Angel City FC Documentary Review - Episode 2
Home Opener Minus 1
-The episode opens with players going on the field one day before their home opener. DiDi Haracic #13 tells the story of how her family came to the United States. She was about to retire. ACFC offered the chance she never had in her career to be a starter and the realities of that chance were setting in as she walked the field on that day. The emotion of the moment is there for the audience to see. These are the stories that make you want to root for the players as people. Coach Dan goes to the seats where his family will be for the home opener. I like Coach Dan, this is a small but meaningful moment of empathy. He won’t be able to share the experience with his family while the game is being played but taking the time to see their view and place himself in their POV, chef kiss.
-The first half of this episode spends a good amount of time talking about the Women’s World Cup in 1999, and the path blazed by the players of that era. Something that stands out about the ’99 USWNT players is their ever-present ability to promote women’s soccer and women’s sport in general. When an email goes out to all the members of the ‘99 team to bring their families to ACFC’s home opener, there was a lot of enthusiastic participation. Even those who were not directly associated with ACFC brought their families to the event. These players have had to promote their game for many decades. I hope the emotions and the moment on the field with ACFC, combined with the signing of a Collective Bargaining Agreement replaces the walls and frustration they’ve fought through with joy and hope for the future of women’s sport.
-Ali Riley #5 is named captain
-More Injuries with Simone Charley being out with an MCL sprain and Paige Nielsen isn’t cleared to play. I know how frustrated I am as a fan when the players I’m cheering for and the players I know the team needs are unable to play due to injury. Paige shows the emotional pain on her face of what missing a game means to a player. Knowing what she gave up to play professional soccer and what she goes through to prepare for each game, I feel heartbroken that she has to go through the whole healing process before she can return to the field.
The Press Line
-“Never been a press line before a game” is the line spoken by Abby Wambach. Gameday is here and there is a buzz around the team, and the fans. I’m watching all the buildup from the ownership group and the front office, throw in the fan hype with everything we’ve watched so far and all I can think about is the mounting pressure to win this game. Maybe it isn’t as bad for the players but I can’t help but wonder what the letdown would feel like if they were to lose this game. I don’t want to feel that way, that’s not fair to all the effort that’s been put into the team by the players up to this point. However, the thought creeps into my mind. Spoiler: they win and I’m very happy for everyone involved.
-All the ‘99 national team players being on the field. This is a lovely tribute and notice to the rest of the sporting landscape that ACFC and NWSL is a league that should get more notice. ACFC needs to start winning and the rest of the league should look at what ACFC is doing and find ways to build the same level of buzz around their clubs. I’m new to this NWSL fandom, so they might be doing that already. However, as the episode goes on, it is clear that ACFC is a driving force in attendance numbers so maybe ACFC is a good example to take some pointers.
-Vanessa Gilles #4 scores the first goal at home for ACFC, what a moment for everyone involved. Also, a giant player in the middle is what ACFC is currently missing. It hurts to see some of these highlights of the ’22 team and compare that to what the ’23 team is missing from their roster. The holes the ’23 team needs to fill are signed by the club, they just can’t be on the pitch, mostly due to injury. Jun Endo #18 scores to make the score 2-0. ACFC wins their home opener and first NWSL game 2-1. It’s a sellout. Celebrations all around
The Season Rolls On
-Fans are invited to watch practice. These are the diehards that have been there from the start. It’s demonstrated in fan interviews how much this means to supporters. We get to see what the club's outreach to regular people means and how a connection is built that builds a culture and sets the base for a generational story of fandom to be told.
-Player Features! DiDi Haracic #13 shares her family story about coming to the United States. She also gets into the details of where her career was prior to joining ACFC and how close she was to quitting the game. When players are relatable is some small way or we have the chance to build some connection to their story they become easier to root for. I’m no longer rooting for a jersey running around the pitch or in the 18-yard box. I’m rooting for a human, who has a story. The moment Didi sees the stadium and recalls what it took to get her here, I sit in that same stadium and I can imagine what the moment must feel like for her. It’s a powerful moment the show sets up for viewers. We also see Paige Nielsen #14 in recovery mode as she sits herself into some leg recovery bags. This is why players should be paid all they can get in their careers. What they give up physically for out entertainment and what they have to deal with later in life. I have no issue with players getting paid what they can when they can over the course of their careers.
-As the season keeps moving, games get hard, and losing sucks. There is a moment where Julie and Freya are on the field after a loss and Julie is talking about attendance. Freya nails it when she says “great for the league, not great for the record”. This is the transition I’m interested in. When does this story stop being about ownership and the culture and starts to be about the wins? This is early in their first season but no one joins fandom to root for solely for a feel good story, not in the long term. Fans want to see their team lift trophies and hang banners. The way the moment is shown, it feels like Julie has tunnel vision interests between what’s good for the league and where the team is in the standings. I get it, ownership is inclined to think long-term and about the overall health of the league but at this moment the Head Coach is standing there and there are some on-field-realities that ACFC has to face and I’m not sure then is the time to be looking for a league-wide positive when the team has their own glaring issues to manage.
-We move to Julie and Natalie having a conversation about ticket sales for the next game and what the atmosphere was like in the previous game. Natalie notes that the stands looked empty on the TV feed and Julie makes the astute observation that there was a shady side and a sunny side to the field. The cameras point to the sunny side, making the game look poorly attended. They both agree that this is a problem of not having enough cameras to cover the games and they are right. I love the vision and the drive this ownership group brings to the league. I think this moment was a bit of a miss when they get into potential solutions. The initial ideas were centered around using ACFC’s fan-facing platform to expand awareness. These might be fine solutions but there are not the questions I want to see from ownership. What is the league doing about cross-promotion and attendance? What is the broadcast doing about showing the league in its best light? The game producer should have just as much interest in NWSL to gain eyeballs on screens and butts in seats. I’m not sure of the structure of the NWSL but the commissioners of leagues I am familiar with answer to ownership. The league office and quite frankly the ownership groups of the other teams should be held accountable to build the buzz and put the league in a position to be successful. Camera availability seems like the kind of problem that has a solution. ACFC might have the star power to get the first season of a documentary filmed, how can ACFC and the league get other teams involved in future seasons? ACFC has what I believe to be a great vision and style of thinking, how are they bringing the accountability they have for themselves to the rest of the league, specifically the NWSL League Offices?
Pride Night
-ACFC has their Pride Night game (I’m going to the ‘23 Pride Night game on the 25th) and they tie 0-0. The story after the game was one of the players, Katie Cousins, sharing a story on their social media about another professional athlete not wanting to wear Pride Night gear for religious reasons. Katie is interviewed in the next segment and says, “not to say we don’t love these people and care for them and want them people to feel welcome”. Pride displays are meant to be a welcoming symbol. We live in a world where minorities ought to be shown identifiers that say they are safe and won’t be judged for being who they are. Those who prepare themselves and live their lives for the judgment of their soul have somehow taken on the role of judge & jury of people with whom they share this plane of existence. Until the day arrives when members of the LGBTQ community feel they are safe, society needs to have these sorts of awareness events.
The show moves to two players who identify as part of the LGBTQ community. They talk about the juxtaposition of a “great teammate” who shares the hurtful words of others. Building trust is something players must do in team sports and it is built on the field, on the ride to the games, and in the locker room. Being a fan of sports teams for as long as I have been, “locker room cancers” are a real thing and undermine on-field performance. When a player does not match the vibe and makes for moments of discomfort, there is a good chance the team will not be able to perform to their fullest potential. ACFC, at this point in the season, is struggling with injuries and needs players to step up but when a story like this is going on in the locker room, how much focus does that take away from building a winning culture between the players?
- Moving to better news, it is announced that the USWNT gets equal pay to USMNT, and the NWSL CBA is signed. These are huge steps in the history of women’s soccer and women’s sport. The CBA gives power to the players. We hear about stories where players are being traded for cover-up reasons. We’ve already heard about sexual misconduct, so we know that players, prior to the CBA, were at the mercy of those in power. Now there are protections and rights for the players. I’m stoked that women’s sports are moving in this direction.
-The episode ends with an injury that hurt the team greatly in season one and is still taking its toll on the team as we speak. Cristen Press goes down with a knee injury. This is just after we saw a highlight of the goal she scored where she outran the defense and scored. The skills Press brings to the roster are the exact skillset missing for the field. It’s sad watching her highlights knowing what she could bring to the team today that her knee injury prevents her from doing in season one and so far in season two.
CHR;)
