The largest edition of the NWSL playoffs take place on Friday with the league expanding from six to eight teams, teasing an entertaining round of quarterfinal matches after a fascinating regular season.
The focus of the quarterfinals will be on the regular season’s top four teams, who built a 16 point gap between them and the rest of the league. They will be considered the favorites in their quarterfinal games, while the rest will enter this weekend’s action as true underdogs. That does not mean that the lower seeds do not boast strengths of their own that could see them advance to the semifinals, especially in win-or-go-home games.
Before the action begins, here’s an overview of each NWSL playoff contender.
Quarterfinals schedule
All times Eastern
Friday, Nov. 8
Orlando Pride vs. Chicago Red Stars, 8 p.m. (Prime)
Saturday, Nov. 9
Kansas City Current vs. North Carolina Courage, 12 p.m. (CBS)
Sunday, Nov. 10
Washington Spirit vs. Bay FC, 12:30 p.m. (ABC)
NJ/NY Gotham FC vs. Portland Thorns FC 3 p.m. (ABC)
1. Orlando Pride (60 points, 18-2-6)
Head coach: Seb Hines
Player to watch: Barbra Banda
One of the NWSL’s perennial bottom-dwellers, their fortunes finally reversed this season after a successful rebuild led by sporting director Haley Carter and head coach Seb Hines. They won the NWSL Shield and registered the league’s longest unbeaten run at 23 games, and aim to add to their accomplishments in their first-ever playoff run. Barbra Banda will no doubt be a focal point after scoring 13 goals in the regular season, though she’s not the only source of their strikes – Marta has nine this season, while Adriana has six. Even with their offensive exploits, the Pride also boast one of the league’s best defenses after conceding only 20 goals.
2. Washington Spirit (56 points, 18-6-2)
Head coach: Jonatan Giraldez
Player to watch: Trinity Rodman
The 2021 champions, the Washington Spirit have barely missed a beat this season, even as they had to wait until the summer for new head coach Jonatan Giraldez to join the group. They are another high-scoring side with several attack-minded stars, but U.S. women’s national team star Trinity Rodman rises above the rest. She has eight goals and six assists this season, and is back just in time after dealing with a minor injury about a month ago.
3. NJ/NY Gotham FC (56 points, 17-4-5)
Head coach: Juan Carlos Amoros
Player to watch: Yazmeen Ryan
They may have been the surprise champions a year ago, but NJ/NY Gotham FC have built a true contender this year. They are the NWSL’s super team after signing four USWNT stars over the winter during the free agency window, but their strength is that they have many high-impact players. One of them is Yazmeen Ryan, who earned her first USWNT caps in October after another impressive season in the NWSL, scoring five goals and five assists in the regular season. Keep an eye on Gotham’s defense, too – like the Pride, they have only conceded 20 goals this season, with goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger standing out in her first season with the club.
4. Kansas City Current (55 points, 16-3-7)
Head coach: Vlatko Andonovski
Player to watch: Lo’eau LaBonta
The Kansas City Current were one of the most entertaining teams to watch in the NWSL this season, at times scoring and conceding in nearly equal measure. Their defensive effort has improved over the course of the season after signing goalkeeper Almuth Schult and defender Kayla Sharples, but they have not abandoned their high-scoring tendencies. They could, though, be without the regular season’s top scorer Temwa Chawinga with an injury. It could complicate matters for the Current but they are not exactly without scoring options – veteran Lo’eau LaBonta has six goals this season.
5. North Carolina Courage (39 points, 12-11-3)
Head coach: Sean Nahas
Player to watch: Ashley Sanchez
Historically one of the NWSL’s better teams, inconsistency got in the North Carolina Courage’s way at times this season. Though they boast one of the better defensive records for the playoff teams, they rank 10th in the league for expected goals this season. Their attack, though, does have some positives courtesy of Ashley Sanchez, who was a surprising draft day trade from the Spirit. She has five goals and four assists this season, a showing good enough to get her back on the USWNT after about a year away from the group.
6. Portland Thorns (34 points, 10-12-4)
Head coach: Rob Gale
Player to watch: Sam Coffey
The Portland Thorns are the NWSL’s most successful team, but they were far from their best in 2024. Their somewhat-porous defense has been saved by an impactful offense, which ranks fifth in the league with 35 goals in the regular season. Sophia Smith is responsible for 12 of them and also has six assists this season, but if the Thorns are going to make it out of this one, Sam Coffey will likely be key as a tone-setting midfielder.
7. Bay FC (34 points, 11-14-1)
Head coach: Albertin Montoya
Player to watch: Rachael Kundananji
Only the second-ever NWSL expansion team to make the postseason, Bay FC recovered from a poor start and found some consistency to land a playoff spot. They have become defensively cleaner over the course of the season after conceding in large numbers at the start of the year, with the addition of 2019 Women’s World Cup winner Abby Dahlkemper helping their case. Bay will still be able to count on some high-profile forwards to bolster their chances, including Rachael Kundananji. She has five goals and four assists this season, a nice showing after Bay paid a record transfer fee for her services in the winter.
8. Chicago Red Stars (32 points, 10-14-2)
Head coach: Lorne Donaldson
Player to watch: Mallory Swanson
Though they booked a spot in the postseason weeks ago, an end-of-season skid meant they slipped from sixth to eight in the regular season’s final weeks. Overcoming that slide against the Shield winners will be no small feat, especially since the Red Stars rank 13th in the league for expected goals. If there’s anyone who can ensure that the Red Stars are on the scoresheet, though, it’s Mallory Swanson, who has seven goals and four assists in her first full season since recovering from a serious knee injury.
