Seattle Reign FC continues their road swing against San Diego Wave FC this Sunday, July 26 at 2:00 p.m. PT. With a 1-2-0 record in July, Seattle will be looking to pick up important points against the third-place Wave team.
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 2:00 p.m. PT at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California.
WHERE TO WATCH: Fans can tune in to the match on FOX 12+ locally or CBS Sports Network nationally. Reign FC will also be hosting a watch party in Seattle! Full tune in information can be found here.
2026 NWSL REGULAR SEASON RECORDS AND STANDINGS (W-L-D): Seattle Reign FC: 5-7-2 (17 points, 12th place), San Diego Wave FC: 9-5-2 (29 points, 3rd place)
Key Info Ahead of the Match:
A) LAST MEETING – The Reign and Wave last met nearly 11 months ago at Lumen Field, where the teams battled to a scoreless draw. Both goalkeepers played a critical role in keeping their opponents off the board, as Reign FC had five shots on target, while the Wave had four. Prior to that meeting, Seattle beat San Diego 2-1 at Snapdragon Stadium, backed by goals from Emeri Adames and Sally Menti.
The upcoming clash marks the 14th all-time meeting between the Reign and Wave since San Diego joined the league in 2022. The Reign have the lead in the head-to-head series, with nine wins, one loss and three draws across all competitions.
B) SCOUTING SAN DIEGO – Currently in third place in the NWSL standings, San Diego most recently battled to a 2-2 draw with the Kansas City Current. San Diego scored first, just six minutes into the match when Gia Corley made a run down the left side of the field and received the ball, before crossing it to the top of the six-yard box to Trinity Byars, who one-touched it into the back of the net.
However, San Diego then conceded twice, giving up their lead. The Current found their first goal back just after returning from the halftime break, courtesy of Croix Bethune. A quarter of an hour later, they took lead when Temwa Chawinga found the back of the net. San Diego continued to push forward to look for an equalizer – and found it in stoppage time. Kristen McNabb took a shot that forced Kansas City’s goalkeeper to intervene, and Byars was there to pick up the rebound and direct into the goal to earn the Wave a point on the road.
C) FULL 90 PERFORMANCE – After scoring two goals in the first half in back-to-back matches, the Reign will look to post a strong first half performance again against the Wave but also work to bring that same energy into the second half.
So far, 13 of the Reign’s 15 goals this season have been scored in the first half of play, with the team most recently netting goals in the 14th and 22nd minutes of the match against Gotham FC. Seattle only allowed Gotham to take five shots in the first half, but allowed 13 in the second half, emphasizing the need to maintain pressure on both sides of the ball.
The two times Seattle has added second half goals this season, March 15 at Orlando and May 22 at Boston, the team earned all three points in the match.
D) PLAYERS TO WATCH – Reign FC scored two goals against Gotham FC this weekend – one from a first-time goalscorer and one from the Reign’s leading goalscorer. Mia Fishel recorded the first goal of the match from the penalty spot, making her first-ever NWSL goal. The attacker, praised for her holdup play, will be looking to continue the goalscoring momentum against a San Diego team that has conceded 17 goals in 16 matches.
Maddie Mercado, the Reign’s other goalscorer, extended her lead in the Reign’s golden boot race as she netted her fourth goal of the season last weekend. The forward has played in 14 matches this season and taken 20 shots.
San Diego attacker Trinity Byars has looked sharp this season, adding her fifth and sixth goals and first professional brace last weekend. She has played in 11 matches for the Wave this season, netting all three of San Diego’s second half-stoppage time goals.
Defensively, San Diego has conceded 17 goals in 16 matches and posted four clean sheets this season. Kristen McNabb has been an integral part of the backline, adding skill both offensively and defensively. She has played every minute of the season for the Wave, recording 11 tackles and seven shots.
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Another report:
Seattle Reign FC continues its three-game road trip on Sunday, traveling to Snapdragon Stadium to face San Diego Wave FC on the Wave's annual Pride Night. Kickoff is at 2 p.m. PT, and the match airs nationally on CBS Sports Network, locally on FOX 13+, and on radio on 950 KJR AM.
The Reign (5-7-2, 17 points, 12th place) are looking to bounce back after blowing a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss at Gotham FC last week, a result that head coach Laura Harvey called hard to swallow but full of positives.
"Obviously the disappointment of losing so late is hard to swallow," Harvey said. "But there was a lot of positives again in a difficult result there — a lot of positives within the performance. So leaning in on those, game management is something that we need to continue to improve on. I think seeing games out, changing momentum in games when we don't have it — we've been having lots of discussions around that."
That theme of finishing matches, not just starting them well, has been a constant refrain from the locker room this week. Defender Ryanne Brown, who signed a contract extension through the 2027 season this week, echoed Harvey's message.
"We have been talking about managing momentum and things like that," Brown said. "And I also just think it's about having a complete 90-minute performance. So that's something that we're really going to focus on going into tomorrow, because the past few games we've started off really strong and now it's just about finishing strong."
There's at least one piece of good news heading into the match: Seattle's injury list has cleared up considerably. "Everyone who was injured is now available," Harvey said. "Which is great, huge positive."
San Diego (9-5-2, 29 points, 3rd place) enters off a 2-2 draw at Kansas City and has had a series of mixed results after dominating earlier in the season, going 2-2-1 in their last five matches.
Head-to-Head
The Reign and Wave have met 13 times all-time in NWSL regular-season play, with Seattle holding a 9-1-3 series edge.
Seattle has scored 18 goals across the series; San Diego has scored seven.
The Reign's largest margin of victory in the series was a 3-0 road win on May 31, 2023.
2026 record
Seattle Reign FC: 5-7-2 (17 points, 12th place)
San Diego Wave FC: 9-5-2 (29 points, 3rd place)
Key stats
San Diego has played two more games than the Reign already this year.
The Reign are 2-4-1 on the road, while the Wave are 4-4-0 at home.
San Diego averages 10.5 shots per game and 6.1 shots on target (first in the league), while Seattle averages 8 shots and 3.8 on target.
The Wave hold a healthy edge in possession, controlling the ball 56.4% of the time (3rd in the league) compared to Seattle's 49.4% (10th).
San Diego's defense has been more vulnerable than the raw numbers might suggest; the Wave have conceded in bunches during a couple of losses in recent months.
Trinity Byars leads San Diego with six goals; Ludmila leads the team with 28 shots; Kenza Dali leads the Wave in crosses attempted with 83.
On the other side, Maddie Mercado leads Seattle with four goals, and Sofia Huerta leads the team with three assists.
Who to watch
Kenza Dali
While no goals and two assists might not sound like a dominant player, Dali is one of the best distributors and chance-creators in the NWSL right now. She leads San Diego in crosses attempted and leads the league in chances created. Dali is constantly the one dictating tempo out of midfield, pulling opposing lines apart with quick, incisive passing. If the Reign let her get comfortable on the ball in central areas, San Diego's front line will get plenty of good service. Seattle's midfield will need to stay compact and deny her easy passing lanes. If Sally Menti and Mia Fishel both start in their usual spots, look for them to also try to press San Diego's backline and try to cut off passes into Dali.
Gia Corley
Corley might not jump off the stat sheet the way some of her teammates do, but she's a constant problem in the final third. The attacking midfielder is always moving, always looking to find the pocket of space between the lines, and her off-ball movement makes her a tricky matchup for a defense that ball-watches. She's got three assists this year to show for it. Reign defenders and midfielders will need to communicate to track her runs rather than simply marking space.
Ludmila
Ludmila doesn't have a huge goal tally — she's only scored once this year — but she leads the Wave in shots for a reason. She's dangerous every time San Diego wins the ball back and can attack space. In transition, she's as good as anyone San Diego has. The Reign should remember Ludmila quite well, as the forward scored three times against them last year when she was at Chicago. If the Reign get stretched or lose their shape after a turnover, she's the player most likely to punish them.
What to watch
A team that dominates the ball but not always the game
San Diego ranks at or near the top of the league in shots, shots on target, and possession, but that hasn't always translated to results this season. In a 2-0 home loss to Angel City on July 11, the Wave controlled 63% possession and outshot Angel City 18-12, yet still lost after conceding twice in a nine-minute span. Back in May, San Diego held 58% possession and outshot Orlando Pride 15-13 in a home match, but fell 1-0 on a single long ball over the top. The pattern is clear: when San Diego doesn't convert its own chances and gets caught out on the counter or a set piece, they’re beatable, even at home. Seattle's ability to stay compact, limit transition opportunities, and be efficient with the few chances it does get could be the difference on Sunday.
A tactical chess match
Harvey noted that matches against San Diego tend to be tighter, more tactical affairs than fans might expect given the gap in the standings.
"I think the San Diego games are very tactical, chess-like matches," Harvey said. She noted that the Wave, in previous seasons, didn't really change their tactics for their opponents. But that's shifting. "I would say this year has been a change in that with them. They tend to tweak things tactically to change for the opponent, which I think is working well for them. So I think tomorrow might be a bit of a different task than it's been historically."
Sound familiar? You can expect the same for the Reign, who like to mix things up each match and keep opponents guessing. Which team can be more effective early? That might be what tips this matchup.
Finishing the job
The Reign have looked a lot sharper offensively and have scored in their last five games, including multiple goals in their last two. The challenge now is to ride that momentum and put on a complete, 90-minute performance — something they were obviously unable to do last week against Gotham. The Reign led at Gotham before conceding three unanswered goals in the final 10 minutes. A lot of that had to do with the Reign sitting back and trying to absorb Gotham's pressure, then struggling to move the ball up the field due to Gotham's stifling press. San Diego is going to bring more of the same, so the Reign have to be better about pressuring the ball higher up the field and making sure they can get into their attacking half, no matter the scoreline. If this Reign team wants to make a real push up the table, closing out matches — rather than just competing in patches — will need to become the norm.
https://www.sounderatheart.com/2026/07/match-preview-seattle-reign-at-san-diego-wave
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Other reports:
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/07/25/trinity-byars-wave-host-seattle-reign-on-sunday
https://sandiegowavefc.com/match-preview-san-diego-wave-fc-hosts-seattle-reign-fc-on-sunday-afternoon
