NWSL Announces the Preliminary Framework for the 2022 Season

The NWSL announced today its plans for the framework for the 2022 season, which will feature 132 matches over the course of the year and the league’s third annual Challenge Cup.

Managing Director of Competition and Player Affairs Liz Dalton said, “The 10th anniversary season is a testament to the league’s incredible athletes past and present, the sustained support of our fans, and the vision and investment of our partners and owners.”

All NWSL teams will have a six-week training camp that starts Tuesday, Feb. 1, with group play for the NWSL Challenge Cup slated to start on Saturday, March 19. The Cup will be comprised of three groups of four teams and will feature double round-robin matches, semifinals, and the NWSL Challenge Cup Final, which CBS and Paramount+ are slated to broadcast on Saturday, May 7.

After the Challenge Cup, the season will continue with each of the league’s 12 teams competing against each other in at least one home and away game with each team playing a total of 22 regular season matches before the NWSL Playoffs start.

Six teams will qualify for the playoffs, with the top two teams will receiving a first-round bye. The NWSL Championship game will be held during the weekend of Oct. 28-30.

Notably, the NWSL announced that their 2022 schedule drastically lowers the number of games occurring during International windows.

The full release is available here.