Panel names contenders to stop Gotham’s bid for the double as NWSL playoffs approach
On 6 November 2026 a panel of writers published their NWSL playoff predictions, assessing which teams can prevent Gotham from completing a double in the upcoming postseason.
The season ran through a crowded sports summer and, the panel noted, interval years that are not Olympic or World Cup seasons tend to be quieter for the NWSL; average attendance was essentially flat among non-expansion teams. The men’s World Cup on home soil and a major WNBA anniversary season coincided with tight competition for the Shield, an entertaining Golden Boot race and the returns of several high-profile players, while some clubs — notably Chicago — struggled but made roster moves the writers described as encouraging.
Off-field developments drew attention alongside results: contentious scenes in Portland as transphobic organisations tried to insert themselves into league discourse; the hastened implementation of the so-called "Rodman Rule" to deter a marketable US player from moving abroad; a rejected proposal to invert the schedule after player and public backlash; and even a feature on Ted Lasso, the panel said.
On-field races produced narrow margins. Ashley Sanchez pulled ahead in the Golden Boot battle while Barbra Banda, Sophia Wilson, Janine Sonis and Trinity Rodman supplied late-season scoring bursts, and Banda was kept out of the country for the last month of games because of federal travel policies. The Shield contest was tight enough that three teams remained in contention with two matches to play, yet several clubs (Chicago, Louisville and Bay FC) were described as poorly competitive throughout the season.
Expansion Denver Summit drew specific praise and criticism: they matched 2018 North Carolina with the third-most goals (53) in a regular season but fell short of automatic playoff momentum through inconsistency and an inability to turn draws into wins. The Summit were also the league’s lowest-fouling team after the summer break, which the panel said allowed opponents more time to construct attacks. The North Carolina Courage spent most of the campaign above the playoff line but saw Ashley Sanchez’s output fall back late, and coach Mak Lind faces an offseason task to replace the influence lost when Manaka Matsukubo left midseason for Chelsea.
Angel City’s late-season surge was highlighted: eight wins, two draws and zero defeats since 31 August, with nine goals in their last three matches, and the arrival of Maddie DiMaria — coming off a 12-goal U-17 World Cup — available for the Kansas City tie. The panel also noted Angel City’s sale of Alyssa Thompson to Chelsea and the impact of new and existing players including Ally Sentnor, Sveindís Jónsdóttir, Emily Sams and Gisele Thompson; GM Mark Parsons dismissed manager Alexander Straus in June and Leif Smerud’s interim stewardship has been credited with steadying the side. Washington’s best result came on 17 October with a win over Gotham, but a 2-1 loss at Kansas City was compounded by Hal Hershfelt tearing her ACL; the Spirit followed with a quieter 2-0 Decision Day win over Chicago and will rely on new signings Clara Luvanga and Mélissa Bethi while counting on Trinity Rodman, who started all 30 regular-season games and finished with 12 goals and eight assists.
Individual talents cited by the panel included Pietra Tordin as an emergent playmaker who debuted for Emma Hayes in October, and Croix Bethune, who the panel called the league’s most entertaining creator after returning from an earlier fall injury and recording an assist against her former Washington team two weeks earlier. The Current’s attacking group — Temwa Chawinga, Michelle Cooper, Debinha and Haley Hopkins — was singled out for potency, while Gotham’s goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was noted as a stabilising presence. The bracket conversation placed the winner of Kansas City v Angel City as a probable semi-final opponent for Gotham in New Jersey, assuming the Shield winners defeat eighth-place Seattle; panelists also pointed to Gotham absences among injured players such as Jaelin Howell and Jordynn Dudley as factors that could influence their postseason resilience.
Panel predictions for the final varied: Abigail Segel picked San Diego 2-1 Angel City, Ella Brockway forecast Gotham 2-1 San Diego, and Jeff Rueter also chose San Diego 2-1 Angel City. The writers’ selections collectively projected a championship game to be played in DC, setting the stage for a title match dependent on form, fitness and the semifinal outcomes already outlined above.