(East Los Angeles, CA) [From The Editor’s Desk]: Attention to all of our Angel City Football Club fans and followers! The National Women’s Soccer League’s (NWSL) off-season has come and gone. Now it’s time to make way and make plans for the new 2026 Angel City Football Club’s (ACFC) much-awaited season start and its home opener on Sunday, March 15th, vs. Chicago Stars FC. Kick-off is scheduled for 4:00 pm.

However, prior to that, the team has been preparing and training at its state-of-the-art facility, located on the campus of Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. That was the same site where the team opened its preseason against the National Women’s Soccer League’s (NWSL) top team, the Kansas City Current, from the 2025 season. They secured 1st place and won the NWSL Shield with a (2-1) victory over the San Diego Wave on November 2, 2025, concluding the regular season with a record of (21W-3L-2D) and setting multiple team records

Here is a brief photo gallery look at the encounter against the “Current” from last Saturday, when they competed in their first “closed-door” friendly matchup.

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[PHOTO GALLERY COURTESY]: Angel City FC

ANGEL CITY FOOTBALL CLUB HOSTS THE KANSAS CITY CURRENT IN A PRESEASON FRIENDLY MATCH

(THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., February 7, 2026) – Last Saturday, Angel City Football Club (ACFC) hosted the Kansas City Current at the club’s state-of-the-art performance center in Thousand Oaks, CA, for its first closed-door friendly match against an NWSL opponent of the 2026 preseason. The team will next compete in the annual Coachella Valley Invitational (CVI) at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, CA, for their 2026 preseason, facing the Portland Thorns on Sunday, Feb. 15th at 1:00 pm, followed by the Seattle Reign FC on Saturday, Feb. 21st, starting at 1:30 pm.  

Match quotes were taken from 2nd year Head Coach, Alex Straus & Defender, #20 Gisele Thompson

[ALEX STRAUS, ACFC Head Coach]

(Overall thoughts on the match):

“I thought it was really, really good for the first friendly game of the season, and it was against arguably the best team of the league last year.

“We saw a lot of things that we’ve been working on. The young players did a really good job and worked well with the leaders.”

(On seeing new faces on the pitch):

“That was an exciting part of the day. Taylor Suarez, for instance, who has been good in practice, has potential for a fun relationship with Gisele on the pitch.”

(On what he learned from the match):

“This was the first time we could test what we have been working on so hard in preseason. That is why we do these training games. To test it and see how we are implementing what we are doing here, make adjustments and get it right. We are doing a lot of good things.”

[GISELE THOMPSON, ACFC Defender]

(Overall thoughts on the match):

“I thought it was good. I think the connections were strong. We worked really hard during practice and our hard work has come together. Obviously we can always finish more chances, but we got into the areas really well and for preseason it is a good start.”

(What they are doing well and can continue to improve on):

“We have done well with our build out and our press from goal kicks and continuing the press. We are good at switching the field as well. I think we are also good at finding wide areas, going one-v-one, and finding the crosses.

“I think obviously from last year to this year, we can work on finishing our chances, but I think that comes with consistency.”

(On hosting Kansas City at the ACFC Performance Center):

“I love to show off what we have here. Our training facility is amazing. Being able to show them our field, our gym, our home. It feels like this is a continuation of the growth of women’s soccer.”

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[ABOUT ANGEL CITY FOOTBALL CLUB]

Angel City Football Club (ACFC) of Los Angeles, in the National Women’s Soccer League, is entering its fifth season in 2025 at BMO Stadium in downtown Los Angeles. ACFC is led by controlling owners Willow Bay and Bob Iger and was co-founded by tech entrepreneur Julie Uhrman, actor and activist Natalie Portman, and venture capitalist Kara Nortman. Mark Parsons serves as the team’s Sporting Director and Alexander Straus is the team’s Head Coach.

To purchase tickets, go to angelcity.com/tickets/seasontickets or contact tickets@angelcity.com. Learn more about ACFC at www.angelcity.com and follow the team on social media @weareangelcity.