Current:Home > Invest2024 NWSL schedule includes expanded playoffs, break for Paris Olympics -Golden Horizon Investments
2024 NWSL schedule includes expanded playoffs, break for Paris Olympics
SafeX Pro Exchange View
Date:2025-04-10 12:33:13
After a historic 2023 season that served as the swan song for Megan Rapinoe, the NWSL is expanding its schedule for 2024.
In a media release posted on Thursday, the NWSL said this upcoming season will feature more games, a revised NWSL Challenge Cup format and a break for the Paris Olympics. Last month, the league announced a landmark four-year media rights deal that will see women's soccer on more broadcasts than ever.
In 2024, the NWSL will welcome Bay FC as an expansion team and the Utah Royals will rejoin the league to bring the team total to 14.
“The 2024 campaign represents a new era for the NWSL as we continue our efforts to deliver the best product in professional soccer," NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said in a statement.
Here is the information for the expanded 2024 NWSL schedule:
2024 NWSL Challenge Cup
The 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup will open with NJ/NY Gotham FC taking on San Diego Wave FC on March 15.
This is a new format where the previous season's NWSL champion takes on the winner of the NWSL Shield (the regular season winner). If the same team wins the championship and Shield, the Challenge Cup opener will be a rematch of last year's championship game.
Last year, the Challenge Cup prize pool was a record $1 million.
2024 NWSL season opener, length of schedule
The 2024 NWSL regular season kicks off on March 16.
Each team will play 26 matches, four more than last year, with a total of 182 total games across the season.
2024 NWSL Paris Olympics break
The 2024 NWSL schedule is built around FIFA windows and is set to allow players to compete for their national teams.
The CBA-mandated break will be July 8-14, followed by a break from July 15 to Aug. 18 to account for the Paris Olympics.
2024 NWSL expanded playoff format
Eight teams will qualify for the 2024 NWSL playoffs, two more than last season.
All eight teams will play in the quarterfinals, meaning the bye for the top two seeds has been eliminated.
- Quarterfinals: Nov. 9 and 10
- Semifinals: Nov. 16 and 17
- Championship: Nov. 23
2024 NWSL season broadcast schedule
There will be 118 NWSL matches shown on television or streaming in the 2024 season through the historic four-year media rights deal with CBS, ESPN, Amazon Prime Video and Scripps Sports.
Prime Video will stream Friday night matches. ION network, owned by Scripps Sports, will air a doubleheader each Saturday night. CBS Television Network and Paramount+ will have a regular-season package, as will ESPN's network (ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Deportes), which will feature English and Spanish broadcasts on ESPN+.
Coverage of the 2024 NWSL playoffs will be split among the companies in the media rights deal.
- Quarterfinals: Prime Video, CBS and Paramount+, ESPN/ABC
- Semifinals: CBS and Paramount+, ESPN/ABC
- Championship: CBS in primetime
veryGood! (3)
Related
- Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
- New Google alert will tell you when you appear in search, help remove personal information
- Q&A: Dominion Energy, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and Virginia’s Push Toward Renewables
- Student loan repayments will restart soon. What happens if you don't pay?
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- Busta Rhymes Details Mindf--k Moment During Sex That Kickstarted Weight Loss Journey
- NYC plans to house migrants on an island in the East River
- $1.55 billion Mega Millions jackpot is the 3rd largest in US history
- Friday the 13th luck? 13 past Mega Millions jackpot wins in December. See top 10 lottery prizes
- 4-year-old Michigan girl struck and run over by golf cart after fire department's dog lies down on vehicle's gas pedal
Ranking
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- Federal judge says California’s capital city can’t clear homeless camps during extreme heat
- India’s opposition targets Modi in their no-confidence motion over ethnic violence in Manipur state
- Lecturers in the UK refuse to mark exams in labor dispute, leaving thousands unable to graduate
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- Prebiotic sodas promise to boost your gut health. Here's what to eat instead
- Leader of Texas’ largest county takes leave from job for treatment of clinical depression
- Lecturers in the UK refuse to mark exams in labor dispute, leaving thousands unable to graduate
Recommendation
New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
'The Exorcist': That time William Friedkin gave us a tour of the movie's making
Influencer Kai Cenat announced a giveaway in New York. Chaos ensued
An Ohio election that revolves around abortion rights is fueled by national groups and money
Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
Brazil has 1.7 million Indigenous people, near double the count from prior census, government says
Teen said 'homophobic slurs' before O'Shae Sibley killing: Criminal complaint
Kim Kardashian Shares She Broke Her Shoulder