Gotham traveled to Mexico with the hope of capturing a second consecutive Concacaf W Champions Cup title after rolling off a five-game unbeaten streak in NWSL.
But the Bats struggled in the high altitude of Pachuca’s Estadio Hidalgo. Gotham were stunned 4-1 by Club América Femenil in Wednesday’s semifinal and were defeated by Pachuca Femenil 3-0 in Saturday’s third-place game.
“Coming here to this altitude has definitely been different for us,” Gotham head coach Juan Carlos Amorós said prior to Saturday’s match.
High Altitude Proves Difficult for Gotham FC
Estadio Hidalgo sits nearly 8,000 feet above sea level, and Gotham looked out of sorts for much of the tournament. The Bats did not resemble the team that had recorded seven shutouts through 10 NWSL matches.
Gotham conceded seven goals in two Concacaf W Champions Cup matches after only allowing five goals through 10 NWSL contests.
Pachuca cut through Gotham with lifted through balls and long balls to devastating effect on Saturday.
“It’s a performance and an outcome that is not how we normally do things,” Amorós said during his post-match press conference. “Pachuca is a great team, and I want to congratulate them and not take any credit away from them. They were better than us today, and they deserved to win the game.
“But I really want to highlight the effort and commitment of the whole group – the players that ultimately couldn’t play and the players that were on the pitch. They really gave everything they had. These games are definitely going to make us better in the long run.”
Amorós slightly rotated his starting XI with Shelby Hogan, Katie Lampson and Talia Sommer replacing Ann-Katrin Berger, Jess Carter and Savannah McCaskill.
Berger was always going to miss the third-place match after she suffered an abdominal injury against Club América on Wednesday.
Bats Have One More Match Before Much-Needed Break
dribbles against Pachuca Femenil. (Photo courtesy of Concacaf)
The Bats look like they need to heal up and recharge after a grueling start to the season, where they played three tournaments across multiple continents — but that breather won’t come right away.
Gotham has one more match remaining against the Houston Dash on May 31 at Sports Illustrated Stadium before going on an extended break.
Although NWSL league play shuts down between June 1 and June 28, Gotham will return to action on June 26 to compete in the NWSL Challenge Cup.
Reigning NWSL champions Gotham and 2025 NWSL Shield-winning Kansas City Current will vie for the Challenge Cup at a neutral venue in Scotts Miracle-Gro Field in Columbus, Ohio.
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