Gotham FC will look to close out the 2025–26 Concacaf W Champions Cup with a victory in the third-place game against hosts Pachuca Femenil on Saturday night.
Head coach Juan Carlos Amorós and his squad targeted back-to-back championships in the competition but were defeated 4-1 by Club América Femenil in Wednesday’s semifinal.
“We wanted to be in the final, but this third-place game is still very important for us,” Amorós said during Friday’s pre-match press conference. “We can still get a very big reward from winning the game, so we’re putting all the effort and concentration into it, and the team is ready.”
The 41-year-old head coach is proud of the progress that his club has made across two years by winning last year’s inaugural edition of the tournament and the possibility of finishing third in the current competition.
“For us, it’s a competition that we approach with passion every time we participate in it,” Amorós stated. “At the end of the day, deciding who is the best team in all of North America is something very special. Winning the tournament last year and potentially finishing third [on Saturday] would mean that over the two editions, we have been the most consistent team. América also has that opportunity if they win tomorrow.”
Amorós Hints at Squad Rotation
The defending NWSL champions are expected to field a heavily rotated starting XI against Pachuca on Saturday.
“There will probably be some changes,” Amorós hinted. “We’re coming off a huge number of matches and a huge amount of travel. We came from Seattle, and before that, we had a week with three matches. In the United States, beyond the number of games, it’s also the travel hours and time zone changes. The team is really pushing as hard as possible, and the team is 26 players, so tomorrow we will probably see some new faces.”
One player who for sure will miss the final is star goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger, who is recovering from an abdominal injury after being released from the hospital on Thursday night.
It’s possible that Shelby Hogan could start the match after she replaced Berger to start the second half of Wednesday’s semifinal. Alternatively, Amorós could hand the starting keeper’s gloves to 24-year-old Ryan Campbell or 21-year-old rookie Teagan Wy.
Pachuca Presents Another High-Altitude Test
Gotham struggled with the high altitude in the semifinal against Club América. Pachuca supporters will fill Estadio Hidalgo with passion and noise, and similar to Club América, they bring a high-powered attack.
“Pachuca is a very well-organized team,” Amorós said. “Being the host team, we could already experience the fans the other day, and they are clearly the 12th player. Playing at altitude is still complicated for us.
“Collectively, they are very strong, and then they have players like Andrea Pereira, a fantastic midfielder with international experience and great quality. Aline Gomes creates imbalance in attacking situations, and Charlyn Corral is a world-class goalscorer and the captain of the club. The other day in the tunnel, seeing all the trophies from Pachuca, both men’s and women’s, and seeing Charlyn up there, says a lot about women’s football and also about a club like Pachuca.”
Gotham midfielder Sophia Cook is looking to use the disappointment of the semifinal defeat to fuel a strong showing in the third-place game.
“We had a tough result the other day, and we’re excited to get back out there and redeem ourselves,” Cook said. “I’m super excited to play tomorrow.”
Saturday’s third-place match will kick off at 6 p.m. Eastern Time. Paramount+ will stream the English-language broadcast while ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ will carry the broadcast in Spanish.
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