KANSAS CITY (August 14, 2024) — The Kanas City Current opened play in the Women’s Cup on Wednesday night with a 3-0 victory over the Mamelodi Sundowns at CPKC Stadium. Facing the first intercontinental opponents in the club’s history, the Currents scored three first-half goals to secure a place in Saturday’s championship. Striker Alexa Spaanstra opened the scoring with a beautiful shot in the 24th minute and fellow striker Michelle Cooper scored the Currents’ second goal of the game 14 minutes later. Midfielder Vanessa DiBernardo rounded off the scoring in the 42nd minute with a picturesque, curling shot from the corner of the Sundowns’ 16-yard box.

Kansas City will face Atlético Madrid of Spain for the Women’s Cup title on Saturday. The Spaniards defeated INAC Kobe of Japan on penalties, the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader at CPKC Stadium.

“As coaches and as a staff, we’ve talked about how good this opportunity is for the development of the game,” said head coach Vlatko Andonovski. “I think it’s great. I mean, how often can you bring four groups of people from different continents to one place to do the things they love to do? I think it’s a great tournament, a great show for the fans.”

The Current continued the club’s dominant form in the International Summer of Soccer, driving a flood of first-half goals to victory on Wednesday night. Despite a number of good chances early in the match, Spaanstra finally opened the scoring with an impressive long-range effort. After coming close to scoring seconds earlier, Spaanstra picked up a loose ball on the right wing and dribbled down the pitch. Near the edge of the Sundowns penalty area, Spaanstra fired an ankle-length shot into the net to put The Current in front.

Goalkeeper Almuth Schult, who made her first appearance for the Current on Wednesday night, made a reflex save from a long-range shot by the Sundowns in the 36th minute. Schult saved two shots in the game, securing a debut shutout as the Current’s solid defense ultimately kept the visitors from scoring.

In the 38th minute, a neat finish doubled the Currents’ lead. LaBonta fired a through ball to Cooper, who ran behind the Sundowns defense and went one-on-one with goalkeeper Andile Dlamini. Cooper neatly evaded the goalkeeper and fired the ball into an empty net to give the Currents a 2-0 lead.

Kansas City continued to attack and scored its third and final goal of the game in short order. Cooper and DiBernardo played a nice one-two on a Current corner kick in the 42nd minute, culminating in DiBernardo having a clear view of the goal from the corner of the Sundowns 16-yard box. From a difficult angle, DiBernardo’s curved shot found the back of the net to give Current a 3-0 lead.

Kansas City failed to score in the second half, but the three goals in the first period were more than enough to secure the Currents victory in the Women’s Cup.

Atlético, The Current’s championship opponent, held a one-goal lead over INAC Kobe for most of the match before conceding an equalizer near the end. The match went to penalties, and goalkeeper Lola Gallardo saved three consecutive shots to help Atlético advance. INAC Kobe will face Sundowns in a third-place match on Saturday at 5 p.m. CT.

Kansas City, meanwhile, concludes its International Summer of Soccer on Saturday at 8 p.m. CT against Atlético de Madrid in the Women’s Cup final. Both Saturday games will be broadcast on VIZIO WatchFree+, channel 1301. Kansas City fans can listen to Dave Borchardt and Jillian Carroll Letrinko commentate on the Current’s game on 90.9 The Bridge or on the KC Current app in English and Portuguese.

The Women’s Cup match report
Match: Kansas City Current vs Mamelodi Sundowns
Date: August 14, 2024
Venue: CPKC Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Kick-off: 8:22 p.m. CT
Weather: 84 degrees, humid

discipline
62′ Mamelodi – Biyana (Yellow)
68′ Mamelodi – Madonsela (Yellow)
90+2′ Kansas City – Feist (Yellow)

Rating
24′ Kansas City – Spain
38′ Kansas City – Cooper (LaBonta)
42′ Kansas City – DiBernardo (Cooper)

Rating Summary

Current Kansas City lineup: Schult, Rodriguez, Ballisager, Cook (58′ Glas), Steigleder, LaBonta © (46′ Hutton), Feist, DiBernardo (58′ Debinha), Spaanstra (67′ Prince), Hamilton (58′ Chawinga), Cooper (67′ Wheeler)
Unused substitutes: Ball, Franch, Silkowitz,

Mamelodi Sundowns line-up: Dlamini, Madonsela, Mbane, Makhubela, Biyana (88′ Mogolola), Mthandi, Rabale (65′ Kgasago), Ramalepe, Dhlamini (88′ Hadebe), Mgcoyi (46′ Daweti), Kgadiete (46′ Majiya)
Unused substitutes: Bosija, Ntimane, Mokoena, Makhurubetshi, Sauls, Letsoso, Mali, Mashigo, Minnies, Mulaudzi