merch out there, and when I would introduce myself, I would say ‘I’m with the Washington Spirit,’ and people would say, ‘Well what is that?’” I don’t have to say that anymore.”

Despite four years of major growth in women’s soccer, many fans and stakeholders argue there’s more to be done, both at home and abroad. “I was watching the Spain-Costa Rica game,” says fan Phoebe Sanderson, of Spain’s 3-0 victory in their opening World Cup match on July 21, “and both of them were first-time contenders eight years ago. Now Spain is a favorite to win and Costa Rica hasn’t really improved that much. It’s because Spain has a huge soccer culture, so they’ve invested a lot in the women’s game.”

For Reemsnyder, greater investment leads not just to greater coverage and prestige but something more elemental: more teams, and thus more opportunities for women to play the game they love. “There’s a lot of great players that don’t get a position because there are no positions. It’s like that with any women’s sport,” she says, using the WNBA as another example.

Of course, for many, the USWNT’s appeal extends beyond their fate in this particular tournament. “I think that not only for soccer but for the women’s movement in this country and around the world, they stand for so much more than just their ability to play,” says Pacconi. “They’re finally earning equal pay, which is something that women in our country don’t even have in every other workplace. Everything they are vocal about, whether it’s voting rights, having a voice in a woman’s right to choose, who you love, whatever—they are not afraid to put themselves out there and know that they back it up with their performance.”

Looking across the Bullpen’s asphalt, turf, and sweeping deck at the masses of fans, you get a sense that the USWNT really is as special as Pacconi suggests. The 99ers and their elders can be seen in classic jerseys, people of all genders sport USWNT fare—Drums and Reemsnyder cite men’s cuts of the USWNT jerseys as progress in itself—and few fans bat an eye when asked if they’ll be watching the 3 a.m. match against Portugal on Aug. 1. “Probably from my couch,” Mollie Valencia quips; her friends quickly step in and start planning a sleepover.

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