Alex Morgan will play her final NWSL game this Sunday in San Diego after announcing her retirement from professional soccer earlier this week – and she’ll also provide a reminder of her business muscle at the same time. The NWSL announced Friday that Sunday’s match between San Diego Wave FC and the North Carolina Courage, originally scheduled for streaming on NWSL+ (the league’s own free-to-air platform) and Paramount+, will now be shown on multiple channels and streaming services from the media partners of the league. .
The match will now air on CBS Sports Network and ESPN2, and will air on Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video and NWSL+ at 8:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM PT.
It’s the first time, according to the league, that a women’s sporting event will be shown in multiple outlets simultaneously in the United States — and it’s a sign of how strong the league and their media outlets are expecting interest in Morgan’s final game. be
CBS Sports will also add both pre- and post-game studio shows surrounding the Wave matchup (each set for 30 minutes, starting at 7:30 pm ET), with Maura Sheridan and Jordan Angeli on the call in the booth, and Jenny Chiu. serving as a pitch-side reporter in San Diego.
“We are extremely grateful to CBS Sports for helping elevate the league and always being wonderful partners and recognizing the pivotal moment in allowing this unprecedented broadcast to happen, as well as to Prime Video and ESPN for their partnership in celebrating a true sports legend. Ours partners coming together to celebrate Alex is an event that speaks volumes for the power of sports and female athletes to unite fans everywhere. Alex couldn’t be more deserving of this moment,” said NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman.
From a ticket perspective at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, the game is trending toward a sellout, and the team opens the top bowl on Friday. According to a team representative, the Wave surpassed 25,000 tickets sold. The stadium can hold 32,000.
let’s send the 🐐 in style, SD pic.twitter.com/fwBroR2Vh9
– San Diego Wave FC (@sandiegowavefc) September 5, 2024
Earlier on Friday, Morgan addressed the increase in media coverage in women’s soccer in her final pre-game press conference, sharing that she actually found out she had been drafted to her first professional team, the WPS Western New York Flash, by the U.S. Soccer Press . officer directly. “(That sketch) was definitely not aired,” she said.
“Just coverage in general – I’m amazed at how well covered this sport is, and all of the reporters and people who have dug in for little or no pay to cover women’s soccer for so long, when they’ve done it for the passion. Because that’s what we did, on the national team and early on with the WPS and NWSL. We played football because we were passionate about playing. It wasn’t money, trust me,” Morgan continued with a laugh.
“It’s come a long way, and it’s so incredible to see the new broadcast rights agreement, the new CBA happening with the NWSLPA and NWSL, under a new revenue sharing model that’s never been done before. It’s unprecedented.”
Morgan has been part of building this growth, referencing his own front-row seat to the progress over the years. On Sunday she will be able to enjoy the fruits of her labor.
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(Photo: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
