Reign

Reign Looks to Avenge Loss in First-Ever “Queen’s Match” Against Chicago

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Jordyn Bugg dribbles during a match against the Chicago Stars on Saturday, June 14, 2025 at Soldier Field in Chicago. (Harry Figiel / Reign FC Communications) [/caption]

The Seattle Reign (7-5-3) were in solid form before last week's brutal loss to heated rival Portland on a blistering day at Providence Park. The Reign hadn't allowed more than two goals in a game all season, but dropped the game 4-2 as mental lapses killed Seattle's young core in the league's most storied grudge match.

But as veteran midfielder Jess Fishlock said after the loss, that match "doesn't need to derail our year."

Seattle gets a chance to get the train back on the tracks at home on Monday, Aug. 18, against an ailing Chicago Stars side. It will also be a theme night, as the first-ever "Queen's Match" will honor the 1985 U.S. Women's National Team — the first ever to compete internationally.

Previous Matchup

Although the Stars (1-9-5) are the second-worst team in the NWSL right now, they gave Seattle a real run in their previous match on June 14. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, in which the two squads had polar opposite games.

Chicago striker Ludmila, who leads the team with four goals on the season, scored half that total against Seattle with a brace in the early going. The first goal was an incredible solo counterattack by the 30-year-old Brazilian, who dribbled 50 yards through a stunned Seattle defense en route to a left-footed laser from about 15 yards out. The second, just two minutes later, featured another counterattack in which Lumila timed a perfect runout to sneak behind a loaded Seattle backline.

She scored at the 11 and 13-minute marks to shock Seattle off the bat, and for a large portion of the game, it appeared her brace would be sufficient.

But Lynn Biyendolo (87th minute) and Jordyn Bugg (89th minute) each showed up to score off deflected balls in the dying moments of the game to split the points. Seattle won expected goals 1.1 to 1.0 as a result of the late flurry and generated solid looks from Maddie Dahlien and Biyendolo earlier in the second half.

Maddie Mercado had a chance to win it in the 90th but had her fastbreak shot saved. By the end of stoppage time, Seattle won possession at 56%, won shots on target 6-5 and total shots 17-8.

In short, if momentum can be carried over from a two-month-old match, Seattle should be starting on the front foot on Monday night based on the sheer amount of opportunities it generated late in the first game.

Chicago Overview

While Chicago is far from a picture of success this year, the Stars are in decent form right now. The Stars lost to Portland 1-0 in their last game before the break in June and have drawn with Gotham FC and Bay FC (each game ending 1-1) heading into Monday's contest.

Chicago is 1-3-3 in games it has allowed one or fewer goals, which isn't a great mark, but is much better than the 0-6-2 record it has in games with two or more goals allowed.

But what the Stars showed for the last 77 minutes of the previous draw with Seattle was more in tune with how their season has gone.

Chicago is dead-last in expected goals with 13.2 in 15 games and fifth-to-worst in expected goals allowed with 22.1. In reality, Chicago is second-to-last in actual goals in both categories.

Compared to the dynamic Thorns team Seattle faced last week, which had a midfield with two players over 29 progressive carries on the season, Seattle's backline can breathe a little easier. Not a single player in Chicago has more than 26 progressive carries thus far, as Ludmila (26) is the primary threat to take it herself.

Passing is another part of the game Seattle can rest assured with, as Chicago's 368 progressive passes are last in NWSL by a wide margin, while a team like Portland is in the middle of the pack at 531. Julia Grosso (52), Ally Schlegel (45) and Samantha Staab (41) have been carrying the burden of progressive passing production for Chicago, but again don't stack up to what Seattle saw last week.

The Stars operate with a four-player backline, largely swapping between a 4-4-2 and a 4-3-3 throughout the season. Harvey sees Chicago playing a little bit more aggressively on the defensive end this time around.

"The two things I've seen is that they're a little less cautious and a little bit more expansive, put more people higher up the field. A bit braver in their press, they come after you a little bit more, which I think's caught people off guard," Harvey said.

To be fair to Chicago, this is a team dedicated to changing things up. The side hired Swedish head coach Martin Sjögren just days ago to lead the team following the conclusion of the 2025 campaign.

But for now, issues of moving the ball effectively and keeping shots off the board still plague a Chicago side trying to fix things on the fly. Harvey isn’t taking any chances.

“That’s what makes this league amazing, it doesn’t really matter what your points are on the table. You always know everyone’s going to turn up and give you absolutely everything, and I think that’s what this Chicago team’s currently trying to show,” Harvey said.

How Does the Reign Match Up?

Quite well.

Again, Portland's wealth of playmakers from Hina Sugita to Reyna Reyes caused plenty of problems in a blazingly hot match last week. The weather shouldn't be a factor on what's slated to be a temperate evening in Seattle, while the Reign's young midfield of Sam Meza and Sally Menti won't be tested by too many threats this time around. Stopping dynamic runouts from Ludmila will be at the top of the checklist defensively.

On the other end, Chicago's press is clearly on Harvey's mind. But between some veteran ballhandlers in Sofia Huerta and Jess Fishlock, Seattle should be able to withstand it. One stat to keep in mind, though: the Reign's 73% completion percentage on all passes ranks second-worst in the NWSL.

Seattle needs to keep it clean.

Outside of that, Dahlien and leading scorer Emeri Adames should have plenty of chances to generate looks against Chicago to earn a much-needed three points.