Houston Dash starts defending their title on April 9 against Chicago Red Stars at BBVA Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The NWSL Challenge Cup returns this 2021 after a successful tournament in 2020 when 8 teams battled in the first professional sports tournament that took place in the USA after everything was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Last year’s tournament, which was played in Utah, saw the Houston Dash winning their first title in franchise history.
In this year’s edition, 10 teams will take part of the tournament as they will be divided into two groups. West and East. The current champions, Houston Dash is part of the West among Chicago Red Stars, OL Reign, Kansas City, and Portland Thorns.
This year, the Challenge Cup champions return to action with a different mindset. The Houston team is not the underdog anymore, they are one of the team to beat.
Coach James Clarkson is coming back with the Dash with pretty much the same squad as the one they found success with in 2020. Gabby Seiler, Maegan Rosa, Emily Ogle, are some of the most important players the team added for the 2021 season.
Of course, Rachel Daly, Kristie Mewis, Shea Groom, and Jane Campbell are returning with the Orange to compete again for the Challenge Cup title and the NWSL Championship.
The Dash will start defending their championship on April 9 when they will host the Chicago Red Stars. Then, they will visit OL Reign and Kansas City on April 16 & 26, respectively. Finally, they will finish their group action at home against Portland Thorns on May 2.
Coach Clarkson mentioned in a press conference: “What a great way to start the defense of the Challenge Cup title with a home game against Chicago. I know the players are very excited to get going because they want to play. Hopefully, we can keep start off with a positive note.”
Goalkeeper Jane Campbell said: “The fact that we set the standard high last year is great, but we have a lot more to go and learn. I think we can do it.”
A good challenge is coming ahead for the Dash where they want to prove that what happened last year was not just luck, but that in fact, had work and good planning is paying off for the Houstonian team.
Houston Dash
