HERRIMAN, Utah (Thursday September 18, 2025) – Utah Royals FC (3-11-6, 15 pts, 14th in the NWSL) remain in Sandy for a second consecutive week to host Racing Louisville (7-8-5, 26 pts, 8th in the NWSL) on Friday, September 19 at 8:00 p.m. MT.
Utah defeated the Houston Dash 2-0 in front of home fans, extending the current unbeaten streak to five matches. Goals from Kaleigh Riehl and Paige Monaghan sealed the result. Riehl opened the scoring early, rising at the back post to head home a looping effort from an inswinging Cloé Lacasse corner. The goal marked Riehl’s first in a Royals jersey and also gave Lacasse her first NWSL assist. Monaghan added a second with an absolute stunner from distance. After receiving a long diagonal ball from Nuria Rábano, Monaghan cut inside and curled a beautiful left-footed strike over Houston goalkeeper Jane Campbell, who had come off her line. The goal marked Monaghan’s third in three matches, a personal career-best following recent finishes against Portland and North Carolina. Rábano, who joined from Wolfsburg in the offseason, also recorded a first NWSL assist on the play.
Defensively, Utah has been rock solid since the NWSL Summer break, conceding just four goals, the second-best mark in the league behind only Kansas City. The backline completely shut down Houston’s attack, holding the Dash to zero shots on target for the first time since 2023.
Each team took away a win in the two encounters in the 2024 NWSL season. The first meeting took place on April 20 in Louisville and ended in a 5-1 defeat. Then-rookie Olivia Griffitts notched her first professional goal. The return fixture on September 28 saw the Royals come away with a 1-0 victory courtesy of an Ana Tejada long-range effort in the 78th minute of play. When the two sides met earlier this year on June 6 in Louisville, Racing came out on top with a 3-2 win, courtesy of an 85th-minute game-winning goal.
BROADCAST INFORMATION:
WATCH LIVE on KMYU with David James and Carla Haslam :: Utah Royals FC vs. Racing Louisville | America First Field | 7:30 p.m. MT | KMYU (2.2 over air / 12 satellite / 643 Comcast HD)
OR
WATCH LIVE on Paramount+ with Maura Sheridan and Jordan Angeli :: Utah Royals FC vs Racing Louisville | America First Field | 8:00 p.m. MT
OR
LISTEN via KSL Sports Radio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) starting at 7:30 p.m. MT
Louisville enters this match sitting in 8th place on the NWSL table, the last playoff spot. In its last five matches, Racing has one victory, two draws, and two defeats. Most recently, Racing is coming off two defeats to Seattle and Portland. Prior to that, the team recorded a draw against Houston, then beat San Diego after drawing with Washington.
Following Friday night’s match, Utah Royals FC will hit the road to face Bay FC on September 27. After that, the Royals will travel to Chicago to face Stars FC on October 5. Utah will finally return home to host the San Diego Wave on October 11, with kickoff scheduled for 8:00 p.m. MT. Tickets are available at https://www.rsl.com/utahroyals/tickets/single.
