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The North Carolina Courage earned their first Challenge Cup title after beating the Washington Spirit 2–1 on Saturday.
The match made headlines for other reasons, though. Voices around the league were critical of the officiating throughout the match, especially in the second half when various calls were missed in potentially dangerous situations.
At one point, Spirit midfielder Jordan Baggett was injured and needed a stretcher. The medical crew wasn’t quick enough, so some of the Spirit players ran over to bring the stretcher to their teammate.
This moment in particular is causing the NWSL to catch plenty of heat due to the safety concerns sparked from the match. Observers were specifically concerned with officials failing to help prevent these injuries and the resulting scary moments on the pitch.
Another controversial moment happened when the Spirit’s Sam Staab ran into the Courage’s Kerolin Nicoli, knocking her to the ground as she screamed in pain. No penalty was called on the play, shown below.
Additionally, the NWSL is being questioned for their scheduling, as the new regular season is already underway and the tournament semifinals were also this week. Saturday’s match marked the two teams’ third match in a week. So, on top of dealing with the rough conditions during Saturday’s match, the players are also dealing with fatigue.
