Kickoff for Seattle Reign FC’s match at Gotham FC was delayed Saturday morning after lightning appeared in the area, holding up the start of a league game scheduled for 9 AM PT at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island in New York City.
The delay landed on a day that was already important for Seattle Reign. The club was beginning a three-match road trip after beating Portland 2-0 in rivalry week, and the game was being carried on ABC with Jenn Hildreth and Lianne Sanderson on the English call. For fans tracking it live, there was no free stream in the United States.
The matchup itself came in with clear contrast in the table. Seattle Reign entered at 5-6-2 with a minus-3 goal differential and sat in 10th place, while Gotham FC arrived at 8-3-3 with a plus-8 goal differential in fourth place. Gotham also had just played a midweek match against the Spirit at Citi Field, adding another layer of recent travel and scheduling strain before this one.
Lineups also showed absences on both sides. Seattle Reign listed Lynn Biyendolo, Madison Curry, Shae Holmes and Sofia Huerta as out, while Gotham FC was without Jordynn Dudley, Kayla Duran and Taryn Torres. Esther González was listed as questionable for Gotham FC, leaving one more key piece unresolved even before the weather intervened.
By 8:40 am, the match was still on hold, and the league had not given any estimate for when play might begin. That uncertainty is the story now: a scheduled Saturday kickoff turned into an open-ended wait, with lightning, not the teams, deciding when the first whistle could finally come.
