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WTOP previews Washington Spirit’s NWSL championship game against Gotham FC – WTOP News

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WTOP previews Washington Spirit’s NWSL championship game against Gotham FC – WTOP News


The Washington Spirit will face Gotham FC at PayPal Park in San Jose, California, Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern for the NWSL championship game.

WTOP’s José Umaña previews the Washington Spirit as they prepare to take on Gotham FC for the NWSL championship in San Jose, California, Saturday night.

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All eyes will be on the 2025 National Women’s Soccer League championship game Saturday, as the Washington Spirit takes on Gotham FC at PayPal Park in San Jose, California.

The game kicks off at 8 p.m. Eastern, and is airing on CBS or streaming online. It’s expected to be a close matchup.

The match marks Washington’s second consecutive appearance in the finals, after losing to Orlando last year in Kansas City, and the fourth overall in franchise history.

The No. 2-seeded Spirit last won the championship in 2021, when it bested the Chicago Red Stars in extra time.

Fans have eagerly awaited the Spirit-Gotham rematch, as the two teams hold a longtime rivalry.

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For Gotham FC, the team is looking to make history by becoming the lowest seed ever to win the title after beating top-seeded Kansas City Current and Orlando Pride in the playoffs.

Washington’s Trinity Rodman may be playing her last game in the league because of salary cap constraints. On the other side, Gotham fans will be watching the team’s Esther González, who has scored 13 goals this season.

WTOP’s Washington Spirit Beat Reporter, José Umaña, joined WTOP anchor Ian Crawford for a preview of the game.

The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.

Stay with WTOP for the latest developments in Saturday’s championship game.

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  • Ian Crawford:

    The Washington Spirit take a shot at their second NWSL championship in five years when they meet Gotham FC tonight in San Jose. WTOP’s José Umaña — our alcalde de Fútbol — joins us with a closer look at how the team is prepping for the big game.

  • José Umaña:

    Head Coach Adrián González said yesterday that the team have been trying to keep it loose, keep it normal. For any media member or a fan who’s been at a training session, the Spirit, especially in these last couple of weeks, has tried to remain loose. They said they learned from last year’s final where they were too focused on what Marta could do and what Orlando could do, as they were the No. 1 team in the league that year.

    This year, the Spirit are way more relaxed and are much less tense. They talked about using a sports psychologist and trying to find ways to keep their friendly atmosphere going. They played a weird version of dodge ball a couple of days ago and right before the semifinal, and last night before the media availability yesterday, they were apparently listening to Daddy Yankee the entire time as they worked out. So very chill vibes to keep it loose and keep the focus at hand, which is the final.

  • Ian Crawford:

    Now again, this kind of plays against what I was talking about before, with the great turnaround that the team had over the summer. Is some of that momentum kind of building with them going into the final?

  • José Umaña:

    Yeah, right after the summer break there was a coaching change, as I mentioned. It’s no longer Jonatan Giráldez. It’s now Adrián González, who was the assistant, and he really tried to bring more of an uplifting, relaxed attitude while the team continued playing more of an aggressive attacking style.

    They went on a 14-game unbeaten run between August all the way to mid October, and the team has really gelled — it’s found its groove. Last week, Croix Bethune, the midfielder who wasn’t able to play in last year’s final, said their semifinal match against Portland was the best game they played. But she believes they’re not peaking yet. So that’s some positive vibes that you don’t expect to hear from a player — that they believe they can go even higher as they play in a semifinal now heading into a final.

  • Ian Crawford:

    How much will the Spirit be missing the rowdy Audi Field advantage when they go to San Jose tonight?

  • José Umaña:

    It’s a huge advantage. The Spirit are 6 for 6 playing at Audi Field in front of that fan base.

    Even though there was a large contingent of Spirit fans at the neutral site game in Kansas City for last year’s championship, they will be missing that (home field).

    But for those who remember, and you kind of brought it up, in the beginning half the season, the Spirit were much better on the road than they were playing at home. There was a little bit of anxiety playing at home until the coaching change. They still were, even after the coaching change, a road-based team that could perform well. And if they start the game off on the right foot, going in on the attack and trusting their 3-forward line, there will be problems for Gotham.

  • Ian Crawford:

    Now we all know about Trinity Rodman, who is probably playing her last game in the Spirit kit. Who else should we watch for tonight? You mentioned Croix Bethune? Who else?

  • José Umaña:

    Yeah, I would definitely look out for NWSL Defender of the Year Tara McKeown. Not only has she transitioned in the last three years from attacker, playing striker, looking for the eye to the goal, but she’s now a defender, being the key cog in that defense and limiting attacks. She has also been a part of the attack. She essentially becomes what in our sport, we call an 8 — she becomes another midfielder, moving the ball aggressively and making key passes to restart the attack and bringing the ball so much so that she doesn’t even mind taking a shot.

    If she gets the ball early on and often, she may create problems for that Gotham midfield that likes to hold on to the ball, if she’s able to be aggressive right away. And look, if this game goes to penalty kicks, which I hope not, I think Spirit fans would like to avoid another heart attack.

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Iran warns Washington it will retaliate against any attack

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Iran warns Washington it will retaliate against any attack


DUBAI, Jan 11 (Reuters) – Iran warned President Donald Trump on Sunday that any U.S. attack would lead to Tehran striking back against Israel and regional U.S. military bases as “legitimate targets”, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf told parliament.

Israel is on high alert for the possibility of a U.S. intervention to support a nationwide protest movement in Iran, sources said.

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Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by William Mallard

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Washington National Opera cuts ties with the Kennedy Center after longstanding partnership | CNN Politics

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Washington National Opera cuts ties with the Kennedy Center after longstanding partnership | CNN Politics


The Washington National Opera on Friday announced it is parting ways with the Kennedy Center after more than a decade with the arts institution.

“Today, the Washington National Opera announced its decision to seek an amicable early termination of its affiliation agreement with the Kennedy Center and resume operations as a fully independent nonprofit entity,” the opera said in a statement.

The decoupling marks another high-profile withdrawal since President Donald Trump and his newly installed board of trustees instituted broad thematic and cosmetic changes to the building, including renaming the facility “The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”

The opera said it plans to “reduce its spring season and relocate performances to new venues.”

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A source familiar with the dynamic told CNN the decision to part ways was made by the opera’s board and its leadership, and that the decision was not mutual.

A spokesperson for the Kennedy Center said in a statement, “After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with the WNO due to a financially challenging relationship. We believe this represents the best path forward for both organizations and enables us to make responsible choices that support the financial stability and long-term future of the Trump Kennedy Center.”

Kennedy Center president Richard Grenell, who was appointed by Trump’s hand-picked board, said on X, “Having an exclusive relationship has been extremely expensive and limiting in choice and variety.”

Grenell added, “Having an exclusive Opera was just not financially smart. And our patrons clearly wanted a refresh.”

Since taking the reins at the center, Grenell has cut existing staff, hired political allies and mandated a “break-even policy” for every performance.

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The opera said the new policy was a factor in its decision to leave the center.

“The Center’s new business model requires productions to be fully funded in advance—a requirement incompatible with opera operations,” the opera said.

Francesca Zambello, the opera’s artistic director, said she is “deeply saddened to leave The Kennedy Center.”

“In the coming years, as we explore new venues and new ways of performing, WNO remains committed to its mission and artistic vision,” she said.

The New York Times first reported the opera’s departure.

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Founded in 1956 as the “Opera Society of Washington,” the group has performed across the district, taking permanent residency in the Kennedy Center in 2011.

The performing arts center has been hit with a string of abrupt cancellations from artists in recent weeks including the jazz group The Cookers and New York City-based dance company Doug Varone and Dancers who canceled their performances after Trump’s name was added to the center – a living memorial for assassinated President John F. Kennedy.

The American College Theater Festival voted to suspend its relationship with the Kennedy Center, calling the affiliation “no longer viable” and citing concerns over a misalignment of the group’s values.

American banjo player Béla Fleck withdrew his upcoming performance with the National Symphony Orchestra, saying that performing at the center has become “charged and political.”

The Brentano String Quartet, who canceled their February 1 performance at the Kennedy Center, said they will “regretfully forego performing there.”

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CNN has reached out to the Kennedy Center on the additional cancellations.

The opera said, “The Board and management of the company wish the Center well in its own future endeavors.”

CNN’s Betsy Klein and Nicky Robertson contributed to this report.



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Andre Washington’s 20 points help Eastern Illinois take down Tennessee Tech 71-61

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Andre Washington’s 20 points help Eastern Illinois take down Tennessee Tech 71-61


CHARLESTON, Ill. (AP) — Andre Washington had 20 points in Eastern Illinois’ 71-61 victory over Tennessee Tech on Thursday.

Washington shot 8 for 13, including 4 for 6 from beyond the arc for the Panthers (5-10, 2-3 Ohio Valley Conference). Meechie White added 13 points and four steals. Kooper Jacobi finished with 11 points and added seven rebounds.

The Golden Eagles (6-10, 1-4) were led in scoring by Jah’Kim Payne, who finished with 11 points. Tennessee Tech also got 10 points from Mekhi Turner.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.



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