The New Year was supposed to kick off with joy, but for some, it brought unimaginable heartbreak. Let’s rewind to January 9, when the fierce Los Angeles wildfires swept through Hollywood Hills, leaving devastation in their wake. Among those affected was Angel City captain Ali Riley, whose childhood home was completely destroyed. Ali shared a heart-wrenching photo of the destruction, captioning it, “This was our home. How is this real? It can’t be real.” In another post, she wrote, “I was there Monday night eating dinner. Hanging with Mom and Dad. Watched the sunset. And now it’s gone forever.”

Her heartbreak resonated as she posted a video showing the charred remains of her neighborhood with a broken heart emoji. “Our entire neighborhood is gone,” she shared. “We are all safe. Holding on to that with my whole heart while we figure out what to do next.” And now, Angel City captain has given us an update of her childhood home which got destroyed in the LA fires.

On January 27th, Ali Riley took to her Instagram stories to share a gut-wrenching glimpse of her burned neighborhood—where everything she once knew had been reduced to ashes. Among the rubble stood one lonely, defiant reminder of her home: a single fireplace, tall and unyielding amidst the destruction.

Posting a picture of this poignant scene, Ali opened up in the caption: “Finally allowed to go into our zone. I needed to see the house in person. I’m sad and shocked but we still found joyful moments going through the rubble. I guess you hold on to anything you can…it’s a strange feeling.” Her words carried a raw mix of heartbreak and resilience, offering a glimpse into the bittersweet moments she found amid unimaginable loss.

But Ali Riley isn’t the only soccer star to face the devastating loss of a home to the relentless LA wildfires. LAFC star Carlos Vela and his wife Saioa Cañibano also lost their Malibu home to the fire. Cañibano posted on her Instagram story a video showing their house on fire and said, “Our beautiful Malibu home burned down yesterday… We are still in shock with everything that’s happening. It’s very sad and scary to see everything burning.” But circling back to Ali Riley, even after losing her home to the devastating fire, she still found little ways to hold onto joy!

Angel City Captain finds happiness for(ever)!

Despite the LA wildfires turning her childhood home into ashes, Angel City captain Ali Riley still found a reason to smile as wedding bells rang loud and clear! Only a few days after the disaster, Ali exchanged vows with her fiancé, Lucas Nilsson, in a beautiful wedding in Santa Rosa Valley. When asked by the Herald about the bittersweet moment, she said, “It gave us a few hours of joy.” Though not everyone could make it, she shared how much it meant to her parents to celebrate amidst the heartbreak. “It brought my parents so much excitement to be able to still do this and still celebrate,” she said through tears.

Her parents, however, barely escaped the flames. Reliving the scary incident that saw them flee their home in Pacific Palisades, Ali said a phone ring informed the family of the evacuation. “Luckily, they were home and able to pack both cars,” she said, but many of their friends were not so lucky. The fire had ravaged their house and by evening all that remained of the house was chimneys and steel girders. “Every single person lost their home. If you left a car, it had melted, basically,” Ali said, explaining the pain of seeing your belongings disappear. Yet, amidst all the rubble, they somehow found the strength to carry on with the wedding—a celebration that became a glimmer of hope in the chaos.

Ali later took to Instagram to share the emotional occasion. She reposted a stunning wedding photo with the caption, “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Together through it all. For the rest of our days.” Guests, including American football star Toni Deion Pressley, and another guest Sierra Nielsen, summed up the mood perfectly: “After a truly devastating week and their family losing everything in the fires, so grateful we were still able to come together for this magical day to celebrate these angels.” Ali’s elegant black-and-white shot of her gown, shared without a caption, spoke volumes—sometimes, even in ashes, love can rise like a phoenix.