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Jeff Kassouf
Multiple Authors
The NWSL has seen a notable trend of staging soccer matches on baseball fields, driven by record-breaking attendance and the positive buzz these events generate.
Next week, Gotham FC is poised to set a new record for a women’s professional sports event in New York City, hosting the Washington Spirit at Citi Field, home of MLB’s New York Mets. The match, branded “The Queens Classic,” follows two consecutive years of NWSL attendance records set at baseball parks.
These games have been largely applauded, notwithstanding one of the most infamous incidents in NWSL’s 13-year history, which occurred on a baseball field. A decade ago, on this day, the league went viral for a disastrous match played on a baseball diamond.
“It will be a game that is never forgotten, unfortunately, for all the wrong reasons,” Seattle Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey said to ESPN recently, recalling the memories vividly with photographic documentation still saved on her phone. “But for those who weren’t there, they don’t even know the half of it.”
On July 9, 2016, Seattle traveled to Rochester, New York, to face the Western New York Flash. Rochester Rhinos Stadium, the Flash’s usual venue, had been double-booked for a ’90s throwback concert featuring the popular R&B group TLC.
@NWSL How is this ok? Not good enough for professional soccer. 6v6 field? pic.twitter.com/QXEZ4A8PiZ
— Christine Sinclair (@sincy12) July 10, 2016
Eventually, the match was relocated three blocks away to a minor league baseball stadium due to a last-minute decision, and the game was played on a field that faced widespread ridicule for its narrow dimensions and unsafe playing conditions.
During that time, the NWSL rarely made national headlines, and when it did, it was often due to mishaps like the field in Rochester.
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The Decision Behind the 'Disaster' Game
Harvey and her team arrived in Rochester two days prior to the scheduled match and "jumped the fence" to inspect the outfield, only to discover that the promised field quality was far from met. No preparations for soccer had been made.
"When we arrived, it looked exactly like a baseball stadium," Harvey recounted.
The following day, they returned to see groundskeepers at work on the field, which led them to believe that the Flash and the NWSL were fulfilling their commitments. However, on gameday, Harvey received alarming news prompting her to inspect the field.
"My Spidey senses were tingling at this point," she recalled. A string of incidents followed, which she later shared via an iPhone Notepad screenshot shortly after the match. Those moments remain etched in her memory.
The sod placed to cover the baseball dirt was uneven, and the goals were misaligned. At just 58 yards wide, the field was comically narrow for a professional match, prompting the league to issue an exemption for the dimensions at the time.
Harvey reached out to then-NWSL commissioner Jeff Plush before the match, leaving a voicemail asserting that the Reign would not participate. Plush eventually returned her call, insisting the Reign had to play or risk forfeiting the game.
Harvey conveyed this news to her players in the locker room, where concerns grew over the field's condition, aptly described as "diabolical" by Reign midfielder Jess Fishlock in a recent interview. However, the Reign team did not want to forfeit valuable points in a competitive playoff race.
After a "nightmarish" warm-up session, Harvey left another voicemail for Plush, stating, "This is going to be the biggest disaster the NWSL has ever experienced."
Her prediction quickly proved accurate.
Players' Perspectives on a 'Wrong Decision'
Lianne Sanderson, who started at forward for the Flash that day, noted the home team had not seen the field prior to warm-ups, indicating no intention to gain an advantage. Flash players commuted from Buffalo, New York, where the team trained, to Rochester for home games, about a 90-minute journey.
Sanderson mentioned that players were taken aback by the field's dimensions but were somewhat "desensitized" to the league's low standards back then. Without a players union or collective bargaining agreement, players often accepted whatever the league offered.
At its inception, the NWSL was just three years old, facing constant scrutiny over its survival prospects due to low attendance and scant revenue, which made players more inclined to tolerate unfavorable conditions.
"There were not really discussions around canceling the game," Sanderson, now a TV analyst for NWSL matches, explained. "Players simply showed up and performed. At that time, we felt we had no power, it was essentially 'put up and shut up.' So, we did what was necessary that day."
During the match, Reign goalkeeper Haley Kopmeyer injured her ankle on the irregular grass, while defender Rachel Corsie suffered a tweaked MCL, as reported by Harvey.
The game resembled a chaotic pinball match, with the Flash scoring off long throw-ins that easily converted into scoring opportunities thanks to the narrow playing area. Fans watched, astonished by the diminutive pitch squeezed into a baseball stadium setting. Ultimately, the Flash claimed victory, 3-2.
It was only after the match that players began to grasp the scale of the issue, especially after seeing viral images from the livestream. "The field literally resembled something meant for a five-a-side game," Sanderson remarked.
Notable USWNT stars, including Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, and Carli Lloyd, took to Twitter during the game to voice their frustrations. At that time, USWNT players held the limited power to challenge the status quo.
this is shocking and embarrassing.
— Carli Lloyd (@CarliLloyd) July 9, 2016
Harvey noted that the league was fortunate the USWNT players had already departed their club teams in preparation for the 2016 Olympics, as Rapinoe and Hope Solo likely would have refused to compete on that field.
Harvey remains unsure whether the Flash misled the Reign about the field conditions or if they themselves were deceived by someone else. She insisted that no NWSL officials ever personally assessed the field.
Back in 2016, the NWSL operated with just a handful of employees in a small Chicago office—a stark contrast to the robust organization it is today, with a newly opened large office in midtown Manhattan.
Neither a former league spokesperson nor an executive from the Flash has responded to requests for comments regarding this incident.
Plush issued a statement shortly after the match acknowledging, "the field dimensions were not up to our standards... in hindsight, we made the wrong decision" to proceed with the game. Several days later, the Flash acknowledged "a lack of oversight [that]... subsequently led to an embarrassment for our league."
Harvey expressed her disgust with the apologies, remarking, "Sorry for what? Were you unprepared? Did you mislead us? Were you aware of how bad it would be and still made us go through with it? Which part of your apology is valid? In the end, it seems like you were simply embarrassed by how the media reacted. If the media hadn't brought it to light, I doubt this would have been an issue for you."
Lessons Learned: Ensuring NWSL Avoids Past Mistakes
Wednesday's match at Citi Field looks to be a major event for the NWSL, with Gotham already selling nearly 38,000 tickets for "The Queens Classic," a rematch of last year's NWSL Championship.
This flagship event positions the NWSL favorably in a bustling week for the New York metro area, which includes the men's World Cup in just four days.
Sanderson will provide commentary for ESPN, marking her first time commenting on a soccer game played at a baseball venue, and she anticipates the upcoming match with excitement.
The NWSL is unlikely to see another disaster like the one 10 years ago, even as more games take place at baseball fields.
Today, the league boasts a strong players' union and a collective bargaining agreement that mandates certain standards for fields. Recent baseball stadium games have undergone thorough inspections by team and league officials to ensure quality.
Spirit president of soccer operations, Haley Carter, who played in the NWSL's early years, now insists on maintaining high standards and expresses enthusiasm for next week’s match.
"Kudos to the league and the Players Association for working towards a balance that allows for these exciting events while maintaining quality sporting conditions. We have clear standards for field quality and functionality, and I believe Gotham is fully prepared for that. We are genuinely looking forward to it, and it's an exciting opportunity for the Spirit as the visiting team in such matches," Carter stated last week.
Although the upcoming game might not surpass the NWSL attendance record of 63,004 fans set earlier this year in Denver, it is generally viewed by players and team executives as a significant milestone.
A match held at Wrigley Field in Chicago in 2024 recorded a league attendance high of 35,038 fans, and that record was eclipsed in 2025 at Oracle Park with 40,091 fans.
The Spirit played as the visiting team at Oracle Park last year and were also the guests during the record-setting event in Denver in March, frequently finding themselves in that role due to star forward Trinity Rodman's appeal.
Commissioner Jessica Berman highlighted the importance of special events in larger stadiums, noting, "We always consider opportunities for such events." She referenced her previous experience in the NHL, where the Winter Classic transformed regular seasonal matches into significant occasions.
Despite Harvey's doubts about playing games at baseball fields, calling them "counterintuitive," she noted that the Reign played on a converted baseball field in Tacoma, Washington, from 2019 to 2021, which had superior grass quality compared to other pitches the team regularly used. The Kansas City Current also hosted matches at a minor league baseball venue during 2021.
The NWSL was compelled to relocate the Reign to meet growing league standards, leaving them with no choice but to play at Lumen Field on artificial turf.
"I believe we often alter our approach based on what seems favorable at the moment," Harvey remarked. "I ponder the NWSL often: the past doesn’t seem to carry the same weight. There are many practices we employed that were ineffective, yet people are eager to revert to them without acknowledging historical failures."
This indicates that NWSL games at baseball venues will continue— but they are unlikely to replicate the conditions of a decade ago.