Angel City FC defender Savy King is set for a return to action after the club announced Saturday that she had been removed from the National Women’s Soccer League’s season-ending injury list (SEI).
King has been on the SEI since suffering a cardiac event during a match on May 9, 2025. She subsequently underwent open-heart surgery, after doctors discovered she had a rare congenital heart condition, and began a rehabilitation process in hopes of returning to the pitch for the 2026 NWSL season.
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«I’ve been doing everything possible in my power to be on the pitch in a game again. I’m so excited to be back and to be in a position to return to the pitch,» King told ESPN this week. «I think it’s going to be such a big moment for not just me but my family, the club, really everyone that has experienced something really hard in their life, especially a cardiac event.»
King will be available for Angel City’s preseason exhibition matches at the Coachella Valley Invitational, as well as the club’s regular season which begins March 15 at BMO Stadium.
«The goal for me is to be back by the first game,» King said. «It’s been a long journey, but I feel more ready than ever. And I don’t want people to be worried or scared about me being back out there because I’m ready. I’ve been focusing a lot on the mental aspect of everything, just to make sure I’m ready. Physically, I feel totally good. Mentally, I’ve been doing really well.»
👑 Here comes Savy King! 👑 pic.twitter.com/J2J5SJXTSx
— Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) February 14, 2026
During the summer of 2025, King graduated from cardiac rehab at Cedars Sinai and was cleared to return to Angel City’s training facility for non-contact practice in the fall. This preseason, King was fully cleared for contact practice and returned to full practice with her Angel City teammates.
«It meant the world to be back,» King added about returning back to the training facility after months in cardiac rehab. «Most of my recovery process was actually done away from Angel City. So when I got to come back to the training facility, it was just incredible. And it had been a long time coming.
«At first I couldn’t do much but it didn’t matter because I was there, I was back with my team. And I just knew that I was back.»
A few months after her cardiac event, King created Savy King of Hearts, a nonprofit dedicated to providing CPR awareness, preventive screenings and heart health advocacy.
King announced a new initiative last November with her nonprofit to provide free CPR training to all 16 NWSL teams. The initiative, in conjunction with the NWSL and the American Heart Association, will include free CPR training for all players, coaches and staff. King’s initiative makes the NWSL the first American professional sports league to have players, coaches and staff from all teams trained in CPR.
King was drafted second overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft by Bay FC, making 20 NWSL match appearances in her rookie season and earning two assists in 1,220 minutes on the pitch.
King was traded to Angel City in February 2025, where she signed a contract extension with the club through 2028. The Los Angeles native started in all seven Angel City matches, playing over 600 minutes for the club, before suffering her cardiac event on the pitch in May.
