Seattle Reign unveil 2018 schedule

The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) released the full 2018 league schedule on Tuesday, including 20 matches to be broadcast nationally as part of the NWSL Game of the Week on Lifetime. Seattle Reign FC will be featured in three of those 20 matches, all coming on the road.

This year’s NWSL season includes 24 matches between the nine teams in the league, and Seattle kicks off the season with a home game against the Washington Spirit on March 24. The full Reign FC home schedule consists of 9 weekend matches (7 Saturday matches and 2 Sunday matches).

All home matches will be played on the newly named UW Medicine Pitch at Memorial Stadium. Reign FC will have a three-match home stand twice this season: from June 30 to July 11, and again from August 15 to August 25. The longest road stretch lasts for 4 games, from April 15 to May 5.

Seattle will face the Portland Thorns three times this year, with two coming on the road — including the final match of the regular season. The only Reign home match against their Cascadia rivals will take place on Saturday, June 30 at 7 p.m. PT. This game falls on the same day as the Seattle Sounders match against Portland Timbers, also at home. That game kicks off at 1:30 p.m. PT, leaving open the possibility of a Sounders-Reign double header at CenturyLink Field — although nothing has been announced at this time.

In addition to the potential for a double header, there are few significant conflicts with the Seattle Sounders schedule, aside from the following:

• On April 15, both teams play on the road (the Sounders kick off at 1 p.m., while Reign FC kicks off at 2 p.m. PT).
• On May 5, Reign FC faces the Portland Thorns on the road, while the Sounders take on the Columbus Crew at home.
• On May 26, the Sounders have a home match (1 p.m. PT), while Reign FC head to New Jersey to face Sky Blue (4 p.m. PT).
• On June 23, both teams play at home, with Reign FC kicking off at 1 p.m. PT and the Sounders at 7 p.m. PT.
• On July 7, the Sounders play on the road at 4:30 p.m., while Reign FC faces Houston at home (7 p.m.).
• On July 21, the Sounder host Vancouver at CenturyLink while the Reign play in Orlando in a match that will be featured on Lifetime. The matches kick off at the same time.

Reign FC home matches do not overlap with any Seattle Storm or Sounders home games during the 2018 NWSL regular season.

With World Cup qualifiers coming this year, teams will be forced to play a number of mid-week matches. Most squads also will be without their Australian players for the month of April, as their national team will be competing in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup, which serves as FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifying for Australia, spanning April 7-22. Rumi Utsugi is likely to be away during this time as well, as Japan will be competing in the same qualifying tournament. Reign FC will not play during any official international FIFA breaks, which fall during the weekends of April 7–8, June 9–10, July 28–29, and September 1–2.

In addition to the matches available on Lifetime, livestreams will be available on the go90 app and website in the U.S., while international fans will be able to watch games on the NWSL app and NWSLsoccer.com.

The top four teams in the league will advance to the playoffs. Semifinal matches will take place September 14-16 and the 2018 NWSL Championship will be on Saturday, September 22.