San Diego boss Stoney rips NWSL for ‘unacceptable’ schedule

San Diego Wave FC head coach Casey Stoney once again criticized the National Women’s Soccer League‘s schedule making on Saturday, calling her team’s three-game road stretch this week “unacceptable” after a 0-0 draw in Houston, where the temperature at kickoff was 91 degrees Fahrenheit.

San Diego played away to the Washington Spirit on June 15 in Washington, D.C., then traveled to face NJ/NY Gotham FC on Wednesday before finishing the road trip in Houston on Saturday.

“I think it’s extremely unfair on players,” Stoney said after Saturday’s match. “I think for player welfare, to ask us to go to Washington away, [Gotham] away, and then come to Houston in June two days after we’ve played the previous game, it’s unacceptable. Scheduling-wise, it shouldn’t happen.”

The NWSL has made significant efforts to reduce midweek games over the past two years, but every team has at least one midweek game sandwiched between weekend fixtures this season.

This three-game week for San Diego and Gotham was a product of the teams’ successes last season. The Wave won the 2023 NWSL Shield and faced Gotham, the 2023 NWSL Championship winners, in this year’s Challenge Cup. The NWSL created the new format to mimic other season-opening fixtures from overseas, like England’s…