Brittany Ratcliffe is entering the tenth year of her professional career, her second with the Washington Spirit after signing with the team in January 2024 as a free agent in a deal that runs through 2026. The Spirit are Ratcliffe’s sixth NWSL team, but when asked to reflect on her decision to move to DC, Ratcliffe joked that it felt like she’d already been there for ten years, “in a good way,” and is happy with her decision.
When she arrived in Washington, Ratcliffe cited Michele Kang’s vision as part of the draw, wanting to be a part of an organization that is forthcoming about both their aspirations and their values, unafraid to challenge the established ideas of what it meant to be an athlete in the NWSL and in women’s sports at large. You don’t have to be around the Spirit organization for long for that to feel like a canned response you’ll hear from any newcomer, but to spend any time around this organization is to also know that it’s true – and a year on, Ratcliffe’s stance hasn’t changed.
“It’s not always about results,” Ratcliffe shared candidly from preseason camp in Florida, where the Spirit have escaped from the blustery DC-area winter, “even if we didn’t have the year we had, I still would’ve been happy.”
That year included a second place finish in the regular season standings and a run to the NWSL Championship. Ratcliffe only started three regular season matches, but made 23 appearances, a career high. She scored two game-winning goals on the road, in Houston and Chicago. In Chicago, the forward also had her first career brace. The final regular season game of 2024 marked Ratcliffe’s 100th NWSL regular season appearance in a career that has taken her around the NWSL and the country.
Drafted in 2016 to Boston after spending her college career at the University of Virginia, Ratcliffe was waived by the team in early 2017. She would spend the 2017 preseason in Chicago and eventually sign with FC Kansas City for the 2017 season. She was there when the team folded, making her way to the first iteration of the Utah Royals, where she’d play until the club’s assets were transferred to the now-Kansas City Current. After one match in Kansas City, Ratcliffe was signed by North Carolina in 2021, where she’d win the 2022 and 2023 Challenge Cup before departing in free agency.
It’s no wonder, then, for a player who was looking to play closer to home, home for Ratcliffe being South Jersey, that DC made sense. Last season’s Summer Cup even offered the opportunity to play two matches in Philadelphia, about as close to playing at home as Ratcliffe can get.
As Head Coach Jonaton Giráldez has cited concern with the team’s away performances and noted it as an area of improvement for the Spirit this season, it’s hard to ignore that this is an area where a player like Brittany Ratcliffe can continue to shine.
“Obviously, you want to win a championship, you want to have a good year,” Ratcliffe clarified, “I think what we do, for the girls, for the sport; my day-to-day is really enjoyable and it’s super professional, and it’s everything a professional athlete would want. I’m really happy and the girls are super great so, in terms of reflecting, I’m really happy, and yeah, it’s been a great experience.”
After ending 2024 with a 1-0 loss, leaving the NWSL Championship empty-handed, Ratcliffe and the Spirit will soon take on the Orlando Pride in a Championship rematch. The Spirit travel to Inter+Co stadium for the 2025 Challenge Cup on Friday, March 7 at 8:00 pm, available domestically on Prime Video and internationally on NWSL+ in most markets.
If the Spirit are successful, Brittany Ratcliffe will return home with her third Challenge Cup.