The third week of the NWSL season was a record-smasher, as well as reminder of why this league is famous for its parity and competitiveness. Let’s dig into some major storylines and takeaways from the league’s third week in action this season:
Expansion side Summit making a statement
On Wednesday, the Denver Summit earned their first ever win in a 2-0 victory over Gotham FC. This was especially significant considering that Gotham, though slow to start this season, are indeed the reigning NWSL champions.
And on Saturday, the franchise sent out the strongest possible message an expansion side can offer when over 60,000 fans showed up for the team’s inaugural home match. Though there were no goals in the game, it was an all-time moment for both the team and the league.
Wave and Pride show dominance
The San Diego Wave had two big wins in week three. On Wednesday, they outplayed a formidable Thorns side that had recently accomplished the undoable — winning against their rivals while being down two players. A few days later, the Wave went on to beat the Chicago Stars, earning back-to-back wins early in the season.
The Pride also beat Chicago (those poor Stars…) before tying with Gotham on Sunday. Though the latter game was somewhat of a snooze fest, the Pride’s offense is looking scary, and Barbra Banda already has three goals on the season.
Seattle bounces back, Spirit still winless
The Seattle Reign followed up their disastrous Cascadia Rivalry loss by beating the reigning NWSL Shield winners Kansas City Current 3-0 on Wednesday. They followed that loss with a win against Louisville over the weekend, quietly asserting themselves as one of the strongest teams in the league. And as for Louisville and Kansas City, well — an upward battle was always in the cards for the former team, but for the latter, they are officially in “yikes” territory.
Another team that might be getting close to hitting the panic button is the Washington Spirit. After making it to the NWSL finals in 2024 and 2025, the team is still winless to start 2026. As their draws pile up, the Croix Bethune transfer is starting to hurt.
Angel City remain perfect
Friday night’s top-of-the-table match between Angel City and the Houston Dash (yes, you read that correctly) was the first litmus test of the season to determine which team is really on top right now. Angel City rightfully earned that title after beating Houston 2-1, though the Dash still look the strongest they’ve seemed in years. While it’s probably too early to call Angel City the team to beat, the LA side is more threatening than they’ve ever been in franchise history.
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