When the Orlando Pride signed Jacquie Ovalle in August, I remember thinking it was a curious move for a team whose season was essentially over. Star attacker Barbra Banda had suffered a season-ending injury five days earlier for a Pride squad that was 8-4-4 and third in the NWSL but had gone winless in its last four games after winning its first four games to start the season. Orlando’s winless streak would reach nine games before they turned things around down the stretch. Orlando took 11 points from its last five regular-season games and defeated Seattle Reign in the Quarterfinals before losing to eventual champions Gotham FC.

Orlando was clearly correct not to give up on the 2025 season but what I failed to take into account at the time is that Ovalle’s record transfer from Liga MX's Femenil Tigres sets Orlando up perfectly to take another run at the NWSL title.

Ovalle never really found her footing after joining the Pride late in the season, managing just one goal and two assists in eight matches. With time to recover as well as train with her team in the preseason, I expect her to hit the ground running in 2026 and live up to her record transfer fee.

Ovalle’s job will certainly be made easier by Barbra Banda’s return. Banda led the Pride with eight goals despite playing in just 16 matches, and she scored twice as many goals as any other Orlando player. When Orlando won the NWSL Championship in 2024, four different players scored at least five goals. With Banda back, I would expect Ovalle and Marta to score at least five goals in 2026. Orlando was much better on the counter when they had Banda stretching the defense vertically, and I would expect them to get back to that in 2026.

I don’t think enough is made of how well Marta played last season. In her age 38, she was fifth on the Pride in minutes, starting 18 games and coming off the bench in four more. You might expect that at this point in her career, she would mostly be involved in set pieces, and she is still one of the best. But I was really impressed during the playoffs by her ability to lead the attack in open play. She almost singlehandedly sealed the win against Seattle by getting behind the Reign defense and earning a penalty. It certainly helped that Seattle was pushed forward searching for an equalizer, but even so, I thought Marta was super impressive in that moment and the entire game.

While most of focus on Orlando is rightfully on their attacking talent, most of their success last season came on the defensive end, where they allowed the third-fewest goals in the league. In 2024 they tied with Gotham for the fewest goals allowed. Their defense should be good yet again, and it all starts with goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse. Moorehouse has had at least a 74.5 save percentage in each of her three NWSL.

That being said, the defense likely took a hit with the transfer of Emily Sams to Angel City FC. Orlando did well to replace Sams with Hailie Mace, who spent the last five seasons anchoring the Kansas City Current defense. There may be some growing pains as Mace settles in with her new team, but even if Orlando is a bit more offensive-minded than in years past, I think the defense will be more than good enough to contend.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the upcoming NWSL season is that it should be highly competitive at the top. Gotham and Kansas City should contend once again, And Washington has to like its chances after they brought back Trinity Rodman. Angel City could bounce back with its influx of talent, and there will likely be at least one surprise playoff team we don’t see coming. Even though they are coming off a relatively disappointing season, I think there is every reason to believe the Orlando Pride will be right back in the title mix in 2026.I certainly wouldn’t want to pick against them.