This Wednesday, July 19, the National Women’s Soccer League officially announced that the 2023 NWSL Championship, to be played on Nov.11, will be held at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego.

This will be the first time San Diego hosts the event and the first time since 2018 that the event is on the west coast.

Snapdragon Stadium has had a historic year so far, as the San Diego Wave has put in historic numbers in the stands. The Wave set a home-opener attendance record this year when 30,854 fans filled the seats at the Mission Valley fortress. San Diego set a league attendance record last year with 32 thousand fans against rivals Angel City FC,

The Wave has been consistently driving in fans to the “Snap” all year long, but there have also been several other notable soccer events there as well. Over 20 thousand fans witnessed a friendly match Club Tijuana and Club America, over 30 thousand were at Snapdragon Stadium for a Mexico vs. Cameroon friendly, and recently 31,690 spectators were present for a Gold Cup semifinal between the USMNT and Panama.

Next week there will be more notable games at Snapdragon Stadium, as Manchester United and Wrexham will play a friendly match on July 25. While the local San Diego Loyal will host German giants Borussia Dortmund at the Mission Valley fortress.

San Diego has shown consistently that it is a soccer city and that it is deserving of hosting an event like the NWSL championship. There is still a lot of soccer to be played until the final on Nov. 11., as the Wave will surely keep on making waves with their attendance numbers.

The Wave had an off week and now will play three consecutive NWSL Challenge Cup games while the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is being played. San Diego will play Portland and OL Reign consecutively on the road, then come back to host Angel City FC on Aug.5 for their third matchup of the year.

Meanwhile, Alex Morgan, Naomi Girma, Kailen Sheridan, Sofia Jakobsson, and Emily van Egmond will all be at the World Cup with their respective nations. Emily van Egmond and Kailen Sheridan will play their first games this Thursday morning, as Australia will take on Ireland at 3:00 a.m. PST, and Sweden will play Nigeria at 7:00 a.m. PST. The USWNT will play their first game this Friday, July 21, against Vietnam at 6:00 p.m. PST, while Sweden will open the World Cup vs. South Africa on July 22, at 10:00 p.m. PST.

Francisco Velasco

Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.