Gotham FC Eyes Key Road Win Against Struggling Utah

SANDY, Utah (June 12, 2025) – Gotham FC aims to return to the win column on Friday night as the club hits the road for the final time before the summer break, facing Utah Royals FC at America First Field.

Kickoff is set for 9:30 p.m. ET, with broadcast coverage available on MSG Networks and NWSL+.

MSG will stream the match on the Gotham Sports app and GothamSports.com. For more information on how to access NWSL+, please visit here.

Gotham FC enters the match following a hard-fought 2-1 loss to the league-leading Kansas City Current last weekend at Sports Illustrated Stadium. Despite the result, Gotham controlled 61.9% of possession and completed 344 passes, more than Kansas City’s 268 attempted passes. Star midfielder Rose Lavelle made her 2025 debut in the match, returning from offseason ankle surgery.

On the road this season, Gotham FC holds a 2-2-2 record in NWSL play, having scored nine goals and conceded six. The club’s most recent road victory came on April 26, a 3-0 win over the Washington Spirit, with all three goals scored in the first half.

The Utah Royals (1-8-2, 5 points) have endured a difficult 2025 campaign, registering just one win and conceding 22 goals — second-most in the league behind Chicago Stars FC (24). Four of Utah’s five points have come at home, where the club has scored three goals and allowed seven.

In their most recent home match on May 23, the Royals fell, 3-1, to the reigning NWSL champion Orlando Pride. Brecken Mozingo netted the lone goal for Utah, while Orlando’s Barbra Banda recorded a hat trick.

Friday marks the 10th all-time meeting between Gotham FC and Utah Royals FC, with Gotham holding a 3-5-1 record in the series. Gotham won both matchups last season, including a 4-1 road victory in the final regular-season game of 2024.

“Playing at home, I’m sure [Utah] will try to put us under pressure,” said Gotham FC coach Juan Carlos Amorós. “We’re coming off those Concacaf wins, but in the league, we haven’t been getting the results we’ve wanted. So I think it’s going to be a very interesting game—and hopefully one where we can come away with three points.”

Following Friday’s match, Gotham FC will return home to host Bay FC on Saturday, June 21, at 7:30 p.m. ET at Sports Illustrated Stadium — the final match before the summer break.

Key Points:

• Gotham FC’s 4-1 win over Utah last season marked the club’s largest victory in the series and featured the most goals scored by either team in a single match in the all-time matchup.
• Forward Esther González is one of three players to score multiple goals in a regular-season road match against the Royals, netting two in last year’s 4-1 victory. She joins Orlando’s Barbra Banda (hat trick in 2025) and Rachel Daly (two goals in 2019) in that category.
• Midfielder Sarah Schupansky has attempted 30 open-play crosses this season, successfully combining on a joint NWSL-high 10 of them.
• Schupansky has delivered 80 passes into the penalty area, including crosses — the second-most in the league behind Bay FC’s Taylor Huff (84).
• Gotham FC has the second-lowest expected goals against in the NWSL this season at 10.9, trailing only the Kansas City Current (8.6). Utah Royals FC has the highest expected goals against in the league, with a mark of 25.

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