Published
4 years agoon
The Orlando Pride signed Brazilian superstar Marta back on April 7, 2017 and helped the team make its first (and, so far, only) playoff appearance at the end of that season. Since her arrival in the City Beautiful, she’s been one of the best players in the league and has been a bright spot even when the Pride struggled.
The clubre-signed Marta on Feb. 17 ahead of the 2021 season. The Brazilian inked a one-year deal with an option year for 2022. How did Marta perform in her fifth season with the Pride? Let’s take a look back at her 2021 campaign.
Marta appeared in all four of the Pride’s matches in the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup, starting all four and subbing off twice. She played a total of 351 minutes — all but nine minutes of the competition. She did not score a goal or assist on one, attempting just three shots, with neither on target. Marta created seven chances in the four games, with one successful cross and a passing success rate of 83.3%, including an impressive 91.9% accuracy in her own half. Marta sent only 27.3% of her passes forward, however, with most of her attempts going left (32.7%). She completed 13 of 19 long passes (68.4%). Defensively, she recorded four clearances and seven interceptions, winning half (6/12) of her tackle attempts and 32 of 65 (49.2%) duels, but won none of her seven aerial duels. Marta won three fouls but conceded four and received one yellow card in the competition.
In the regular season, Marta appeared in 19 of Orlando’s 24 matches, logging 1,587 minutes on the pitch, with 17 starts and subbing off five times. She missed four matches while away for the Olympics from July 9-31.
She finished the year with four goals and three assists, which ranked her third and tied for first in those categories, respectively. One of her four goals was a penalty on Oct. 9 against Gotham FC. To compare her season with the Pride’s last full season in 2019, Marta scored two fewer goals this year in more than 300 more minutes than she did two seasons ago (last year was basically wiped out by the pandemic as the Pride only played in four Fall Series games).
But one of those 2021 goals was this sensational strike:
MARTA FROM DOWNTOWN ☄️😱
(via@NWSL)pic.twitter.com/WoqXInMmrX
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer)June 23, 2021
Not as involved in the attack directly as often this year as in seasons past, Marta attempted 33 shots, putting 14 on target, with nine getting blocked. She created 31 scoring chances on the season and made seven successful crosses, passing again at a rate of 83.3% but adding in an impressive 80.2% success rate on long passes (85/106). She was solid in her own half, with a passing rate of 89.6%, while distributing at a 68.2% rate in the attacking half. Most of her passes again went left (37%) with just 24.9% of them going forward.
Marta contributed six clearances, a block, and 19 interceptions in 2021, winning 62% of her tackles (31/50), 51.8% of her duels (132/255), and just 22.7% (5/22) of her aerial duels. She won 18 fouls but conceded 24 to the opposition, earning two yellow cards on the year.
Even though it was a 3-2 home loss, I’m going with her performance onOct. 9 at Exploria Stadium against Gotham FC. It was one of Marta’s most active games of the year. The Pride fell behind 3-0 before attempting a late rally that fell just short.
Marta scored a penalty in the 89th minute to pull the Pride back within a goal, giving Orlando a chance late. She calmly sent Kailen Sheridan the wrong way and then fired an unstoppable shot into the inside netting to get her team back into the match.
… game on in Orlando? 👀#ORLvNJNY |https://t.co/iecT7II54a |#NWSL21pic.twitter.com/JWTPFfrrwa
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL)October 10, 2021
The Pride’s Toni Pressley ended up firing a shot that deflected off the post in the game’s final moments, as Orlando came within inches of completing a massive comeback. Despite dropping all three points at home, Marta registered her season high in shot attempts (6) and shots on goal (4), attempted her fifth-most passes on the season (46), and was accurate on 84.78% of her attempts. Her four chances created equaled teammate Sydney Leroux and Gotham’s Carli Lloyd for the most in the match and her 79 touches were second only to Courtney Petersen’s 88. Marta also won four tackles to lead the Pride in that category. She committed one foul and drew one. It was a terrific performance albeit not enough to lead the Pride to a win.
The Mane Land staff gave Marta a composite rating of 6 for the 2021 season. The staff felt that the vintage Marta we’re used to seeing on the pitch was not always the one out there. She had some struggles, particularly early in the season, that had us speculating onThe Mane Land PawedCastif she might be trying to play through a knock. The Brazilian managed to get better through the middle part of the season and showed flashes of the old Marta from time to time, but it was never consistent from game to game or usually even within a single match. Whether age is catching up to her or something else was the cause, Marta provided some classic Marta moments but not as many as we’re used to seeing.
The Pride have an option year on Marta’s contract so she could be back with the team in 2022. However, the Brazilian will turn 36 in February. It’s fair to wonder at this point how much longer she can continue to be a key contributor in a league where speed seems to matter more and more each season. Marta still has plenty of skill on the ball, but her pace can’t get her out of some of the tight spaces like it used to and opponents don’t seem to have the same fear of her beating them that they once did. Still, a legendary player like Marta has earned the right to go out on her own terms, so if she wants to play for Orlando next season, I would suspect the Pride will pick up her option year.
Julie Doyle started the year with an injury, but came back strong to start both playoff games.
Published
21 hours agoon
November 24, 2025
TheOrlando Pride drafted Julie Doyle with the 11th overall pick of the 2022 NWSL Draft out of Santa Clara University. The midfielder signed anew three-year deal on Oct. 1, 2024, keeping her in purple through the 2026 season. After being a key starter in 2024, injuries saw Doyle’s on-field time limited in 2025.
Doyle’s season got off to a tough start. She came on as a halftime substitute in theregular season opener but suffered a non-contact knee injury 10 minutes later. The injury kept her out of the next eight games, and she returned on May 23. Her starts were few and far between during the remainder of the season, but an unexpected injury to Ally Watt during warmups for the final regular-season home game saw Doyle start that game and the two playoff matches.
Let’s take a deeper look at Doyle’s fourth season with the Pride.
Doyle came on at halftime of the2025 NWSL Challenge Cup against the Washington Spirit, replacing center back Rafaelle. Despite the attacking change, Doyle wasn’t able to help much in the attack. She completed 13 of 14 passes (92.9%) without any key passes, crosses, or long balls. Additionally, she won her lone tackle and two aerial duels.
In regular-season action, Doyle made 11 appearances with five starts, recording 407 minutes. She put her two of her four shots on target, scoring one goal. She also took a penalty that was saved by Racing Louisville’s Jordyn Bloomer on Aug. 9. The attacker completed 81 of her 117 passes (69.2%), including a key pass, and recorded one assist in the regular season. Defensively, she recorded 11 tackles, an interception, and a block. She committed 10 fouls, drew nine on her opponents, and was not booked.
Watt’s late-season injury had Doyle start both playoff games. She started up top in the first game against Seattle Reign FC and in the midfield against NJ/NY Gotham FC. She logged 119 minutes in the two starts, failing to score but recording an assist. She took two shots but didn’t put either of them on target and completed 25 of her 31 passes (80.6%), including two key passes and her only attempted long ball. Defensively, she added two clearances, one in each game. She committed two fouls, drew one, and was not booked.
Doyle started all four games in the Concacaf W Champions Cup and played all 360 minutes. She played three games in the attack and one at left back, scoring one goal without recording an assist. Three of her six shots were on target and she completed 60 of her 87 passes (69%), including three key passes. On the defensive end, she won seven tackles. She committed seven fouls in the tournament, drew four on her opponents, and her booking in the competition was her only yellow card of the season.
While there isn’t a specific game where Doyle stood out, I think her best game was in the5-0 Concacaf W Champions Cup win over Chorrillo FC on Sept. 16. The attacker played all 90 minutes, touching the ball 46 times while completing 20 of her 26 passes (76.9%). She added a key pass and two tackles while fouling five times.
Her most impactful moment of the game came in the fourth minute when she jumped over Yasselis Magallon to get her head to Prisca Chilufya’s cross, scoring the game’s opening goal.
Julie Doyle scores the opener for Orlando Pride! ⚽pic.twitter.com/kFK5Y30Upi
— Concacaf W (@ConcacafW)September 17, 2025
The conversion set the tone for the game as the Pride dominated their Panamanian opponent. At the time, it put the Pride atop Group A, though a 2-0 loss to Club America in Mexico and a 1-1 draw with CF Pachuca saw the team fail to advance to the semifinals in March.
The Mane Land gave Doyle a composite grade of 5.5 out of 10 for the 2025 season. She might’ve had a higher grade if her early-season injury hadn’t sidlined her. But the grade is the same she’s had in each of her four seasons since joining the Pride in 2022.
Doyle is under contract for next season, so she’ll be back in purple unless she gets traded. The addition of Jacquie Ovalle and Seb Hines’ insistence on starting Ally Lemos means Doyle’s time might be limited again next season. However, she’s played left back, left midield, and forward this season, versatility that could allow her to plug into the lineup when a regular starter needs a break.
It will be a big season for Doyle as she enters a contract year. At 27 years old, she’s in the prime of her career and can definitely help the Pride. But she’ll need a strong showing and to prove she can remain healthy in order to earn a new contract beyond the upcoming season.
An injury-plagued season held the midfielder back from contributing as much as she did during the previous year.
Published
2 days agoon
November 23, 2025
The Orlando Pride drafted Summer Yates in the fourth round (No. 39 overall) in the 2023 NWSL Draft — the same draft that also netted the Pride Emily Sams. Yates’ rookie contract was a two-year deal, running through 2024 with an option for 2025. Her strong play during the first half of the 2024 season resulted in a contract extension on July 11, keeping her in Orlando through 2025 with a mutual option for 2026, whichwas picked up in October.
Let’s take a look back at the midfielder’s third season with the Pride.
After a 2024 season when she started more than half of the Pride’s games and was among the leaders in goal contributions, Yates struggled with injuries throughout the 2025 season and never really got going, playing only slightly more than half of the amount of minutes that she had played in 2024.
Yates came off the bench to play the final eight minutes in the NWSL Challenge Cup match against Washington in relief of Ally Watt. She did not have a goal contribution or attempt a shot, connecting on just three of her seven passes (42.9%), missing on her lone long ball attempt, and not recording a key pass. On the defensive side, she recorded one tackle. Yates drew two fouls on the opposition without committing one, and she was not booked. Unfortunately, Yates missed wide on her spot kick in the penalty shootout following the 1-1 draw, giving Washington the advantage and the Spirit went on to win the trophy on penalties.
In NWSL regular-season play, Yates appeared in 16 of Orlando’s 26 matches, starting five and playing a total of 552 minutes. Unlike in 2024, when she scored five goals, she went goalless, in league play this season, and her only goal contribution in NWSL play was an assist in the Pride’s game at Seattle, though it was a costly one, because she was injured on the play and had to be substituted off afterwards. She attempted nine shots and put five on target. Yates completed 75% of her passes with eight key passes and one successful cross. On the defensive side, she compiled 11 tackles, one interception, and five clearances. She committed six fouls and suffered 23, leading the league with an average of 3.75 fouls drawn per 90 minutes, and received two yellow cards.
The midfielder was at her best during the Concacaf W Champions Cup, starting all four games and playing 281 minutes. She led the team with four goal contributions, scoring three goals and adding one assist. She took eight shots, putting five on frame, and completed 74% of her passes. She contributed two tackles on defense, and committed four fouls while suffering five and did not sustain any bookings.
Yates was injured and did not dress for the Pride’s first playoff game and was an unused substitute during the second, so she did not play any minutes during the NWSL playoffs.
Where is myEasy Button? Ah yes, that was easy. Yates recorded the second hat trick in club history when the Pride faced Chorrillo during the Concacaf W Champions Cup, scoring the Pride’s middle three goals in a5-0 win. All three of Yates’ goals came from nearly the same place. After a corner kick, she corralled a loose ball near the penalty spot and put a left-footed shot into the back of the net.
Summer Yates makes it 2️⃣ for Orlando!pic.twitter.com/FPHR4yNUoA
— Concacaf W (@ConcacafW)September 17, 2025
She followed that by timing her run perfectly to meet Elyse Bennett’s cross at the penalty spot and put a right-footed shot into the far corner. She then finished off the hat trick by converting a penalty kick to etch her name in the record book right alongside Barbra Banda’s for the most goals in a single game by a Pride player.
Summer Yates’ hat-trick earned her the title of Superior Player of The Match presented by Michelob Ultra ! ⭐pic.twitter.com/jJ1kyAU78v
— Concacaf W (@ConcacafW)September 17, 2025
The Concacaf W Champions Cup statistics are sparse, but Yates also completed 77% of her passes, including a pass to Julie Doyle that led to what I thought was a foul in the box by a Chorrillo defender, but the referee did not call it. Overall it was an outstanding performance by Yates, one of the best by any Pride player in any game this season, and as noted in the video clip above she was awarded the Superior Player of the Match by Concacaf in what I think was by far her best game of 2025.
The Mane Land staff gave Yates a composite grade of 5.5 out of 10 for the 2025 season, a big drop from her6.5 in 2024 and the same grade that she received for herrookie season in 2023. Injuries clearly played a big role in limiting her minutes, and when she was able to play she did not create shots (2.9 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes in 2025 vs. 4.0 in 2024) or contribute to goals (0.16 goal contributions per 90 mins in 2025, vs. 0.45 in 2024) at the same rates during NWSL games as she did last season.
Since the club and Yates have already agreed to trigger her mutual contract option, it seems likely that the Pasco, WA native will be back with the club in 2026. Yates was excellent in 2024, playing so well that I thoughtshe would take over for Adrianaafter her departure during the off-season, and I think that if she can get fully healthy going into 2026, she can return to her 2024 levels of production.
Banda’s return date is still to be determined and Ally Watt is now exclusively a member of Denver Summit FC, so at the moment there are minutes available to be filled in the Pride’s attacking positions, at least in the beginning of the season. I am still a big believer in Yates’ abilities, and I think that had she been healthy she would have started instead of Julie Doyle in the playoff games. Banda’s absence was hard to overcome for the Pride’s offense, but Yates was the team’s fourth-leading scorer in 2024 and her going from 1,407 NWSL minutes in 2024 to 552 minutes in 2025 cannot be discounted as another reason for the Pride’s offensive struggles.
Yates should return back to being a player who starts some games (likely instead of Ally Lemos, but also to give Marta or Jacquie Ovalle a rest) but plays in nearly every game, and she is an offensive threat that the Pride can hopefully once again count on to deliver goal contributions.
The midfielder played sparingly in NWSL play but was a key contributor in continental competition.
Published
3 days agoon
November 22, 2025
The Orlando Pride selected UCLA midfielder Viviana Villacorta with the ninth overall pick of the 2021 NWSL Draft. Villacorta didn’t join the Pride right away, opting to remain in school for her senior season. Unfrotunately, she tore her ACL during that season, which kept her out of action for the 2021 NWSL campaign. She suffered an ankle injury in the 2022 season that required surgery, and another ACL tear late in the 2023 season served as yet another setback for the Torranc, CA native.
Villacorta returned to the pitch late in the 2024 season, making a couple of brief league appearances and a playoff appearance, helping the Pride down the stretch en route to winning the double a year ago. The defensive midfielder was used sparingly in 2025, adding depth during the regular season and starting during Concacaf W Champions Cup play.
Let’s take a look back at Villacorta’s 2025 season.
Villacorta didn’t play in the NWSL Challenge Cup against Washington or in the NWSL playoffs. She made just six regular-season appearances (all off the bench) with the longest lasting only 25 minutes. She totaled just 83 minutes in league play in 2025 without recording a goal contribution. Villacorta did not attempt a shot in NWSL action. She completed 76% of her 33 passes and three of her four long balls (75%) without recording a single key pass or attempting a cross. Defensively, Villacorta contributed five tackles, one interception, and three clearances. She committed one foul, drew two on the opposition, and was booked once, earning a yellow card in the second match against the Utah Royals.
In Concacaf W Champions Cup play, Villacorta started all four matches and played 315 minutes, going the full 90 in the first three games. She did not score a goal, but she contributed an assist inOrlando’s 3-0 win over LD Alajuelense on Sept. 2. The midfielder attempted two shots, putting one on target and passed at an 85.3% success rate on 204 attempts without a key pass. She compiled eight tackles on the defensive end, committed four fouls, drew six fouls on her opponents, and was not booked in the competition.
Villacorta was much more involved in her extended Concacaf W Champions Cup matches than the snippets of time she got coming off the bench in NWSL play. Her best match was her 90-minute performance against Alajuelense. Not only did she record her loan goal contribution, but she was also involved in the buildup for the Pride’s first goal. Villacorta fired a shot from just outside the box that was on target — her only shot on target all season — but it hit teammate Simone Jackson in front. The ball deflected left to Carson Pickett, who centered the ball off an opponent and fell to Doyle, who redirected it into the net for a 1-0 lead. It was Orlando’s first goal in Concacaf W Champions Cup play.
Julie Doyle scores the Pride's first@ConcacafW goal! 💫pic.twitter.com/BdkrD9Hx9s
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL)September 3, 2025
Her assist came on Orlando’s second goal, as Villacorta played a simple layoff to Pickett near the left corner of the box. The veteran smashed a rocket into the net to give Villacorta an assist and stake the Pride to a 2-0 lead on the way to a comfortable win.
THIS ROCKET FROM CARSON PICKETT 😮💨pic.twitter.com/B60odCo739
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL)September 3, 2025
In addition to her shot on target and assist over her 90 minutes, Villacorta completed 81.2% of her 69 passes, contributed a season-high six tackles on the defensive end, committed two fouls, and drew two free kicks from the competition. It was a solid outing for the midfielder.
The Mane Land staff gave Villacorta a 5.5 for the 2022 and 2023 seasons, but she didn’t play enough minutes to get a grade in 2024. This year, she played a combined 398 minutes, fallingjustshort of qualifying for a player grade under our rating system, which uses a percentage of all available minutes for qualification. As a result of coming up just short, Villacorta didn’t play enough minutes for us to fairly determine a season-long grade. She receives an incomplete for the second consecutive year.
The Pride and Villacortamutually agreed to trigger the midfielder’s 2026 option back on June 30, so she is under contract through next season. Assuming she isn’t loaned out, bought out, or transferred, she will likely remain as a depth piece in the midfield for another year. At 26, she’s in the prime of her career. If she can stay healthy and raise her level just a bit, may be able to work her way into more regular minutes, helping see matches out late. If nothing else, she provides some coverage in case the team sustains some injuries in central midfield, but her role is unlikely to change much given the current roster situation.
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