The Washington Spirit have announced a second preseason game for the 2018 season, confirming today that they will face the North Carolina Courage at Richmond’s City Stadium on March 17 at 7:00pm. The game will be the first ever appearance by an NWSL side in the city of Richmond. Recently, the Spirit also announced that they would be playing the University of North Carolina at the Evergreen Sports Complex in Leesburg on March 10 at 7:15pm.
That second game is a rematch from last year, when the Spirit beat UNC 5-0 at Evergreen. A sellout crowd of 2,000 people attended that game, and if you’re wondering why the Spirit are playing home games away from their normal venue at the Maryland Soccerplex, a crowd like that is probably a big factor. The game will also take place during the same weekend as the Girls Weekend portion of the Jefferson Cup, a top youth tournament drawing in over 350 teams.
City Stadium is currently home to the Richmond Kickers of the USL, features a natural grass field, and a capacity of 9,000 for soccer. Tickets will go on sale this Friday, December 8, though Kickers season ticket holders will have access to an exclusive pre-sale window before that. Spirit season ticket holders will have a ticket for this game included in their plans.