How Utah Royals climbed to fifth in NWSL table with a four-game winning streak: 'It's not just winning games'

In between the club retooled the roster, sending highly drafted prospect Ally Sentnor to Kansas City Current for a $600,000 intra-league transer fee. Ahead of the 2026 season, they added more pieces to the puzzle, trading for Japanese midfielder Narumi Miura from Washington Spirit,and signed defender Tatum Milazzo and midfielder Miyabi Moriya in free agency.

It's all part of a longer process of culture building for the young club. That seems to be paying off, at the moment, with trust in the plan.

"I think the one thing that's happening right now is that we're having a shift. I think as a staff, our focus was to create this environment and to make sure that everyone understood what the standards are and what we want to be this season. I think now we're seeing the shift where players are holding each other accountable, and the players are actually driving it, whether it's a re-entry day, whether it's a match day minus two, you just feel that players really understand what will bring us success this season," Coenraets said.

"I'm probably 50% less vocal at practice at the minute, just because the players know. And it's becoming a habit. It's becoming a behavior. And again, those are the things we control, and that's what we want to keep on pushing on. Control your controllables. And this is definitely every time you show up. We don't want to be outworked."

Getting off to a historic best start is just one part of the process. The 2026 NWSL regular season is the longest version ever, with every club managing a 30-game slate for the first time in league history.

For a club that is used to having late-season surges, stringing results together over an entire year will have its own set of challenges. Getting off to a successful start could help set the club up for later success if there is a playoff push down the line.

While the season is nowhere close to finished, Utah's trajectory isn't just some overnight success; the early returns are promising. It's no doubt helpful that players stepping up this season have been with the club since its first year, from Paige Cronin to Canadian international Cloe Lecasse.

"I think this season, we've been very focused on having a very strong first five to 10 minutes. We don't want to come onto the pitch asleep. We want to definitely set the tone right from the beginning. And I think the last couple of games, we've showcased that very well," said Lacasse.

"We just want to set the tone of a game... So now it's just about carrying that forward throughout a full 90, but it is a progress for sure."

The Royals have another quick turnaround after hosting Houston Dash on Wednesday; the roster will head to Northern California to face Bay FC on Sunday.

Viewing information

• Date: Wednesday, May 6 | Time: 10 p.m. ET
• Location: America First Field -- Sandy
• **TV:**CBS Sports Network | Live stream: Paramount+