Two of women's soccer's biggest names have had enough.
Portland Thorns stars Alex Morgan and Christine Sinclair ripped the NWSL in a pair of tweets over hotel accommodations in Kansas City, after the club's stay on the road apparently was accompanied by bed bugs. NWSL is in its third season, and finances have been a continuing issue for the nascent league–and past women's professional soccer leagues in the U.S. in general–but players have remained largely dormant until recently.
Morgan, the U.S. women's national team's star forward, and Sinclair, Canada's star forward, made sure that all were aware of the Thorns' experience at the Adams Mark Hotel in Missouri on last week's trip to play FC Kansas City, with their messages suggesting this was not a one-off situation:
Morgan, currently on the road with the U.S. women for a pair of post-World Cup friendlies against Costa Rica, has since deleted her message but echoed Sinclair, saying (with a period before the NWSL Twitter handle so all would see, not just those seeing her replies):
".@NWSL there's no other way to address continuing problems. Hotels have been unacceptable. For ex. :Bed bugs/mold @ Adams Mark Hotel in KC."
NWSL shared the following statement with SI.com in response to the incident:
"During a recent road trip, a Portland Thorns FC player reported finding bed bugs in her hotel room at the team hotel in Kansas City. The hotel apologized, quickly provided a new room, and insisted the problem had been corrected. Upon learning of the situation, the league immediately spoke with both clubs, and FC Kansas City had already addressed the issue. For the remainder of the season, rooms have already been secured at another hotel. Player safety and comfort is important to all teams of the NWSL, and we are always seeking ways to improve our club and league operations. We regret this situation and apologize to the player involved."
The whole situation also allowed for Thorns rival Seattle Reign to chime in with some comic relief:
Portland will host the NWSL championship game, the league officially announced on Monday, veering from the higher seed in the championship earning the right to host and opting for a neutral-site venue. Surely, the hotels for the participating teams will be up to standard.
