NWSL Announces Framework for 2021 Season and Challenge Cup

The National Women’s Soccer League announced the framework for the league’s 2021 season today. The 2021 season, which includes a scheduled 24-match regular season, and an expanded six-team playoff format will also see the return of the NWSL Challenge Cup 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.” 

NWSL players will report for preseason on February 1. The Challenge Cup, which will commence in mid-April, will be held in bubble environments, team markets, or some combination of the two, pending guidance from the NWSL Medical Taskforce. 

The NWSL regular season will begin in mid-May. The league’s 10 teams are scheduled to play 24 matches each, with the full schedule to be announced later. At the conclusion of the regular season, the top six teams in the league table will qualify for the playoffs, with the top two seeds receiving a first-round bye. 

The NWSL Championship will be played the weekend of November 20. Further announcements about the Championship and the playoff format will be revealed later.