Defending champions Gotham FC will host their NWSL semifinal against the Kansas City Current at Icahn Stadium in New York City on Sunday, moving the match away from Sports Illustrated Stadium because of poor field conditions.
Icahn Stadium is a 5,000-seat venue on Randall's Island with a grass field surrounded by a track. It regularly hosts amateur events and some games for NYCFC's second team. Gotham also played there in July when Sports Illustrated Stadium, located in Harrison, New Jersey, was unavailable because of the 2026 Men's World Cup.
"This was an extremely difficult decision, and one we did not take lightly," Gotham FC president of soccer operations Yael Averbuch West said in a statement. "After thoughtful consultation with coach Juan Carlos Amorós, our team captains, and our ownership, we felt it was important to prioritize a playing surface that appropriately allows our athletes to perform at their best. Providing our players with a high-quality surface to compete is a responsibility we take very seriously."
Sources told ESPN that executives from Gotham FC, the NWSL and MLS' New York Red Bulls, the primary tenants at SI Stadium, held talks throughout Sunday night and Monday to find a way to resod the field, but ultimately could not agree on a feasible remedy. Players and coaches from Gotham and Seattle Reign FC described the surface as "atrocious" and well below standard after Gotham won Sunday's quarterfinal there 1-0 without registering a shot on goal.
How the schedule unraveled
According to league documents obtained by ESPN last week, Gotham was supposed to host a semifinal at SI Stadium if they advanced and No. 3 seed Washington Spirit also hosted a semifinal. Washington defeated the Portland Thorns 4-1 on Sunday, and with No. 2 seed San Diego Wave FC having lost to the Royals on Friday, the path was clear for Washington to host Utah.
In the league's original plan, the Spirit would have relocated from Audi Field to Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, home of the NFL's Washington Commanders, for a Saturday, Nov. 14 semifinal. Instead, as Sunday's quarterfinals played out, the Spirit worked with MLS' D.C. United to reschedule an NCAA Division III football game, clearing the way for Washington to play at Audi Field, which is also set to host the NWSL Championship on Nov. 21. D.C. United has not confirmed the new kickoff time for the football game, though it will still take place at Audi Field, possibly Saturday night after the noon ET NWSL semifinal. One of the Spirit's sponsors helped cover the costs of moving the football game.
That arrangement was not among the nine scenarios originally laid out in the NWSL's documents, but it resolved the conflicts for regular team venues, since Gotham could then play its semifinal on Sunday, Nov. 15. The league's national TV slots for the two semifinals could not be changed.
A scramble to save the SI Stadium field
Attention then turned on Sunday night to whether it was safe to play a semifinal on the sandy, choppy field at SI Stadium, which is also scheduled to host a Red Bulls friendly against Mexico's Club America on Saturday night.
Gotham FC control owner Carolyn Tisch Blodgett made calls to contacts around the NFL, whose Giants are owned by the Tisch family, to try to find solutions for resodding or repairing the grass, a source with knowledge of the conversations confirmed to ESPN. Gotham and the NWSL explored the feasibility of replacing the field at their own cost, even though Gotham is not the stadium's primary tenant and does not control it. Those discussions included Red Bulls general manager Marc de Grandpré, a source confirmed to ESPN.
Plans shifted multiple times through Sunday night as Gotham and NWSL staff worked from SI Stadium and remotely. At one point, the NWSL and Gotham were set to announce a move to Icahn Stadium before pausing that plan to keep working into Monday on a potential fix for the SI Stadium surface. The Red Bulls ultimately have final say over what happens to the field.
"We exhausted every possible avenue before making this decision, and we are deeply disappointed that so many of our fans will now be unable to experience this moment alongside our team," Tisch Blodgett said in a statement. "Our players deserve a playing surface that meets the standards of a professional semifinal, and our fans deserve the opportunity to support them. We have worked tirelessly to deliver on both and are disappointed that we cannot. We are grateful to Icahn Stadium for working with us on such short notice to ensure our team has a place to compete for a Championship spot on Sunday."
A New York Red Bulls spokesperson told ESPN: "We wish Gotham FC the best of luck in their semifinal at Icahn Stadium. We look forward to our match on Saturday at Sports Illustrated Stadium."
Fine and frustration over field quality
Last week the NWSL fined Gotham FC $10,000 over the poor quality of the SI Stadium playing surface on the final day of the regular season, Nov. 1, ESPN previously reported. A spokesperson for the NWSL Players Association told ESPN on Monday that the union was not informed of that fine last week. SI Stadium hosted a USA Rugby doubleheader on Oct. 30, two days before Gotham's regular-season finale, which contributed to the field's deteriorating condition.
"I feel the obligation to almost apologize for the state of the pitch," Gotham FC head coach Juan Carlos Amoros said after Sunday's quarterfinal win, in which Gotham became the first NWSL team to win a playoff game without a single shot on target.
"Let's be real, there's no way a playoff game should be played on that," Seattle Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey told ESPN after her team's loss to hosts Gotham. "I just can't believe they've allowed it. They knew it last week." She continued: "We can ignore it and not talk about it, or we can be really honest about it. And if what we're trying to create is a product that people want to watch, they don't want to watch that. Who wants to watch that?"
Seattle was also Gotham's opponent for the July game at Icahn Stadium. Gotham FC announced in July that the team will move to Etihad Stadium in Queens beginning in 2028. Etihad Stadium is currently under construction and is scheduled to open next year as the new home of New York City FC, the Red Bulls' local rival in MLS.
