Match Recap: Kansas City Current Draws 1-1 Against Seattle Reign FC

KANSAS CITY (Aug. 22, 2026) — The Kansas City Current (9-8-4, 31 pts., 7th place) played to a 1-1 draw against Seattle Reign FC (8-8-4, 28 pts., 8th place) Saturday evening at CPKC Stadium. The visitors went ahead in the first half, but midfielder Debinha equalized from the penalty spot in the 51st minute. Kansas City generated a season-high 24 total shots but could not find the go-ahead goal as the contest ended level. 

Several Current players celebrated individual milestones during Saturday’s contest. Midfielder Lo’eau LaBonta became the 10th player in NWSL history to reach 200 career regular season appearances, while defender Izzy Rodriguez set a new club record with her 47th consecutive regular season start. Defender Kayla Sharples made her 100th career regular season appearance while fellow defender Elizabeth Ball made her 100th regular season start. 

The result also extended the Current’s unbeaten streak at CPKC Stadium, which began in 2024, to 27 straight home matches. Additionally, Lorena returned to action for the first time since May 30 while forward Michelle Cooper made her first NWSL start since July 3.

"It's not all the points that we wanted on the night, and we had to come from behind, but I give the team a lot of credit for the way they stepped on the pitch," said head coach Chris Armas. "We got a lot of energy from the crowd tonight...Now we stick with our process and stick with what we do around here. We're getting stronger, not weaker. We're going to be ready for this final nine-game push, with two of the next three at home, with a lot to play for here."

Seattle went ahead in the early stages of the first half with a goal in the 11th minute. Chances came in bunches for Kansas City as the first half progressed, and Kansas City nearly found an equalizer on multiple occasions during the opening stanza. Following a corner kick in the 35th minute, a loose ball fell to midfielder Croix Bethune as Seattle attempted to clear its lines. Bethune picked the ball out of midair and fired a volley that had Reign goalkeeper Claudia Dickey beat, but the effort rattled the crossbar. Bethune sent a follow-up effort just wide of goal seconds later. 

In the 39th minute, Debinha sent a well-hit free kick from distance just high of the woodwork before Cooper rolled an effort wide from inside the penalty area five minutes later. The Current then hit the crossbar for a second time in the first half when LaBonta fizzed a strike that bounced down, hit Dickey’s back and rolled towards goal before the keeper collected the loose ball to deny the effort, marking the final action of the first half as the Reign took a 1-0 lead into halftime. 

Kansas City started the second half much like it closed the first – with several chances inside the first few minutes – before finally breaking through in the 51st minute. Seattle committed a hand ball in the penalty area on a deflected shot from a Current corner kick and, after video review, the referee awarded Kansas City a penalty kick.  

Debinha stepped up to take the spot kick and made no mistake with her opportunity, calmly rolling her shot into the lower right corner of the goal to level the score. The goal marked Debinha’s fifth of the 2026 campaign as well as her NWSL-record 84th career goal across all NWSL competitions. It was also the 60th of her NWSL regular career, moving the Brazilian into a tie for fourth place in league history. 

Action flowed from end to end as the second half went on with threatening scoring opportunities from both sides. Debinha nearly had a second goal in the 64th minute, but her chip over a sprawling Dickey rolled inches wide. Goalkeeper Lorena then quelled a breakaway opportunity with a smothering save on Seattle forward Maddie Dahlien in the 70th minute. The home team nearly snatched a victory with a late opportunity in second-half stoppage time, but the match ended in a 1-1 draw. 

Kansas City remains at home next weekend as it rounds out the regular season series with the North Carolina Courage on Saturday, Aug. 29, at 5:30 p.m. CT. The match will broadcast nationally on ION with a local simulcast available on The Spot – Kansas City 38. A local pregame show, KC Current Matchday, will begin at 5 p.m. CT. The match will also broadcast over the air on 90.9 The Bridge and on the KC Current App in English, Spanish and Portuguese. 

The match also serves as Brain Health Awareness Night, presented by The University of Kansas Health System. Fans in attendance for the match will be able to learn more about brain health through pre-match activations on the CPKC Plaza and can learn more about ways to keep their brains healthy with tips from The University of Kansas Health System. Tickets to the match can be purchased HERE.

NWSL Match Report 
Match: Kansas City Current vs. Seattle Reign FC 
Date: Aug. 22, 2026 
Venue: CPKC Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.

Kickoff: 5:32 p.m. CT/3:32 p.m. PT
Weather: 85 degrees, sunny
Attendance: 11,500

Discipline 
38’ Seattle – James-Turner (Yellow)

56’ Seattle – Menti (Yellow)

59’ Seattle – Huerta (Yellow)

69’ Kansas City – Bethune (Yellow)

70’ Seattle – Dahlien (Yellow)

73’ Seattle – Seattle Bench (Yellow)

Scoring 
11’ Seattle – Own Goal

51’ Kansas City – Debinha (PK)

Scoring Summary
                        1          2         F

Kansas City    0          1           1

Seattle            1           0          1

Kansas City Current Lineup: Lorena, I. Rodriguez, Sharples, Robinson, Ball, DiBernardo (60’ R. Rodríguez), LaBonta ©, Bethune, Hopkins, Cooper (60’ White), Debinha (84’ Paul)

Unused Substitutes: Jordan, Feist, Scott, Gemelli, Hocking

Seattle Reign FC Lineup: Dickey, Mercado, Dahlien (90+9’ Mason), James-Turner (73’ Ratcliffe), Huerta ©, McCammon, Menti (90+9’ Hladek), Fishel (65’ Mondesir), McClernon, Bugg, Curry (73’ Brown)
Unused Substitutes: Miller, Adames, Ward, Mason, Holmes, Hladek

Pool Reporter Question

Q: In the 45th minute, when Kansas City #17 (Cooper) was winding up to shoot, a Seattle defender made contact, taking her plant leg out from under her while she was shooting. Why was this contact not considered a foul, thus resulting in a penalty kick for the Current?

A: The contact did not rise to the level of a penalty/foul.