The 2023 Racing Louisville FC season was the team's third as a professional women's soccer team. Racing played in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the top tier of women's soccer in the United States.
Background
Hirings On November 23, 2022, Racing announced the hiring of former NWSL player Bev Yanez, previously of the NJ/NY Gotham FC coaching staff, as the club's top assistant coach. She replaced Louisville City FC academy director Mario Sanchez, who had served as interim head coach after the firing of head coach Christy Holly in 2021 and remained as interim assistant coach under Holly's permanent replacement Kim Björkegren.
On March 29, 2023, Racing announced the hiring of Ryan Dell, former administrator and operations manager of the United States women's national soccer team (USWNT), as Racing's first dedicated general manager. Dell was the second USWNT operations manager to become an NWSL general manager, following San Diego Wave FC's Molly Downtain.
Racing's soccer operations had previously been run by James O'Connor, president of Louisville City FC and Racing Louisville holding company Soccer Holdings, LLC, who moved to a business operations role for the parent company. The changes were made in part as a response to the 2021 NWSL abuse scandal, which included allegations from players of sexually and emotionally abusive behavior by former head coach Christy Holly. Dell reported directly to Soccer Holdings chairperson John Neace.
Offseason transactions
Kit changes In March 2023, Racing announced new primary kits with a houndstooth pattern that referenced Secretariat owner Penny Chenery's houndstooth jackets, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Secretariat's Triple Crown victory.
Stadium and facilities Racing continued to play in Lynn Family Stadium, their full-time home since the team's inaugural season in 2021.
Broadcasting On April 12, Racing announced its first local broadcasting deal with local NBC affiliate WAVE, which would broadcast seven of the team's matches on its Circle TV network, promote the team, interview players, and provide game-day weather reports. The local broadcasts would carry separate feeds and feature commentary separate from the NWSL's national broadcast and streaming partners.
Team
Staff
+ Sporting operations staff
+ Technical staff
+ Performance staff
Players
+ First-team roster Name Previous team Notes 1 GK 2021 TCU Horned Frogs 18 GK 2022 Michigan Wolverines 24 GK 2022 Wisconsin Badgers 99 GK 2023 Washington Huskies 3 DF 2022 West Ham United 4 DF 2021 KIF Örebro DFF INT 5 DF 2023 NJ/NY Gotham FC 12 DF 2023 Vanderbilt Commodores NTR 15 DF 2022 Apollon Ladies F.C. 16 DF 2022 North Carolina Courage 20 DF 2022 North Carolina Courage 25 DF 2023 Birmingham City INT 44 DF 2022 Bristol City 2 MF 2021 North Carolina Courage 6 MF 2022 Florida State Seminoles 7 MF 2022 USC Trojans 8 MF 2023 Palmeiras INT 9 MF 2023 Ohio State Buckeyes 17 MF 2023 HB Køge NTR 19 MF 2023 Washington Spirit 26 MF 2023 Åland United NTR 27 MF 2022 Melbourne Victory FC INT 77 MF 2022 Wuhan Jianghan University F.C. INT FW 2023 Alabama Crimson Tide 10 FW 2021 Paris Saint-Germain INT 11 FW 2022 Atlético Madrid INT 13 FW 2021 Louisville Cardinals 14 FW 2022 North Carolina Courage 21 FW 2022 Arkansas Razorbacks 22 FW 2021 Texas Tech Red Raiders 29 FW 2023 Tigres UANL INT
Competitions
NWSL Challenge Cup
Group stage
Central Division standings
Results by matchday
Knockout rounds
Regular season
Matches
Regular season standings
Results summary
Results by matchday
Statistics
+ Goalscorers, per competition Player Goals by competition Name Total 1 MF 7 5 3 — 8 2 FW 21 1 2 — 3 DF 5 3 0 — 3 4 MF 8 1 1 — 2 FW 22 2 0 — 2 FW 77 2 0 — 2 7 DF 20 1 0 — 1 FW 9 0 1 — 1 FW 29 0 1 — 1 FW 11 1 0 — 1 MF 4 1 0 — 1 Total 17 8 — 25
+ Assists by player, per competition Player Assists by competition Name Total 1 MF 7 2 1 — 3 2 DF 5 0 2 — 2 3 MF 19 0 1 — 1 MF 8 0 1 — 1 FW 22 1 0 — 1 FW 9 1 0 — 1 DF 16 0 1 — 1 FW 11 0 1 — 1 DF 2 1 0 — 1 FW 77 1 0 — 1 Total 6 7 — 13
+ Clean sheets by goalkeeper, per competition Player Clean sheets by competition Name Total 1 GK 1 5 2 — 7 Total 5 2 — 7
+ Disciplinary cards by player, per competition Player Total Name 1 MF 7 51 00 — 51 2 MF 8 30 10 — 40 MF 6 40 00 — 40 4 FW 11 20 10 — 30 DF 16 30 00 — 30 6 DF 20 10 10 — 20 FW 9 10 10 — 20 DF 25 10 10 — 20 FW 29 00 20 — 20 DF 2 20 00 — 20 MF 4 11 00 — 11 12 DF 5 10 00 — 10 MF 77 10 00 — 10 Total 252 70 — 322
Awards
NWSL monthly awards + Best XI of the Month Month Player May MF Savannah DeMelo June DF Abby Erceg MF Savannah DeMelo (2)
NWSL weekly awards + Player of the Week Player Won 1 GK 2 MF 3 MF 7 MF 8 MF 12 MF
+ Save of the Week Player Won 4 GK 8 GK 10 DF
Transactions
Draft selections Draft selections are not automatically signed to the team roster. The 2023 NWSL Draft was held on January 12, 2023, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
+ 2023 NWSL Draft selections, by round Player College Status 2 16 Ohio State University Signed to a two-year contract on March 17, 2023. 17 University of Notre Dame Not signed, rights waived. 3 29 Ohio State University Not signed, rights waived. 31 University of Alabama Signed to a one-year contract with an option for an additional year.
Contracts + Contract expirations Date Player Notes November 15, 2022 Contract option mutually declined. Contract expired.
+ Contract re-signings Date Player Notes November 15, 2022 Contract option exercised. January 10, 2023 Signed a contract extension for a third year through 2025. January 20, 2023 Signed a three-year contract extension. February 6, 2023 Signed a three-year contract extension. March 13, 2023 Signed a three-year contract extension.
+ Waivers Date Player Notes February 18, 2023 Waived.
Loans
+ Loans out Date Player Destination club Fee/notes September 27, 2022 Western United FC Loaned through 2022–23 A-League Women season ending in April. October 16, 2022 Western Sydney Wanderers FC Loaned through 2022–23 A-League Women season ending in February. October 18, 2022 Western United FC October 20, 2022 Melbourne City FC November 7, 2022 Melbourne City FC February 2, 2023 Tigres UANL Loaned through 2022–23 Liga MX Femenil Clausura in June.
Transfers + Transfers in Date Player Former club Fee/notes December 9, 2022 KIF Örebro DFF Signed to a two-year contract with a mutual option for a third year. December 23, 2022 Palmeiras Signed to a three-year contract. January 12, 2023 NJ/NY Gotham FC Acquired with $150,000 in allocation money and an international roster slot for the 2023 season, in exchange for the fourth-overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft. January 23, 2023 North Carolina Courage Acquired in exchange for Emily Fox. North Carolina Courage February 2, 2023 Tigres UANL Acquired for a $150,000 transfer fee paid with allocation money with an additional $30,000 fee if Kanu scores 12 or more goals during the 2023 NWSL season, and signed to a two-year contract with an option for a third year. April 25, 2023 Washington Spirit Acquired in exchange for a second-round pick and a conditional third-round pick in the 2024 NWSL Draft. April 25, 2023 HB Køge Signed as a short-term national team replacement player. July 20, 2023 Åland United Signed as a short-term national team replacement player. July 20, 2023 Vanderbilt Commodores Signed as a short-term national team replacement player.
+ Transfers out Date Player Destination club Fee/notes January 23, 2023 North Carolina Courage Traded in exchange for Abby Erceg and Carson Pickett. March 25, 2023 Chicago Red Stars Free-agent signing.
Preseason trialists Player Previous club University of Tennessee Racing Louisville FC (USL W League) University of Washington Pepperdine Waves
References