Fans wave to the players after Team USA’s 4-0 win over Mexico Monday at Rentschler Field in 2021.
For the first time since 2021, the U.S. women’s soccer team is coming back to Rentschler Field on Sunday, Oct. 26, when the Americans will host Portugal at 4 p.m.
Connecticut native Alyssa Naeher, one of the greatest goalkeepers in U.S. and world history, who played a major role in the USA’s gold medal run at the 2024 Olympics, will be honored before the match.
Naeher, who announced her retirement from international soccer after the 2024 Olympics and played her final match in a U.S. uniform on Dec. 3, 2024, in a 2-1 win over Netherlands, is the only goalkeeper in soccer history to earn a shutout in a World Cup final and an Olympic gold medal match.
It will be a doubleheader at Rentschler Field. Before the women’s game against Portugal, the American men’s deaf national soccer team will face an international opponent to be determined beginning at 1 p.m.
In honor of Naeher, limited-edition collectible bobbleheads will be given to the first 2,000 fans through the gates.
“Portugal is a growing team that will be highly motivated for these matches, but as always, these three games are more opportunities to work on us,” said U.S. women’s head coach Emma Hayes. “I’m very impressed with the progress we’ve made since the Olympics and I want to give a lot of credit to the players for embracing our culture and ideas, but our staff and the players know we still have much work to do before World Cup qualifying next year.”
The meetings with Portugal will be the first since the final match of group play at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, a 0-0 draw that was good enough to send the USA to the knockout round. It was Portugal’s first-ever draw with the USA.
The USA women will be playing for the 10th time at Rentschler Field and have never lost on this field.
It will be the first appearance by the American women’s national team at Rentschler since July 2021 when a record 27,758 fans saw the U.S. dominate Mexico, 4-0, in a tuneup prior to the Olympic Games in Toyko. It was the largest crowd to see a women’s national team game in Connecticut.
The women’s match against Portugal will be broadcast nationally on TNT, truTV and HBO Max in English, Universo and Peacock in Spanish and on the radio on Westwood One sports.
Tickets are now on sale for the game in East Hartford.
