OL Reign, now Seattle Reign, hasn’t been at its best since the 2024/25 NWSL season kicked off. Last weekend, they endured a shocking defeat in a 5-goal thriller against Washington Spirits. But the spotlight of the match was stolen by their star player Nikki Stanton, who suffered a horrific injury. In a heartfelt gesture, Serena Williams‘ husband, Alexis Ohanian, who despite rivalry, penned a 3-word message for Stanton.

It came after the Reddit founder took to Instagram and shared the incident involving the midfielder via a clip posted by @offseasonfc, a venture he started with USWNT star Midge Purce earlier. Additionally, he wrote a caption saying, “Get well soon @nikkiguti07,” while also adding a gasping emoji of his own Instagram avatar sticker. Simultaneously, the Angel City co-owner also informed via his story that the full news regarding her injury will be dropping soon on the OffSeason FC. But how did Stanton suffer the blow in the first place?

Well, the American midfielder was brought before the second half kicked off. In one of the goal kicks taken by the Spirits’ goalkeeper, Stanton jumped high in the air to defend the ball from going past her own half. Unfortunately, her face collided with the head of the opposition’s substitute, Courtney Brown. Within seconds, Stanton was seen keeping her hand on the nose as it started to bleed significantly. Interestingly, in the same clip, the 33-year-old’s selfie that she shared post-match on her Instagram was also added in the clip showcasing the incident.

Either way, it’s good that she sustained just a minor collision and it was a major blow, a situation that currently Serena Williams’ Angel City is dealing with!

Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian-backed Angel City continues to stumble with key absence!

Earlier, before the beginning of the season, Angel City forward Jun Endo suffered an ACL injury during the club’s preseason camp in Melbourne. Coach Becki Tweed dropped the unfortunate update that she would be missing the remainder of her NWSL season with the team. While it turned out to be a huge blow, Angel City received a major boost.

Christen Press, who was also sidelined with an ACL injury since June 2022, returned to training months ago. Luckily, she can try to make a return to action by recovering quickly. Yet, with such absences, the Los Angeles-based club is suffering in the NWSL table, sitting at 11th place with just 11 points, having won just 3, drawn 2, and lost 5.

Certainly, they must find their way to the top. Otherwise, this season would also end in disappointment for Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian’s side.