Post by Monika on Mar 1, 2020 15:58:40 GMT -8
(Graphic via NWSL.com)
The National Women's Soccer League has salvaged their season with a 25-game league tournament for the 2020 season. This tournament will be followed by an eight-team playoff tournament which will determine a season champion. The season will run from June 27 through the Championship Match on July 26. The league is calling it "The 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup."
The original season was scheduled to begin on April 18, but was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The new season will replace the original and will consist of four games for the Thorns prior to the playoff tournament, should they advance to it. All matches through the Quarterfinals will be played at Zions bank Stadium in Herriman, Utah. The stadium seats a capacity of 5,000 persons, though fans will not be in attendance because of safety precautions taken due to the pandemic.
All matches will be available for streaming on CBS All Access. Additionally, the opening match between the Thorns and the North Carolina Courage on June 27, and the Championship Match will be televised on CBS. The Semifinals and Championship matches will be held at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy Utah, just outside of Salt Lake City. Those final three matches are noted in the schedule with an asterisk (*).
Our schedule below includes all dates, times and broadcast information for each match, including the playoff tournament. The thorns matches are scheduled for June 27, and July 1, 5 and 13. Home and away teams are noted for aesthetic purposes. 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 boxscore and other information about the result of that match.
UPDATE: The Orlando Pride have withdrawn their participation after players and staff were diagnosed with COVID-19 this week (6/22/20). As a result, the league reworked the schedule, including deleting two matches which had been scheduled for July 9.
Seeding Tournament
Sat., June 27 - North Carolina Courage 2, Portland Thorns FC 1
Sat., June 27 - Washington Spirit 2, Chicago Red Stars 1
Tue., June 30 - Houston Dash at Utah Royals 3, Houston Dash 3
Tue., June 30 - Sky Blue FC 0, OL Reign 0
Wed., July 1 - Chicago Red Stars 0, Portland Thorns FC 0
Wed., July 1 - North Carolina Courage 2, Washington Spirit 0
Sat., July 4 - Utah Royals FC 1, Sky Blue FC 0
Sat., July 4 - Houston Dash 2, OL Reign 0
Sun., July 5 - North Carolina Courage 1, Chicago Red Stars 0
Sun., July 5 - Washington Spirit 1, Portland Thorns FC 1
Wed., July 8 - OL Reign 1, Utah Royals FC 0
Wed., July 8 - Sky Blue FC 2, Houston Dash 0
Sun., July 12 - Washington Spirit 1, Houston Dash 0
Sun., July 12 - Chicago Red Stars 1, Utah Royals 0
Mon., July 13 - Portland Thorns FC 0, OL Reign 0
Mon., July 13 - North Carolina Courage 2, Sky Blue FC 0
Standings and Playoff Tournament
Final standings and playoff tournament seedings.
SEEDINGS
1. North Carolina Courage - 12 (4-0-0)
2. Washington Spirit - 7 (2-1-1)
3. OL Reign - 5 (1-1-2)
4. Houston Dash - 4 (1-1-2)
5. Utah Royals FC - 4 (1-2-1)
6. Chicago Red Stars - 4 (1-2-1)
7. Sky Blue FC - 4 (1-2-1)
8. Portland Thorns FC - 3 (0-1-3)
PLAYOFF TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Quarterfinals
Fri., July 17 - Portland Thorns FC 1, North Carolina Courage 0
Fri., July 17 - Houston Dash 0 (3-2), Utah Royals 0
Sat., July 18 - Sky Blue FC 0 (4-3), Washington Spirit 0
Sat., July 18 - Chicago Red Stars 0 (4-3), OL Reign 0
Semifinals
*Wed., July 22 - Houston Dash 1, Portland Thorns FC 0
*Wed., July 22 - Chicago Red Stars 3, Sky Blue FC 2
Championship
*Sun., July 26 - Houston Dash 2, Chicago Red Stars 0
*at Rio Tinto Sadium
Original Thorns Schedule
The following is the original schedule prior to the season being suspended by the COVID-19 pandemic.
PRE-SEASON
*Sun., March 29 - Chicago Red Stars, 5 p.m.
*Wed., April 1 - U.S. U-23 National Women's Team, 7:30 p.m.
*Sat., April 4 - Seattle Reign FC, 7:30 p.m.
REGULAR SEASON
Sat., April 18 -- Utah Royals FC, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., April 25 -- at Chicago Red Stars, 4 p.m.
Wed., April 29 -- at North Carolina Courage, 4 p.m.
Wed., May 6 -- Orlando Pride, 7:20 p.m.
Sat., May 9 -- Houston Dash, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., May 16 -- Seattle Reign FC, 1:30 p.m.
Fri., May 22 -- at Utah Royals FC, 7 p.m.
Sat., May 30 -- Sky Blue FC, 7:30 p.m.
Fri, June 12 -- Seattle Reign FC, 7 p.m.
Sat., June 20 -- at Washington Spirit, 4 p.m.
Sun., June 28 -- at Houston Dash, 4 p.m.
Sun., July 5 -- at Orlando Pride, 2 p.m.
Sat., July 11 -- Sky Blue FC, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., Aug. 1 -- at North Carolina Courage, 4 p.m.
Sun, Aug. 9 -- Chicago Red Stars, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., Aug. 15 -- Orlando Pride, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., Aug. 29 -- Seattle Reign FC, 12 p.m.
Wed., Sept. 2 -- at Chicago Red Stars, 5 p.m.
Sun., Sept. 6 -- North Carolina Courage, 1 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 12 -- at Washington Spirit, 4 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 26 -- at Sky Blue FC, 4 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 3 -- Washington Spirit, 7:30 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 9 -- at Houston Dash, 5:30 p.m.
Sun., Oct. 18 -- Utah Royals FC, 12:30 p.m.
NWSL HOME PITCHES (Not sites of Challenge Cup matches)
Chicago Red Stars -- Seatgeek Stadium; Bridgeview, Illinois
Houston Dash -- BBVA Compass Stadium; Houston, Texas
North Carolina Courage -- WakeMed Soccer Park; Cary, North Carolina
Orlando Pride -- Orlando City Stadium; Orlando, Florida
OL Reign FC -- Cheney Stadium; Tacoma, Washington
Portland Thorns -- Providence Park; Portland, Oregon
Sky Blue FC -- Yurcak Field, Rutgers University; Piscataway Township, New Jersey
Utah Royals -- Rio Tinto Stadium; Sandy, Utah
Washington Spirit -- Maryland SoccerPlex; Germantown, Maryland
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