The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Super League). The league comprises 16 teams. It is owned by the teams and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation. The NWSL is headquartered in New York City.
The NWSL was established in 2012 as the successor to Women's Professional Soccer (WPS; 2007–2012), which was itself the successor to the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA; 2000–2003). The league began play in 2013 with eight teams, four of which were former members of WPS: Boston Breakers, Chicago Red Stars, Sky Blue FC, and Western New York Flash.
Through the 2024 season, seven teams (one now defunct) have been crowned NWSL Champions, awarded to the playoff winner, and six teams (one defunct) have claimed the NWSL Shield, awarded to the team in first place at the end of the regular season. The current (2025) NWSL champions are Gotham FC. The current (2025) NWSL Shield winners are the Kansas City Current.
Competition format the NWSL regular season runs from March to November, after which the team with the highest point total is awarded the NWSL Shield. Each team is scheduled for 26 regular-season games, 13 home and 13 away; in 2026, this became 30 games to accommodate the expanded 16-team league. This is followed by a playoff tournament culminating in the NWSL championship game in late November to crown the league champion. In 2024, a full quarterfinal round was introduced, so the eight teams with the most points from the regular season qualify for the playoffs.
From 2021 to 2023, the playoffs included six teams, with the top two teams receiving byes to the semi-finals. Prior to 2021, the playoffs included only four teams. The number of regular-season matches also fluctuated between 20 and 24 in past seasons.
The league also plays the NWSL Challenge Cup, which since 2024 is a single-game super cup between the current NWSL Shield holder and current NWSL Champion. The Challenge Cup originated in 2020 as a way for all teams to return to play after the pause from the COVID-19 pandemic (though one team had to drop out because of COVID). It continued featuring all teams, occurring in 2021 and 2022 as a preseason tournament and in 2023 running concurrently with the season, until 2024.
CONCACAF W Champions Cup and international cups
Since the 2023 season, three teams qualify for the CONCACAF W Champions Cup. These spots are the playoff champions, the Shield winners, and Shield runners-up. Gotham FC won the inaugural 2024–25 CONCACAF W Champions Cup.
All 14 NWSL teams also competed in the 2024 NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup against six teams from the Mexican top division. Kansas City Current won the tournament.
History
Founding After Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) officially folded in April 2012, the United States Soccer Federation (US Soccer) announced a roundtable for discussion of the future of women's professional soccer in the United States. The meeting, which included representatives from US Soccer, WPS teams, the W-League (ceased operation in 2015), and the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL), was held in June. By November, after much discussion, owners from the Chicago Red Stars, Boston Breakers and US Soccer recruited an additional six teams. Compared to WPS, the teams would intentionally operate at a lower cost structure and manage growth in a sustainable way.
In November 2012, it was announced that there would be eight teams in a new women's professional soccer league that was yet to be named at the time of the announcement, with national team players subsidized by US Soccer, the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) and the Mexican Football Federation (FMF). The three federations would pay for the salaries of their national team players (24 from the US, 16 from Canada, and 12 to 16 from Mexico) to aid the teams in creating world-class rosters while staying under the salary cap. The players would be distributed evenly (as possible) among the eight teams in an allocation process. The teams would own the league, and the league would contract US Soccer to manage league operations. After the 2020 season, the league terminated its management contract with US Soccer.
On November 29, 2012, it was announced that Cheryl Bailey had been named executive director in the new league. Bailey had previously served as general manager of the United States women's national soccer team from 2007 to 2011, which included leading the support staff for the U.S. team during the 2007 and 2011 FIFA Women's World Cups, as well as the 2008 Summer Olympics. During her tenure with the women's national team, she was in charge of all areas of administration including interfacing with clubs, team travel, payroll, and working with FIFA, CONCACAF, and other federations.
The league name was announced in December 2012. Nike, Inc. was selected as league sponsor, providing apparel to all teams as well as the game ball.
Early years
The first NWSL game was held on April 13, 2013, as the Portland Thorns visited FC Kansas City, playing to a 1–1 draw in front of a crowd of 6,784 fans at Shawnee Mission District Stadium. Renae Cuellar scored the first goal in league history. The 2013 season saw regular-season attendance average of 4,270, with a high of 17,619 on August 4 for Kansas City at Portland.
The NWSL became the first U.S. professional women's soccer league to reach nine teams with the addition of Houston Dash, backed by Major League Soccer (MLS) team Houston Dynamo, in 2014; expansion interest, particularly from MLS and USL teams, has continued. The third season saw a shortened schedule and some early-season roster instability due to the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, but the World Cup also provided exposure to the NWSL, which was credited with boosting attendance numbers across the league.
The league also became the first professional women's league in the US to play more than three seasons when the league kicked off its fourth season in 2016.
Response to COVID-19 pandemic The 2020 season was initially postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and later canceled. Instead the league played the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup, a special competition hosted in the Salt Lake City region with no spectators. The cup began in late June, making the NWSL the first major U.S. team sports league to return to play. The league was the recipient of a federal loan through the Paycheck Protection Program, which it used to compensate players before the competition was able to begin. Later that year the league also played the NWSL Fall Series, a set of 18 games between teams within geographically restricted regions.
Teams Current teams
The NWSL teams are spread across the United States. Each club is allowed a minimum of 20 players on their roster, with a maximum of 22 players (26 when including supplemental players) allowed at any time during the season.
Originally, each team's roster included up to three allocated United States national team players, up to two allocated Mexico women's national team players, and up to two allocated Canadian national team players via the NWSL Player Allocation and subsequent trades. In addition, each team had four spots each season available for international players; these spots could be traded to other teams. The remaining roster spots were required to be filled by domestic players from the United States. Teams filled their rosters via a number of drafts and 4–6 discovery player signings. Mexico stopped allocating players to the NWSL, having established its own women's league in 2017, and the numbers of allocated players and international players on each team varied each year due to trades.
As of the 2022 season, the player allocation system was fully abolished. College and expansion drafts, as well as trades without player consent, were abolished as of the collective bargaining agreement between the league and NWSL Players Association during the 2024 season.
Of the 16 teams contesting the 2026 season:
Four share primary ownership, facilities, and staff with men's Major League Soccer teams: Houston Dash (Houston Dynamo FC) Orlando Pride (Orlando City SC; also NFL team Minnesota Vikings) Seattle Reign FC (Seattle Sounders FC) Utah Royals (Real Salt Lake) Two share primary ownership, facilities, and staff with current or former men's teams of the United Soccer League: North Carolina Courage (North Carolina FC, formerly of USL Championship and USL League One) Racing Louisville FC (Louisville City FC of USL Championship) Three are part of multi-club ownership groups that also own women's soccer clubs in other leagues: Bay FC is part of Bay Collective, a portfolio of women's soccer clubs owned by Sixth Street Partners that includes Sunderland A.F.C. Women Kansas City Current is part of Ballard Capital, a portfolio of women's soccer clubs owned by Angie and Chris Long that includes HB Køge Washington Spirit is part of Kynisca, a portfolio of women's soccer clubs owned by Michele Kang that includes OL Lyonnes and London City Lionesses Portland Thorns FC shares primary ownership, staff, and training facilities with the Portland Fire basketball team of the WNBA Six are operated independently of other clubs: Angel City FC (with MLS club Los Angeles FC holding a minority stake) Boston Legacy FC Chicago Stars FC Denver Summit FC Gotham FC San Diego Wave FC
+Overview of National Women's Soccer League teams Team Location Stadium Founded Joined Head coach Men's affiliateAngel City FC Los Angeles, California BMO Stadium 2020 2022 Leif Gunnar Smerud(interim) Bay FC San Jose, California PayPal Park 2023 2024 Boston Legacy FC Foxborough, Massachusetts Gillette Stadium 2023 2026 Chicago Stars FC Evanston, Illinois Martin Stadium 2006 2013 Karina Báez (interim) Denver Summit FC Centennial, Colorado Centennial Stadium 2025 2026 Gotham FC Harrison, New Jersey Sports Illustrated Stadium 2007 2013 Houston Dash Houston, Texas Shell Energy Stadium 2013 2014 Jaime Frías (interim) Houston Dynamo FC (MLS)Kansas City Current Kansas City, Missouri CPKC Stadium 2020 2021 North Carolina Courage Cary, North Carolina WakeMed Soccer Park 2017 2017 North Carolina FC (inactive; formerly USLC and USL1)Orlando Pride Orlando, Florida Inter.co Stadium 2015 2016 (interim) Orlando City SC (MLS)Portland Thorns FC Portland, Oregon Providence Park 2012 2013 Racing Louisville FC Louisville, Kentucky Lynn Family Stadium 2019 2021 Louisville City FC (USLC)San Diego Wave FC San Diego, California Snapdragon Stadium 2021 2022 Seattle Reign FC Seattle, Washington Lumen Field 2012 2013 Seattle Sounders FC (MLS)Utah Royals Sandy, Utah America First Field 2017 2024 Real Salt Lake (MLS)Washington Spirit Washington, D.C. Audi Field 2012 2013
Future teams +Overview of planned National Women's Soccer League teams Team Location Stadium Founded Joining Head coach Men's affiliateAtlanta City FC Atlanta, Georgia Mercedes-Benz Stadium 2025 2028 TBA Atlanta United FC (MLS)Columbus NWSL teamColumbus, OhioScottsMiracle-Gro Field20262028TBAColumbus Crew (MLS)
Former teams +Overview of former and defunct National Women's Soccer League teams Team Location Stadium Founded Joined Last NWSL seasonBoston Breakers Boston, Massachusetts Jordan Field200720132017FC Kansas City Kansas City, Missouri Swope Soccer Village201220132017Western New York Flash Rochester, New York Sahlen's Stadium200820132016
Membership timeline
Expansion