From lightning-fast rookies to strong-footed veterans, the nominees for this year’s NWSL awards all have put up outstanding seasons for their squads.

But who are the front-runners in each category? Just Women’s Sports breaks it down.

MVP: Mallory Pugh

Nominees: Debinha (NC), Naomi Girma (SD), Alex Morgan (SD), Mallory Pugh (CHI), Sophia Smith (POR)

Last year’s runner-up for MVP, Mallory Pugh has followed up her stellar 2021 season with another one in 2022.

She entered the year with 14 goals in her NWSL career, and she nearly doubled that with 11 this season. She showcased her abilities as a runner as well – in one instance taking the ball 90 yards up the field for a goal while nutmegging two players in the process against one of the league’s top teams.

Winning 80 percent of her tackles and passing with 77.3 percent accuracy, Pugh also has been among the best in the game at helping her teammates get on the score sheet. She finished the regular season with a league-leading six assists.

Mal Pugh turned on the 𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙧𝙤 ⚡ to speed things up!

What. A. Goal. 🤯@MalPugh | #CHIvKC pic.twitter.com/oP7YsUdZo0

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) September 15, 2022

Defender of the Year: Naomi Girma

Nominees: Alana Cook (RGN), Naomi Girma (SD), Sofia Huerta (RGN), Carson Pickett (NC), Becky Sauerbrunn (POR)

From a statistical standpoint, Naomi Girma has been far and above the best defender in the league this season. She started all 19 games she played as a rookie, and she made more clearances and blocks than any other defender in the category. She was also third in interceptions.

The rookie anchored the Wave’s defense en route to a playoff berth — the first for an expansion club in NWSL history. Girma won 70.8 percent of her duels, the most among the nominees. She was also the second-best passer behind Becky Sauerbrunn with an 83 percent success rate.

A case also could be made for Becky Sauerbrunn, who made 55 clearances, 23 interceptions and nine blocks, while also being the best passer with an 88.2 percent success rate.

However, one snub arguably could have risen above the rest: Tatumn Milazzo. The Red Stars defender made 100 clearances, a league-leading 50 interceptions and eight blocks on the season while recording a 78.7 percent success rate on her passes.

Goalkeeper of the Year: Phallon Tullis-Joyce

Nominees: AD Franch (KC), Kailen Sheridan (SD), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (RGN)

Here’s a doozy: Neither AD Franch nor Phallon Tullis-Joyce have been called up to the USWNT this year. And while Alyssa Naeher has undoubtedly earned her spot on the roster, it’s worth wondering why USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski hasn’t given either of these NWSL stars an opportunity as he continues to flesh out his World Cup team.

Tullis-Joyce has been one of the best goaltenders in the league all season long. While it’s her first year as starting goalkeeper for OL Reign, one wouldn’t know that by the way that she’s played. She’s been a force, playing all 1,980 minutes of the season and recording nine clean sheets through 22 games – including in each of the team’s final three matches of the season.

Additionally, the goalkeeper made 65 saves on the season, allowing a league-low 19 goals all season long. (Sheridan allowed just 17 goals, but she played in just 18 games). Tullis-Joyce also ranks first in save percentage (81 percent) and goals against average per 90 minutes (0.86).

Franch and Sheridan also deserve a look in the tight race for this award. As noted above, Sheridan allowed just 17 goals for a Wave team that has exceeded expectations. Franch, meanwhile, has been a brick wall – she’s made 66 saves on the season while allowing just 25 goals through 20 games.

Rookie of the Year: Naomi Girma

Nominees: Sam Coffey (POR), Naomi Girma (SD), Diana Ordóñez (NC)

While Diana Ordóñez and Sam Coffey have both put up incredible rookie campaigns, Naomi Girma has shown that she has what it takes to become the face of the league for years to come. After all, the defender isn’t just nominated for this award — she’s also nominated for NWSL Defender of the Year and MVP, which is indicative of the season she’s had.

The Stanford grad was twice named to the NWSL’s Best XI of the Month and was once named Rookie of the Month. With eight USWNT call-ups under her belt this year, including a start against England, Girma has gained valuable experience and even worn the captain’s armband for San Diego. She’s also passed with 83 percent accuracy, won 68 percent of her duels and made 85 clearances, 12 blocks and 24 interceptions.

In short, no rookie – and perhaps no defender – has had a better year than Girma.

For the second time this season, @naomi_girma is the @ally Rookie of the Month! pic.twitter.com/30Qlb21S9B

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) October 14, 2022

Coach of the Year: Casey Stoney

Nominees: Laura Harvey (RGN), Matt Potter (KC), Casey Stoney (SD)

Both Laura Harvey and Matt Potter did an outstanding job leading their teams this season, but neither did a better job than Casey Stoney.

Stoney had a tall task managing a first-year expansion club, but she led the Wave to the postseason — making them the first expansion club to achieve that feat. For comparison, Racing Louisville finished ninth in their inaugural season, while the Current finished 10th out of 10 teams. The Orlando Pride finished ninth out of nine teams in their inaugural season in 2016.

The Wave’s fellow expansion team Angel City FC finished eighth this season. San Diego, meanwhile, finished third in the league after topping the table for the first half of the season and amassing a 10-6-6 record.

Through 22 games, the club had nine clean sheets, earning Sheridan a nomination for Goalkeeper of the Year. Forward Alex Morgan has been one of the league’s best scorers, while the team boasts five total nominations for NWSL awards, including three from rookie Naomi Girma.

Angel City officially cut the ribbon on their new training facility on Tuesday, showing off their expanded performance center as NWSL preseason gets underway.

The nine-acre Thousand Oaks site boasts 1.5 full-sized pitches and 50,000 square feet of indoor space, making it the league's largest NWSL-specific practice ground.

The center also houses a 5,400-square-foot gym, multiple locker rooms, medical offices, an outdoor lounge, an onsite content studio, a children's playroom, and rehab, hydrotherapy, and nutrition areas.

Having practiced at Cal Lutheran University since the expansion franchise's 2022 debut, ACFC later relocated across campus to the former home of the NFL's LA Rams. They then transformed the site into their record-setting performance center after completing a multi-million dollar remodel.

"Today we get to celebrate an extraordinary milestone for Angel City. Our new performance center reflects our commitment to the future of ACFC to its sustained excellence, and to providing our players with the best possible environment to train, to recover, and to thrive," said ACFC controlling owner Willow Bay in a statement. "My husband Bob Iger and I know how important it is, and how essential it is to ensure that our players have everything they need to be successful both on and off the pitch. This state-of-the-art performance center, let's be clear — it sets the bar, but it really should be the norm."

An unmatched tool for the new NWSL recruitment era

Offering a record-setting performance center to Angel City players could have the unexpected benefit of attracting and retaining future talent for LA.

With the abolishment of NWSL college and expansion drafts and the requirement to gain player permission for all trades taking effect under the league's new CBA, clubs now face a new era of athlete recruitment.

Rather than benefitting from the previous and arguably more passive system, NWSL franchises must now take a decidedly more active approach to roster-building by wooing potential players and impressing those currently on their squads. Adding top-tier facilities is a major way to sweeten the deal, giving Angel City a potential leg up over other clubs.

"This facility, when people have been here and seen this, I don't know how you're going to want to leave," incoming Angel City sporting director Mark Parsons told reporters at yesterday's unveiling event.

"My job has just got much, much more easy with this facility," Parsons continued. "This is unlike nowhere else. I’m excited to be a part of an organization that cares that much. But I’m also excited that my skill set just got a bit easier, because everyone’s going to want to be here."

USWNT star Naomi Girma will reportedly become the first women's soccer player to garner a transfer fee of over $1 million, as the decorated young center back narrows her overseas suitors down to WSL side Chelsea FC.

The 24-year-old defender is currently under contract with the San Diego Wave until 2026, and reported to the NWSL club's first day of preseason training as expected on Tuesday.

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While Girma's contract is still in negotiations, San Diego and the UK titans have agreed upon the deal's $1.1 million terms — by far the highest sum in the history of pro women's football. The previous record is held by Rachael Kundananji, for whom Bay FC shelled out $860,000 to Spain's Madrid CFF to roster the Zambian forward in February 2024.

Chelsea, who currently stands unbeaten in the WSL halfway through the league's 2024/25 season, is keen to bolster their back line after losing star Canadian center back Kadeisha Buchanan to an ACL injury last November.

France's Olympique Lyonnais also threw their hat in the the million-dollar ring for Girma, only to fall out of contention alongside Chelsea rival Arsenal.

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San Diego's Wave of roster turnovers

Assuming the transfer goes through, Girma will be one of several high-profile players exiting the 2023 NWSL Shield-winning San Diego club ahead of the 2025 season. Girma joins the NC Courage-bound attacker Jaedyn Shaw in making a SoCal departure.

In response, the Wave has been actively filling roster spots, signing 17-year-old defender Trinity Armstrong off of her 2024 College Cup-winning freshman season with UNC last week before adding seasoned goalkeeper and free agent Didi Haračić as well as Nigerian midfielder Favour Emmanuel on Monday. 

Inking Armstrong to a three-year deal seems particularly strategic in the wake of Girma's likely departure. It signals that the Wave are again looking to young defensive talent to replace the 2022 NWSL Draft No. 1 pick.

Ultimately, a transfer fee of this magnitude solidifies Girma's reputation as one of the world's top defenders. While still accounting for less than 1% of spending in the men's game, her historic fee is further proof that the global women's market is growing at breakneck speeds.

The NWSL released its full 2025 schedule on Wednesday morning, locking in 190 league contests across all competitions.

The 2025 Challenge Cup will set the stage on Friday, March 7th with a 2024 NWSL Championship rematch between the title-winning Orlando Pride and runners-up Washington Spirit.

One week later, the official 2025 NWSL Kickoff weekend will see all 14 teams in action as the 182-game regular season gets underway. Each club will play a total of 26 regular-season matches, split equally between home and away contests, before the league's eight top teams will battle through seven playoff games in November.

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A mid-summer break begins in late June with a CBA-mandated week-off. The pause extends one month through July to allow for international play. That's when certain national team players will compete for their countries in confederation tournaments while clubs will be free to schedule friendlies. No additional NWSL tournaments will occur during that window.

In one minor adjustment from the league's earlier calendar announcement, the 2025 regular season will be played over 26 weeks (rather than 25) to mitigate the need for midweek games.

The shift also accommodates for the return of Decision Day, which is making a comeback for the first time since 2023. In the popular format, all teams will compete simultaneously to close out the regular season on Sunday, November 2nd.

Moves up season excitement

With playoff positioning often coming down to the wire, capping the regular season with a Decision Day can dramatically up the stakes and increase excitement for the impending playoffs.

In another move to capitalize on fandom enthusiasm, the NWSL has added a dedicated rivalry weekend to its 2025 calendar. From August 8th through 10th, old feuds like the Portland Thorns and Seattle Reign's Cascadia Clash will share the spotlight with newer grudges like Angel City and San Diego's SoCal Classic.

How to watch the 2025 NWSL season

Entering the second year of the league's blockbuster broadcast deal, 160 total games will air across Prime Video, ION, ESPN, and CBS platforms this season, with the remaining 30 matches streaming on NWSL+. International distribution is still in negotiations.

Starting the NWSL's 2025 action is the Challenge Cup between Orlando and Washington, which begins at 8 PM ET on Friday, March 7th, streaming live on Prime Video.

Two concurrent matches will kick off the 2025 regular season at 8 PM ET on Friday, March 14th: Houston will face Washington on NWSL+, while Orlando takes on the newly branded Chicago Stars FC on Prime Video.

South Carolina boss Dawn Staley became the highest-paid coach in women's college basketball history on Friday, when the three-time national champion inked a contract extension worth over $25 million to remain with the Gamecocks.

At an annual salary of $4 million — plus a $500,000 signing bonus and a yearly $250,000 escalator — the deal locks in Staley through the 2029/30 season.

A significant bump from her previous $3.2 million annual payday, the new contract sees Staley leapfrog over UConn legend Geno Auriemma and LSU's Kim Mulkey to top the league in compensation.

Calling her "a once-in-a-generation coach," athletic director Jeremiah Donati noted that Staley "has elevated the sport of women's basketball on the national level and here on campus, and I am excited that she will be representing our University for many years to come."

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Locking in a South Carolina legend

Since taking the helm in 2008, Staley has led South Carolina to 630 wins, 16 SEC titles, and 12 straight NCAA tournament appearances including five Final Fours and three national championships.

After taking South Carolina to an 128-4 record since her previous contract extension in 2021, this new agreement all but squashes any rumors about the coach's departure.

Despite a clause releasing Staley from an early departure penalties should she exit for a WNBA or NBA job, the legendary college leader has no intentions to leave Columbia.

"I will never leave here to go take another college job," Staley told reporters after the No. 2 Gamecocks' Sunday win over then-No. 13 Oklahoma. "[And] I don't have a passion for the next level. I don't. I would've been gone."

As the Hall of Famer continues setting the on-court NCAA standard in her 17th season with South Carolina, Staley's record-breaking contract both reflects the sport's overall rising stock and pushes for even more investment in the game.

Pledging to prove the impact of supporting both her and the game itself, Staley committed "to continuing to be an example of how an investment in women’s basketball is one that will pay off for everyone."