'Not joking': ChatGPT prompt that inspired Seattle Reign coach to change tactics in bid to get back to the top

The answer to finding a new strategy to put the Seattle Reign back on top of the NWSL table was one that coach Laura Harvey searched for at the start of the 2025 season.

But neither her players nor her coaching staff ever expected the inspiration for those successful tactical changes to come from an artificial intelligence platform, ChatGPT.

Harvey was re-appointed as head coach of the American side in 2021, having previously served in the top job between 2013 and 2017, before joining Arsenal and Birmingham City in the WSL in England.

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Upon returning to the United States, Harvey has seen a mixed bag of results produced by Seattle, with a second-to-last finish in 2024 placing immense pressure on the British manager to get the team back to their winning ways.

A remarkable turnaround in 2025 has seen the team soar back into the top four and secure a spot in this season's playoffs.

Reflecting on the path back to success, Harvey made a candid admission about how a simple off-season search inspired a new strategy for her team.

"One day in the off-season, I was writing things into ChatGPT like, 'What is Seattle Reign's identity?' It would spurt it out, and I was like, 'I don't know if that's true or not'," she told the Soccerish Podcast.

"Then I put in 'what formation should you play to beat NWSL teams?' and it spurted out every team in the league and what formation you should play.

"For two teams, it went 'you should play a back-five'. So I did. No joke, that's why I did it.

"It was early in the season and I said to the coaching staff, 'I'm not joking, this is what I did', and they were like, 'huh, interesting'."

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Harvey went on to explain that she had not done much research on the benefits of having a back-five formation in the women's game, as she had only ever seen it performed from afar in some men's games.

But the suggestions from ChatGPT made her want to investigate the tactic further.

"We thought about how we could play it and we went for it," Harvey continued.

"It didn't tell you how to play it or what to do in it or any of that stuff. It was just like 'this is what we would say to do'.

"I was like, 'Alright' ... it worked and we won the game."

Harvey did not pinpoint which two teams were recognised by ChatGPT, but Seattle Reign did notably use the back-five formation against the Orlando Pride in April.

It should be noted that strategy didn't work against Orlando, who won 1-0 in that match.

The strategy has now left teams unsure of what to expect when Seattle take the field, with Harvey revealing coaches have said her squad are "the hardest to prepare for."

"I hear coaches say, 'We don't know what you're going to do ... you defend in multiple ways' and I'm like 'yes'.

"I want everyone to not have a clue what we're going to do. I think that is amazing."

Seattle Reign are set to play their last game of the season against Orlando Pride, who sit third on the table. If Harvey's playing group are to win, they could move into third place.

That match will take place at Inter&Co Stadium on Monday, November 3 at 9.15am AEDT.