SkoPurp No. 94: International Pride, Utah Preview, and More

The Orlando Pride will finally be back in action this weekend after a lengthy midseason stop for international tournaments. We are also back after a couple of weeks off as the club was quiet for the bulk of July. We open this show by discussing how several of the Pride players spent the "break." Six of those players all spent a lot of time with their national teams in Europe, South America, and Africa. We discuss Anna Moorhouse's team winning the Women's Euros, Zambia's run — featuring Barbra Banda, Prisca Chilufya, and Grace Chanda — in the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, and Marta and Angelina representing Brazil in the Copa America Femenina. We'll also discuss which players won't be back in time for Orlando's match Sunday against the Royals.This week's mailbagbox asked about Orlando's openness to an Adriana return, national team kits, whether the Pride could beat up Spain in a (soccer) fight, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.Finally, we previewed the Pride's upcoming second match of the season against the Utah Royals. Sunday's visitors may be statistically the worst team in the NWSL, but that doesn't mean Utah lacks players who can do some damage. We break down the all-time series, provide our key matchups for the game, and predict the final score of the match.If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.Here’s how Episode 94 went down:0:15 – The Pride sign a couple of players, pick up the options on a couple of others, and loan a handful out.9:13 - The mailbagbox is ready for some Orlando Pride soccer.25:59 - The Utah Royals are coming to town. No, not the old Utah Royals. The new ones!