Philly soccer fans might get to see a duel of two of the USWNT’s biggest stars

It's not guaranteed that they'll play, but just the possibility of Trinitiy Rodman facing Rose Lavelle in Wednesday's Concacaf Champions Cup game at Subaru Park is enough to get attention.

Gotham FC's Rose Lavelle (center) has long been one of women's soccer's most talented and popular players.Read moreLucas Boland / Imagn Images

by Jonathan Tannenwald

Published Oct. 1, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET

In any sport, you aren’t guaranteed to know which players are playing until the action officially starts. But on Wednesday at Subaru Park, local soccer fans might see a duel of superstars when Gotham FC plays the Washington Spirit in the Concacaf women’s Champions League (7 p.m., Paramount+ and ESPN+).

Gotham’s Rose Lavelle and Washington’s Trinity Rodman are two of the U.S. women’s soccer team’s biggest names, and two of the women’s soccer world’s most entertaining players. They have decorated resumés, too, as the U.S. team’s many fans around here know: Lavelle is a 2019 World Cup and 2024 Olympic champion, while Rodman won the same gold and an NWSL title in 2021.

Let’s get the reasons why they might not play out of the way. It’s a midweek game, which raises the odds of lineup rotation, and both players have long-enough injury histories that resting them for the NWSL’s regular-season stretch run might be prudent.

With the disclaimer done, here’s the good news: Both players are in strong form right now. Lavelle scored a pretty goal and notched an even prettier assist in Friday’s 3-0 win over the Portland Thorns, giving her three goals and two assists in her last five games. Rodman had two sharp assists in Sunday’s 3-0 win over the Houston Dash and scored four goals in the four games before then.

So there’s the possibility of seeing them in Chester, and that might be enough to draw some fans. As a bonus, the Phillies’ playoff bye means this will be the only pro game in town Wednesday night.

As the national team’s many followers in the region know, there’s always a little extra buzz when Lavelle or Rodman is on the ball — and a roar when they dash upfield with it. Even Gotham manager Juan Carlos Amorós, as studious on the bench as they come, admitted he enjoys watching Lavelle take flight.

“Rose is a magician,” Amorós said. “The things she does are unbelievable. … She’s just a player that — you can work with her on certain things, but certain things are the talent and the skill that she has. And we try to just help her flourish and express herself on the pitch.”

Both players have great charisma along with their talents. They aren’t always thrilled to be on camera, but get them going and they’ll have plenty to say.

“It’s really annoying to play against Trinity,” Lavelle said with a laugh. “I think she’s somebody who’s dangerous wherever she is on the field. She can be literally at her own corner flag, and she can do something that kick-starts their attack and ends in something dangerous.”

Rodman returned the compliment when asked about facing Lavelle.

“It [stinks],” she said. “Rose is a great player — she’s really, really fast on the dribble, she’s creative, she’s cheeky on the ball, and she has a really good outside shot. So kudos to her, too. I love her as a player. It [stinks] playing against her, but when I get to play with her, it’s amazing.”

Again, we offer the warning of buyer beware. Maybe they’ll start, maybe they’ll come off the bench, or maybe they won’t play at all. But if they do play, anyone in attendance will be able to say they saw something fun.