Home—That’s how Christen Press described her reaction on social media after seeing Angel City FC’s performance center. Indeed, the perfect word to capture her joy at finally training in one of the top facilities in NWSL. But beyond her excitement lies a deeper, more ‘profound‘ message, connecting to her teammate Ali Riley’s heartbreaking story of losing her home in the LA wildfires.

There’s no place like home, they say. The feeling is the same for Press and her teammates when they cut the ribbon at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. “I’ve been completely overwhelmed with joy,” began the forward in the latest episode of the Re—Inc podcast. “Because we got to see our Angel City brand-new training facility for the very first time. It brought up a lot of feelings.”

But with joy, this moment also carried a deeper emotional weight that she could embrace. “Ali Riley, one of my teammates. She lost her family home in the fire. And on the very first day, she spoke about the importance of a house. It was really profound because we were standing in our new house, our new workhouse.”

Beyond the excitement of working with each other in their new playground, Press and her teammates could discover both joy and deep emotion. Of course, their new space symbolized growth and stability. However, Riley’s loss of her family home in the tragic LA incident adds an extra poignant contrast. The defender’s words about the importance of the house must have made that moment even more meaningful.

Then again, while addressing this touching story, Press didn’t forget how thrilled she was to work in her new office. “It is really spacious for us petite girly girls. I’m 36-year-old and I’m walking into the nicest locker room I will ever play in,” added the USWNT icon while praising its state-of-the-art facilities that she once could only dream of.

Notably, the players feel more spacious because Angel City took over this training center from the LA Rams. The NFL team used to train here, but they have moved to their new performance center in Woodland Hills. As for its perks, there are many. The ACFC training facility is spread across 9 acres. It features a full-sized training pitch and space for a smaller half-sized pitch.

Along with this, the 50,000 square feet of indoor area makes it the largest facility in the NWSL dedicated exclusively to one team. Additional amenities include a 5,400-square-foot gym, three locker rooms, a film room, a medical treatment and hydrotherapy area, and a children’s playroom, among other facilities. While the exact cost of refurbishing the facility was not revealed, Angel City described it as a “multimillion-dollar custom renovation.”

With such facilities, we aren’t surprised that the Angel City stars are thrilled with their new home. After all, one has to remember how things were for them in the past!

Christen Press extends gratitude to Angel City owners for investing in the ‘better future’ of the women’s game

In the same segment, Christen Press discussed the contrast Angel City faced. She recalled the ‘hard history’ of the team’s training facilities, noting that the new workplace improves their current situation and also secures the team’s future.

“It was built in the name of a better future for women and women athletes. We weren’t happy in our last facility. That gave us the opportunity to reimagine it,” she said.

“Well, it moved me,” concluded the American forward, praising owners Willow Bay and Bob Iger for their commending efforts in creating an environment that made the team feel like the best at what they do. Be that as it may, it’s great to hear how the new training facility has fostered a close-knit atmosphere.

These revelations also highlight how the team’s drive to work hard and rally together for success has grown stronger.