The 2026 NWSL regular season went off with a bang, with several events shaking the table on the curious Decision Day. Gotham FC won its first game with a 2-0 win over the Utah Royals, while a 1-0 victory over the Orlando Pride was enough to draw the Seattle Real into a playoff spot.
The NWSL Shield and the final playoff slot came down to the final day of play, with Gotham hoping to make a dent in second-place San Diego and the Kingdom hoping to close out the season. The league began Sunday with seven of the eight NCAA spots already filled, but with plenty of things that could be shaken up.
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Gotham didn’t want to take the lead against the Utah Royals, as Guro Reiten found the back of the net in the ninth minute of the game. Jaedyn Shaw then sealed their chances with another goal in the 80th minute.
Gotham, which has won two out of three NWSL Championships, will now add its first NWSL Shield to its trophy case. The team finished with 61 points and an 18W-7D-5L record.
In the middle of the table, the eighth and final slot is down to three teams: Kingdom, North Carolina Hearts and Denver Summit. With the heart and the peak of playing against each other at the end of the year, Seattle needs to win and go to their season on Decision Day.
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Despite dominating the game, the Kingdom was unable to find the back of the net until the 60th minute, when Seattle defender Jordyn Bugg hit a beautiful shot past Pride keeper Cosette Morché. The king was immediately delighted, knowing that he could probably smile quite a bit.
The extra weight he took in Seattle on Sunday was the last home game for club legend Jess Fishlock, who will be returning later this year. (Seattle, as the eighth-seeded team, will not make the playoffs.)
Moments after the Kingdom officially won, North Carolina finally broke the deadlock with Denver thanks to a goal by Kaleigh Kurtz — but it was too late in a game that was one way short of a playoff spot. North Carolina advanced and 2026 Golden Boot winner Ashley Sanchez, who tied the NWSL single-season goals record with 20, was forced to see her MVP-winning season come to an unexpected end.
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Meanwhile, the rest of the eight-game schedule had significant implications. The Washington Spirit and Kansas City Current picked up key wins to secure home-field advantage for the quarterfinals. Angel City FC sent off the famous mid-table with a dominant 4-1 win over Boston Legacy.
NWSL 2026 playoff seeds:
Gotham FC — 61 points, 18W-7D-5L
San Diego Wave FC — 58 points, 18W-4D-8L
Washington Spirit — 55 points, 17W-4D-9L
Kansas City Current – 53 points, 16W-5D-9L
Angel City FC – 52 points, 15W-7D-8L
Portland Thorns FC – 50 points, 14W-8D-8L
Utah Royals FC – 47 points, 14W-5D-11L
Seattle Reigns FC – 47 points, 14W-5D-11L
Quarterfinal matchups
No. 1 Gotham vs. No
No. 2 Wave vs. No. 7 Royals
No. 3 Spirit vs. No
No. 4 Current vs. No. 5 Angel City