Gotham FC stuns Kansas City Current with 2-1 extra time upset win in NWSL quarterfinals

After a dominant 2025 season, the Kansas City Current looked unbeatable heading into the NWSL playoffs. Even with the rest of the playoff teams clustered in the middle of the table, the question remained: Who could possibly best the dominant NWSL Shield winners in the postseason?
The answer, it turned out, was Gotham FC, which stunned the Current with a 2-1 upset win in extra time on Sunday. The loss, on a very chilly day in Kansas City's CPKC Stadium, knocks the Current out of the playoffs after the quarterfinal stage, and completely shakes up the playoff bracket.
Though the No. 1-vs.-No. 8 matchup appeared lopsided, it was a deceptively even match from the start. Despite being a solid team with a some great wins this year, Gotham fell victim to the relatively even NWSL table, ending in the final playoff spot after a loss on Decision Day.
Kansas City also was playing without its two biggest offensive threats: Temwa Chawinga and Michelle Cooper. And the Current missed them on the attack; the two teams stayed tied at 0-0 for nearly the first 70 minutes.
With the game still at a stalemate, Gotham forward Jaedyn Shaw got free off a long ball from defender Emily Sonnett. Shaw finagled her way past three Current defenders and goalkeeper Lorena to take the solo shot and give Gotham the lead.
Kansas City's push for an equalizer grew increasingly more frantic as the final minutes ticked away. Though Gotham tried to hold off the Current's offense, Ellie Wheeler finally broke through late in stoppage time to send the game to extra time.
After more than 30 minutes of extra time, the score stayed even. Then, in stoppage time, Gotham pulled out all of the stops, pulling up keeper Ann-Katrin Berger for a free kick that Katie Stengel turned into a game-winning goal.
In the words of Shaw, who had the assist on Stengel's goal, in Gotham's postgame press conference: "Underdog my ass. We are not an underdog."
The Current have spent all season as the most dominant team in the league. Kansas City clinched the NWSL Shield all the way back in September, with five games still remaining in the season. They Current finished the year with 21 wins and a whopping 65 points, 20 points clear of the next-nearest team (Washington Spirit).
They scored the most goals (49) and allowed half as many goals (13) as any other team. Other than Sunday, the Current have conceded two or more goals only two other times this season.
None of it mattered. Kansas City will stay home for the semifinals after just its fourth loss this season, and its first home loss since July 2024.
Gotham, meanwhile, might be getting some déjà vu. In 2023, the year the team won its first NWSL championship, Gotham finished sixth and in the final playoff spot following a late slump in a particularly chaotic table. Three games later, Gotham was lifting up the trophy.
The road to repeating history may be a long one, but Gotham will certainly try to be up to the challenge. First up is a semifinal against the Orlando Pride, as the Pride unexpectedly get to host as a No. 4 seed following the Current's fall.