Why the atmosphere around the KC Current is different as 2024 NWSL season nears

The Kansas City Current returned to the heartland this week from sunny Southern California, where the team kicked off its 2024 preseason.

And deep into week three of prep for the club’s highly anticipated first season at brand new CPKC Stadium, something’s different.

“It’s honestly night and day from last year,” veteran KC Current forward Kristen Hamilton said.

One year ago, the Current entered the preseason having made it to the NWSL’s championship game the previous fall. General manager Camille Ashton put together a roster that, on paper, was strong enough for many to call the Current the “winners” of the offseason.

Given the heights they’d reached in 2022 and firepower they’d added the ensuing offseason, a playoff berth was all but assumed for 2023. Instead, the Current ended a disastrous campaign in 11th place and missed the playoffs altogether.

Injuries decimated a squad that for much of the season was digging into the deepest recesses of its roster. The quick-trigger firing of coach Matt Potter and multiple staff changes manifested themselves as volatility on the pitch.

The Current underwent a complete philosophy change in the middle of the season when Potter was ousted and Caroline Sjöblom took over on an interim basis. With a constantly changing cast of healthy players, Sjöblom didn’t always have the right players available to fit her system.

Even if unintentional, Hamilton’s comment — “night and day” — is an indictment of the Current’s 2023 season. And what she said next sets the bar high for this year’s team.

“The mentality, the work ethic, the grit and the fight that we already have within this first week is something that I haven’t experienced in a really long time,” she said. “It’s a special group already.”

Coming from the league’s all-time leader in championship game appearances, that’s saying something. So what’s the difference?

“We have a really competent staff (and) front office — everyone around us,” Hamilton said.

That staff — led by new coach and technical director (and former USWNT coach) Vlatko Andonovski — is almost entirely new. The sporting department’s staff has been increased significantly, rumored to be up to 30, or double its size from 2023.

It’s hard not to see Andonovski’s hand in this.

“Vlatko definitely brings the energy for us,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton said a few players came in early for some training sessions, enabling them to get guidance from Andonovski. They learned Andonovski is big on accountability, and that set a tone.

“He demands excellence, he demands perfection — an ‘if you’re not gonna get the job done, we’ll find somebody who will’ mentality,” Hamilton said. “Honestly, it’s good. It’s what I feel a professional environment should be.”

Hamilton said this environment extends to the new players brought in this offseason by Ashton, the team’s GM, and Andonovski.

“Vlatko and Cami and the front office did a really good job of getting talent in every position so that nobody really feels that comfortable,” Hamilton said. “Which, I think, is a really good thing. It kind of pushes the standard and keeps you on your toes.”

There are 10 new players on this year’s roster, women who bring a mix of international and NWSL experience. A few are at points in their career where they’re ready to establish themselves, and some are seasoned veterans like Bia Zaneratto.

“The starting point is building a competitive roster,” Andonovksi said. “I think the players that we brought are good players; the players that stayed are good players.

“So altogether, the roster is very good, quality players. And every single one of them is a contender.”

Expectations were high for 2023, but the club has turned the page on the past. Now there’s excitement about the Current’s March 16 season opener against the Portland Thorns at the team’s new stadium.

“We are held to a higher standard this year,” Hamilton said. “So I think that those little things and those little mistakes that kept us out of the playoffs will hopefully be a thing of the past.”