The Washington Spirit won its first NWSL championship on Saturday. The players raucously celebrated the victory on the field and in the locker room, but a larger celebration with DC fans will wait.
The club announced on Monday that the Spirit’s championship parade will be held at the start of next season. The Spirit explained that it would give “our staff and players to take a much-deserved break for the holiday.” Waiting “allows us the time to plan a memorable celebration worthy of this championship team.”
There will be a parade at the start of next season to celebrate the championship win. This decision allows our staff and players to take a much-deserved break for the holiday, and allows us the time to plan a memorable celebration worthy of this championship team. pic.twitter.com/ESNo7Zg7OZ
— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) November 22, 2021
The Spirit are following the same playbook that the Washington Mystics went by when they won the WNBA championship in 2019. The team announced they’d hold their championship parade on May 12, 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the celebration to be held online only.
“This is the beginning of a new tradition in the District of Champions: kicking off a new season with parades and banners,” D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser said in a release then per The Washington Post. “We will start our Mystics celebration with a parade, then a block party and a banner raising, and then we all know what we need to do — run it back!”
The Spirit defeated the North Carolina Courage in the Quarterfinals 1-0, the OL Reign in the Semis 2-1, and the Chicago Red Stars in the Final 2-1 to become champions.
Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin invested in the team before the season.
Is this real life? Yes, yes it is 🙌 Welcome to the Spirit @ovi8 pic.twitter.com/lq9R1DqovT
— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) May 10, 2021
Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong/RMNB
