April 21, 2026

Just three days before the start of the 2026 season, 2018 MVP and three-time First Team All-UFA selection Rowan McDonnell is signing with the reigning champion Boston Glory. The acquisition of McDonnell alongside the returns of Jeff Babbitt (2023 and 2024 MVP) and Tobe Decraene (2025) makes Boston just the second franchise in league history to roster three MVPs, but the first-ever to include all three in an active lineup; Babbitt won the 2023 MVP with the New York Empire after the conclusion of the season, and then never played another game with the team. McDonnell now joins fellow former Breeze star Thomas Edmonds as the headline additions in Boston’s pursuit of a repeat. 

DC and Boston square off in the Week 1 “Game Of The Week” showcase this Saturday night on watchUFA TV.

A member of the DC Breeze for the past nine seasons of his pro career, McDonnell departed the team as the franchise leader in games played, scores, assists, goals, blocks, completions, and total yards.  Starting with McDonnell’s rookie season in 2016, the Breeze have made nine straight playoff appearances, the longest active streak in the UFA. In 2024, DC won its first and only East Division title before falling to the eventual champion Minnesota Wind Chill in the semifinals. 

McDonnell turns 37 on June 1, and is coming off a season where he led the Breeze in scoring; his 4.71 scores per game in 2025 was McDonnell’s second highest total since his MVP season in 2018. Boston will be without WR1 Orion Cable this Saturday, and fellow offensive starter Simon Carapella is listed as questionable, which gives a lot of opportunity for McDonnell to make a big Glory debut in Boston.