No FIFA WOrld Cup ball chirps from goalkeepers, including Maxime Crepeau, keeper for Orlando City SC. The midfielders play without protest, including the Lions’ Braian Ojeda. And the strikers keep creating chances, including Orlando’s Marco Pasalic.
Chuck Wharton
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It was a crowded penalty box. Murrell relayed the ball with another header. Working the left side of the net, Lions goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau picked up the ball, waving his arms. But Rowles had sent it toward the lower right. It was the 3-2 winning score.
But all that history could be forgotten once time passed in the latest meeting on the pitch of Orlando City and Charlotte. This time, the Lions got Charlotte. All the goals that Orlando City players have been missing this MLS season won the match.
No matter how hard they tried, the Houston Dynamo FC couldn’t have expected a win on the home pitch of Orlando City SC. But they tried anyway and won 1-0. The Lions had not lost to the Dynamo in their previous four home matches in Orlando.
After a horrific start to the 2026 soccer season, so have the players of Orlando City SC in the U.S. Open Cup. It’s a tournament they’ve won in the past. This time, they’ll have a chance to remember the taste of winning. They advanced to the Round of 16.
Coming into their match with the Columbus Crew, Orlando City SC looked close in execution statistics. They were almost equal in shots, 12.2-12, and shots on goal, 4.5-4.7. They were superior in aerial duels won, 63-62. Then success falls off the table.
If the Orlando Pride were an industrial motor, they’d be racing at over 100 mph without hitting high gear yet. They handed Angel City FC their first loss of the season, preserving the Pride’s unbeaten streak at four matches at the time.
There were records achieved as Orlando City SC got shut out 6-0 by the Los Angeles FC. The records went against the Lions and fully favored LAFC. They won 6-0 only once before, against the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2020. They’ve scored six goals in MLS play.
The Lions of Orlando City B were riding on a high after their comeback 3-2 victory. But that was coming back from a two-goal deficit. Then they faced Inter Miami CF II. The Miami squad ran this match’s deficit to four goals, scoring twice early.
Defeating the Chicago Stars in an away match, the Orlando Pride now have the first of many wins in this 2026 NWSL season. It ends the Stars' nine-game unbeaten streak at home and marks the Pride's record at 1-1-1. But the match wasn’t just about offense.
It’s a critical time of lapsed focus and under-performance for Orlando City SC. As they prepare mental preparation drills and hone strategy, the club reached internationally for a key player who could spur the team to power up.