Angel City FC will hold Pride Night at Sunday’s game against the Orlando Pride at BMO Stadium, including a performance by The Secret Circus, which bills itself as a “queer cabaret,” and pride-themed cocktails.
Pregame activities, which also include a blood drive, will begin at 12:30 p.m. with The Secret Circus performance set to begin at 2:30 p.m.
A Fan Fest will begin at 12:30 p.m. at Christmas Tree Lane Park northwest of BMO Stadium and include spirit stations giving fans the opportunity to get hair sparkles, glitter and new ACFC temporary tattoos.
There will also be a beer garden with drinks from Heineken, Johnnie Walker and Archer Roose.
“It’s inspiring to see that a soccer game can be such a safe space filled with love for people to live as themselves and enjoy the match,” ACFC midfielder Madison Hammond said. “I’m proud to be part of a club that fosters a space like that, and to be able to do what I love as myself here as well.”
The drag queen known as Provvidenza will lead the “Three Clap” before the 5 p.m. game.
According to team President and Co-Founder Julie Uhrman, the cheer was originated by U.S. women’s national team midfielder Julie Foudy during one of the three Olympics in which she competed.
“She was working out every morning and she started with a three clap,” Uhrman said in a video posted on the team’s Instagram account. “Given that she is an owner and investor in Angel City Football Club, we loved it and have decided to work with her to make it our own.”
ACFC enters Sunday’s play 11th in the 14-team National Women’s Soccer League with a 4-7-3 record. Its 15 points match San Diego Wave FC (3-6-6) but San Diego has the better goal differential, minus-4 to ACFC’s minus-6.
ACFC is 1-4-2 in its last seven games, including a 1-0 loss at Bay FC last Saturday.
Orlando (9-0-5) is second with 32 points, three behind the Kansas City Current (10-0-5). Pride forward Barbra Banda is tied for second in the league with 10 goals, matching Portland Thorns forward Sophia Smith and one behind Kansas City forward Temwa Chawinga.
“We’re sometimes better off when we’re the underdogs,” ACFC coach Becki Tweed said. “We have that underdog mentality, but when we have that expectation (as a favorite), we tend to struggle more. We’re still trying to understand why we can’t be that team, but we’ll get there.”
The 4:30 p.m. game will be televised by Bally Sports SoCal and streamed on Paramount+.