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Angel City FC brings momentum against rival Bay FC

March 20, 2026

Angel City Football Club couldn’t have had a better season opener.

Angel City kicked off the 2026 season with a 4-0 win over the Chicago Stars on Sunday, but in NWSL, the season moves fast.

“There’s room for improvement,” ACFC forward Sveindís Jónsdóttir said. “We don’t want to get too comfortable.

“It’s always good to win. 4-nil is a great result for us, but we’ve already stopped thinking about that game and started thinking about the game on Saturday. But yeah, it’s great to win at home, our first game, but all eyes on our next game now.”

The next game is the first rivalry clash against Bay FC. The Northern California-based club opened their season with a 2-1 win over expansion club Denver Summit FC.

“I expect it be a very, very tough game,” ACFC coach Alex Straus said. “They have grown a lot since last year. I watched them in preseason in Coachella and I was really impressed with them at that point. I expect them to be confident coming off of their performance.”

Confidence is a good way of describing Angel City’s attack last week. Ary Borges and Kennedy Fuller had a goal and an assist. Jónsdóttir had an assist on Maiara Niehues’ goal.

The versatility of the attacking core is something that Straus likes about this group.

“We don’t have the roster of 30 players,” he said. “We want to have a tight and competitive roster and to do that in this league is a big issue.

“If you’re going to raise the quality, which we still have to do, in a salary-cap league, you need to be smart and you need to have players that are capable of handling different situations, when it’s needed. We’re still in the process of a lot of things, but one is to try to to set up the players in situations, not so much about if they play as a 9 (forward) or as a 7 (winger) or as a 10 (attacking midfielder), or whatever, it’s more about how can they have more actions, situations, where they can utilize the skills and strengths.”

Sugita suffers season-ending knee injury

Angel City announced Tuesday that midfielder Hina Sugita would be placed on the season-ending injury list after suffering a left ACL injury.

Sugita was acquired in a trade with the Portland Thorns in September and was signed to a contract extension during the offseason through 2029.

“Hina is a world-class athlete and teammate,” Straus said. “We are devastated for her, but know she will bring the same focus and determination to her rehab as she does on the pitch. The entire team and club are behind her. We are prepared to support her on her road to recovery and look forward to having her back.”

With Sugita’s injury, Angel City’s roster is now at 22 active players.

ANGEL CITY FC at BAY FC

When: 5:45 p.m. Saturday

Where: PayPal Park; San Jose

How to watch: ION

Orange County Register

News Details

Angel City FC brings momentum against rival Bay FC

Sugita suffers season-ending knee injury

ANGEL CITY FC at BAY FC

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