Post by Monika on Feb 21, 2022 18:25:32 GMT -8
(Graphic via Portland Thorns)
The National Women's Soccer League has released it's full schedule for the 2022 Challenge Cup. Each of the league's 12 teams will play six games and leading up to a single championship game on May 7.
The Thorns won the 2021 Challenge Cup featured all 10 NWSL teams at the time. The Thorns finished the West Division standings with 10 points on 3-0-1 mark. They faced NJ/NY Gotham FC for the championship on May 8. After the teams drew to a 1-1 tie after regulation and overtime, the Thorns won the Cup on with a thrilling 6-5 advantage in penalty kicks.
The first year of the Challenge Cup took place in 2020, during which all games were held at a single location in Salt Lake City, Utah. This was done due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Portland Thorns FC finished that tournament with a mark of 0-3-1 and in eighth place. That put them up against the North Carolina Courage, the number one seed, in the first round. The Thorns emerged with a 1-0 win over the Courage. However, the Thorns fell to the Houston Dash, 2-0, in the semifinal round. The Dash went on to defeat the Chicago Red Stars, 2-0, to earn the championship.
A full season will be held following the Challenge Cup, though that schedule has yet to be released. The league underwent a some changes in the offseason; most notably the addition of expansion franchises Angel City FC (Los Angeles) and San Diego Wave FC. The addition of the teams expanded the league to 12 teams from 10 a year ago. The league also split into three divisions with the expansion teams joining the Thorns and OL Reign (Seattle/Tacoma). The full division breakdown is below.
The NWSL typically has broadcast and/or streaming options. That specific broadcast information will be added in the schedule below when it becomes available.
Our schedule includes all dates, times and broadcast information for each match(when available), including the semifinals and championship match. The Thorns' matches are scheduled for April 9, 15, 21, and May 2. Thorns' games are highlighted in Bold Green. All times on this schedule are pacific time and are subject to change. Click on the final score of the match for the official NWSL boxscore and other information about the result of that match.
Schedule
FRIDAY, MARCH 18
Kansas City Current 1, Racing Louisville FC (H) 1
Portland Thorns FC 1, OL Reign (H) 1
SATURDAY, MARCH 19
Washington Spirit 0, Orlando Pride (H) 0
North Carolina Courage (H) 2, NJ/NY Gotham FC 0
San Diego Wave FC 1, Angel City FC (H) 1
SUNDAY, MARCH 20
Chicago Red Stars 3, Houston Dash (H) 1
FRIDAY, MARCH 25
Houston Dash 3, Racing Louisville FC (H) 2
NJ/NY Gotham FC 1, Washington Spirit (H) 1
Kansas City Current 2, Chicago Red Stars (H) 1
SATURDAY, MARCH 26
OL Reign 3, Angel City FC (H) 1
North Carolina Courage (H) 1, Orlando Pride 0
Portland Thorns FC 1, San Diego Wave FC (H) 0
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30
NJ/NY Gotham 1 Orlando Pride (H) 0
North Carolina Courage 2, Washington Spirit (H) 2
Racing Louisville FC 0, Chicago Red Stars (H) 0
Kansas City Current 3, at Houston Dash (H) 0
Portland Thorns FC 3, Angel City FC (H) 0
SATURDAY, APRIL 2
Racing Louisville FC 3, Kansas City Current (H) 0
San Diego Wave FC (H) 4, Angel City FC 2
Chicago Red Stars (H) 2, Houston Dash 0
OL Reign 1, Portland Thorns FC (H) 0
SUNDAY, APRIL 3
North Carolina Courage 1, NJ/NY Gotham FC (H) 1
Washington Spirit (H) 4, Orlando Pride 1
THURSDAY, APRIL 14
OL Reign (H) 3, San Diego Wave FC 1
FRIDAY, APRIL 15
Kansas City Current (H) 2, Houston Dash 1
SATURDAY, APRIL 16
North Courage Courage 4, Orlando Pride (H) 2
Chicago Red Stars 1, Racing Louisville (H) 1
SUNDAY, APRIL 17
Washington Spirit 3, NJ/NY Gotham (H) 1
Portland Thorns FC (H) 3, San Diego Wave FC 2
OL Reign (H) 2, Angel City FC 1
SATURDAY, APRIL 23
Washington Spirit 2, North Carolina Courage (H) 2
Orlando Pride 1, NJ/NY Gotham FC (H) 1
OL Reign 1, San Diego Wave FC (H) 1
SUNDAY, APRIL 24
Kansas City Current (H) 2, Chicago Red Stars 1
Houston Dash (H) 2, Racing Louisville FC 1
Angel City FC 1, Portland Thorns FC (H) 0
WEDNESDAY,MAY 4 - SEMIFINAL
Washington Spirit (H) 0, OL Reign 0 (SO 9-8)
North Carolina Courage 2, Kansas City Current (H) 1
SATURDAY, MAY 7 - CHAMPIONSHIP
North Carolina Courage (H) 2, Washington Spirit 1
Standings
WEST DIVISION
OL Reign 14 (4-0-2)
Portland Thorns FC 10 (3-2-1)
San Diego Wave FC 5 (1-3-2)
Angel City FC 4 (1-4-1)
CENTRAL DIVISION
Kansas City Current 13 (4-1-1)
Chicago Red Stars 8 (2-2-2)
Houston Dash 6 (2-4-0)
Racing Louisville FC 6 (1-2-3)
EAST DIVISION
North Carolina Courage 12 (3-0-3)
Washington Spirit 10 (2-0-4)
NJ/NY Gotham FC 6 (1-2-3)
Orlando Pride 2 (0-4-2)
NWSL Home Challenge Cup Pitches 2022
Angel City FC - Titan Stadium; Fullerton, California
Chicago Red Stars -- SeatGeek Stadium; Bridgeview, Illinois
Houston Dash -- BBVA Compass Stadium; Houston, Texas
Kansas City -- Children's Mercy Park; Kansas City, Kansas
North Carolina Courage -- WakeMed Soccer Park; Cary, North Carolina
Orlando Pride -- Exploria Stadium; Orlando, Florida
OL Reign FC -- Lumen Field; Seattle, Washington
Portland Thorns -- Providence Park; Portland, Oregon
Racing Louisville FC - Lynn Family Stadium; Louisville, Kentucky
NJ/NY Gotham FC -- Red Bull Stadium; Montclair St. University; Harrison, New Jersey
San Diego Wave FC -- Torero Stadium; San Diego, California
Washington Spirit -- Segra Field; Leesburg, Virginia or Audi Field; Washington D.C.
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