Players from all ten NWSL teams – Chicago Red Stars, Houston Dash, Kansas City, North Carolina Courage, OL Reign, Orlando Pride, Portland Thorns, Racing Louisville, Sky Blue, Washington Spirit – are set to report to camp today, Feb. 1, 2021. They will spend the next five weeks preparing for the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup set to begin on April 9. The tournament will be played in home markets after receiving approval from the league’s Medical Task Force.
Following the Challenge Cup, the 10 NWSL teams will face one another in a 24-game regular season beginning May 15 running through Oct. 30. Managers will have to maneuver around losing international players who will participate in the Tokyo Olympics in July and August since there will be no break for the Olympic Games.
The top six teams will qualify for an expanded NWSL playoff set to start on Nov. 6, with the top two seeds receiving a first-round bye. The ninth league champions will be crowned on Nov. 20 after the NWSL Championship game between the two finalists. However, the NWSL Championship will not conclude the 2021 season.
The league plans to close out the 2021 campaign by introducing Angel City FC and Sacramento with the Expansion Draft on Dec. 16. Both teams will feature in the NWSL’s emblematic 10th anniversary season set for 2022.
Looks like NWSL 2021 dates are trickling out:
— Jeff Kassouf (@JeffKassouf) January 27, 2021
April 9 - Challenge Cup in home markets
May 15 - Start of regular season (ends Oct. 30) -- *no Olympic break*
Nov. 6 - Playoffs start
Nov. 20 - NWSL Championship
Dec. 16 - Expansion draft for Angel City FC and Sacramento
Angel City FC was announced on July 21, 2020, and quickly gained popularity with after revealing its women-oriented ownership group, including Mia Hamm, Billie Jean King, Serena Williams, Natalie Portman, amongst others. Another appealing feature that the club has to offer is its location, as it will represent the city of Los Angeles and play at the Banc of California Stadium.
On the other hand, Sacramento is still in the works as it has yet to release information about the franchise’s official name, logo, and home ground. Nonetheless, former USWNT coach Jill Ellis agreed to join Sacramento in a front-office role on Jan. 19, according to Meg Linehan and Jeff Rueter from The Athletic. It is believed that she will oversee the soccer operations for both the NWSL and Major League Soccer teams.
Per @itsmeglinehan and @jeffrueter, former USWNT head coach Jill Ellis has accepted a front office role with Sacramento. She will have responsibilities with their NWSL and MLS expansion teams
— Women's ICC (@iccwomen) January 29, 2021
: Brad Smith pic.twitter.com/F4rT8tcg0I
