Angel City defender Savy King is conscious and receiving further medical attention at a hospital after collapsing during the second half of her NWSL team’s 2-0 victory over the Utah Royals on Friday.
King went down on the field in the 74th minute of the match. Medical professionals attended to her for approximately 10 minutes before she was substituted off, replaced by Megan Reid. The defender was subsequently transported to a nearby hospital for more comprehensive evaluation.
“Savy was transported by EMS to the hospital following a medical event on the field,” Angel City stated in a release Friday. “She is responsive and undergoing further evaluation. We thank everyone for their concern and support.”
The NWSL issued a follow-up statement Saturday, confirming that King was still being evaluated and indicating that the league may consider updating its policies after the teams resumed play following the incident.
“Following a medical event on the field last night, ACFC’s Savy King was transported by EMS to the hospital,” the NWSL wrote. “Savy left the field in stable condition, and currently remains stable and will be undergoing further evaluation. League protocols were followed from both a medical and game operations perspective. We are grateful to the Angel City medical staff as well as to local paramedics who handled this difficult situation seamlessly. As always, the NWSL will review and determine if changes to that protocol need to be made. We share everyone’s concern about Savy, and our thoughts are with her, her family, the Utah Royals players and staff, and the Angel City players, staff and community.”
The league faced criticism for the decision to resume the game after King was substituted in the 84th minute. While continuing play is not against league rules and is common in sports, the NWSL`s own 2025 competition rules allow for the postponement, delay, or cancellation of a match in the event of a “serious incident, injury or fatality to a player… or other medical concern.” Among the critics was Royals head coach Jimmy Coenraets, who expressed that the game should not have continued.
“In those moments, I’m not sure if we should have continued the game,” Coenraets said after the match. “You’re emotionally — not only them, but also our players were just scared. That’s not the right situation to be in, but in the end, we played on. That’s the decision other people have taken, which is fine. It was a really tough moment… what do you want to focus on after the game? Yes, you have the result of the game, but you want to make sure people feel safe, healthy, and good, and I think that was the focus after the game for us.”
Trinity Rodman, the U.S. women’s national team and Washington Spirit forward, shared a similar view on Instagram Stories Saturday.
“Prayers for [King] as well as her loved ones and the players that were on that field,” Rodman posted. “In no world should that game have continued…”
A Frightening Situation
Angel City assistant coach Eleni Earnshaw, who was leading the team while interim head coach Sam Laity was suspended, also confirmed that the club’s medical staff and members of the player’s family were with King at the hospital. Earnshaw commended King’s teammates for their ability to respond effectively after the collapse.
“I just gave a shoutout in our locker room to Meg Reid, [who] as you know, is a trained paramedic,” Earnshaw stated in her post-match press conference. “While Christen [Press] and her teammates were instrumental in getting the group together… Meg saw out of the corner of her eye that they were starting to move Savy onto a stretcher and reiterated to the group that that was a really good sign. She just stepped into paramedic mode and helped calm the group, which was massive. It was still scary… My ask was that we were together, we stayed communicative throughout the rest of the game, keep each other concentrated and that we give our energy to Savy.”
Following the match’s conclusion, players from both Angel City and the Utah Royals gathered in a circle at midfield. The gesture was initiated by the Royals’ Alex Lorea, who had played alongside King at Bay FC the previous season.
“It was one of the Utah players that suggested it, that we get together. Some people prayed, some people shared their energy. Just to show unity in that moment in support of Savy without knowing the update at that time,” Earnshaw said. “It was obviously a scary situation to be in and, at that point, it was much bigger than football. Really grateful to the Utah player that did that, I can’t remember off the top of my head who it was but really grateful for it.”
Specific information regarding King’s current condition or a potential timeline for her return to play is not available at this time.
