Gotham FC postpone home opener due to COVID protocols

Gotham FC postponed their home opener against North Carolina Courage at Red Bull Arena, originally scheduled for Saturday, May 14 at 7 pm ET, because of COVID protocols. The decision was made by the NWSL less than two hours before kickoff.

Here is the full statement issued by the club:

It was just the latest – and most definitive – piece of disappointing news for Gotham fans looking forward to the home opener.

First, there was a service change announced for the PATH train that would have made traveling between New York and Harrison take significantly longer than usual. Then there was the rainy forecast, which wasn't all that bad in the end but it isn’t what you want for a tifo-filled home opener.

Finally, there was the long, long list of star players who were ruled unavailable to play because of COVID protocols: Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris, defender Caprice Dydasco, defender Ali Krieger, and scoring machine Midge Purce were all left off the team card.

It turns out that the Courage lineup was even more depleted by COVID: Tessa Boade, Katie Bowen, Abby Erceg, Carson Pickett, Briana Pinto, Katelyn Rowland, and Havana Solan were all unavailable because of COVID protocols.

The sheer number of players in both squads who were unavailable because of COVID raised the possibility that the virus was being actively transmitted in the locker rooms, and NWSL made the prudent decision to postpone the game to stop any further spread.

The date and time of the rescheduled game will be announced later.

Gotham are next scheduled to host Racing Louisville FC at Red Bull Arena this Sunday, May 22, at 5 pm ET. The game will be broadcast live on Paramount+.