The 2021 NWSL calendar is set to kick off on February 1, when players are scheduled to report to preseason camps. However, players will have to wait months until they take the pitch for competitive matches.
The NWSL's main goal in 2021 is to work around the delayed 2021 Olympics. As a result, the Challenge Cup will take place ahead of the regular season and will not be taking place during the summer. The 2021 Challenge Cup will take place in multiple bubble environments, team markets, or some combination of the two, in mid-April.
"Bringing back the Challenge Cup is an opportunity for our league to continue growing our fan base and showcase our world class players with an exciting and competitive tournament ahead of the most important international tournament on the 2021 calendar, the Olympic Games," said NWSL Chief Revenue Officer Mitch Poll. "We're focused on continuing to build opportunities to expand our reach, expose a global audience to the best women's club soccer in the world, and provide meaningful opportunities for our teams and players to perform."
Following the second edition of the Challenge Cup, the NWSL'S 2021 regular season will kick off in mid-May. Each of the ten teams will play 24 matches and six teams will qualify to the expanded NWSL playoffs set to take place in November 2021, with the top two seeds receiving a first-round bye. And the season is set to conclude during the weekend of Nov. 20, when the NWSL Championship will go down. The full league schedule will be released later.
