This weekend, true to custom in the National Women’s Soccer League on the night before a match, Wave executive Molly Downtain was to have dinner with a counterpart of the visiting Orlando Pride.
Orlando, after all, is the club that — making the best of a tough situation — traded superstar Alex Morgan to the fledgling Wave nearly two years ago.Good times have followed in Mission Valley, the Wave becoming the first NWSL expansion club to reach the playoffs and setting four attendance records in the 11-year circuit. If other San Diego sports teams have made a better trade, it’s a short list. FIFA recently named Morgan the No.
Morgan sought to return to Southern California and live in San Diego. She’d spent six years with the Pride, helping launch the franchise. She’d given birth to her first child in 2020 and was eager to be near family. An NWSL-record $275,000 in allocation money, agreed to by Wave owner Ron Burkle, facilitated the trade. Also, the Wave assured the Pride it would take none of its players in the expansion draft.