Utah Royals 'need a good offseason' after 4-1 loss to Gotham FC in 2024 season finale
Hannah Betfort pulled one back for the Royals, scoring her second goal of the season in the 74th minute of Utah’s season finale.
Through the Utah Royals’ 5-3-2 record in NWSL play under interim manager Jimmy Coenraets, the Beehive State’s NWSL franchise showed how far they have come in half a season under a new manager whose interim title has since been removed.
In Friday’s season finale against one of the top teams in the league, Utah showed it still has plenty of work to do.
Esther González scored a brace, Yazmeen Ryan added a goal and an assist, and Mandy Freeman also scored as Gotham FC handed Utah a 4-1 loss Friday night to close the 2024 season in Sandy, Utah.
“It was certainly not the night we wanted to end on, but I’m so proud of the whole group,” Utah defender Kate Del Fava said. “We’ve been so resilient this year.
“I know that’s probably a word that’s been used a ton. But I don’t think it’s an understatement. The girls have done everything they’ve been asked, and we’ve been building and building and building. I’m so excited for next year, to see what we can bring.”
One day after goalkeeper Mandy Haught earned her first cap with the U.S. senior women’s national team, the Royals (7-15-4, 25 points) conceded the most goals since June against a top-three team in the NWSL.
“I think they’ve been through quite a lot this season,” said Coenraets, whose four goals conceded marks the worst loss in 29-year-old manager’s career. “We can keep talking about resilience, but there’s also a limit to what a person and an athlete is capable of. I think we hit a few of our limits today, in general.
“I think it’s healthy to say that we just need a good offseason.”
Hannah Betfort pulled one back for the Royals, scoring her second goal in the 74th minute of Utah’s season finale.
Kate Del Fava found the 25-year-old forward on a quick counter attack with a long ball over the top that Betfort tracked down before slamming home her her second goal in three matches for the Utah side.
Playing outside of her usual position (in Utah) and moved to right back (a position she played frequently in Kansas City), Del Fava notched her third goal contribution of the year, including two goals.
The Illinois State grad was more excited for Betfort, expressing as much as she admitted to the strain, both mental and physical, of managing a rebooted franchise in a season that saw two coaching changes and other front-office shakeups in bringing back the Royals to the NWSL following a three-year hiatus.
But it was too little, too late for the Royals, who were out-shot 23-7 and held to just two shots on target while allowing nine against a Gotham side that will finish with the No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the upcoming NWSL playoffs.
“It has not been an easy season,” said Del Fava, who signed a contract extension to stay in Utah through the 2026 season with an option for 2027. “But the girls have definitely kept me going, kept everybody going. I’m definitely going to remember all the memories we made this year. Even though it was a little bit of a rocky road, we still got through it together.”
The league also released a historic mark following Friday’s season finale in Salt Lake, surpassing 2 million fans in regular-season attendance for the first time in the 22-year history of the competition.
With five matches left to close the regular season following conclusions in Salt Lake City and a sellout crowd at Providence Park for Christine Sinclair’s regular-season finale with the Portland Thorns, the NWSL is currently averaging just over 11,000 fans per game through the turnstiles.
Last year, the NWSL became the first women’s soccer league in the world to average more than 10,000 fans per game
