The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) released its 2024 schedule on Thursday, including the inaugural match at Kansas City Current's CPKC Stadium against the Portland Thorns to open the regular season on March 16.
It will take place in the first stadium in the US built specifically for a professional women's team and will also be the first NWSL match to be broadcast on ABC as part of a four-year media rights deal announced last November.
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“It's where we belong,” Portland Thorns midfielder Sam Coffey said of the increased exposure. “Honestly, every team in this league, every female athlete, that's where we belong. And it's very exciting to know that we have that platform, we're on national television.
“It's taken us a while to get here, but it's happening slowly but surely.”
In total, 113 regular-season games, seven postseason games and the Challenge Cup will air across the league's new streaming partners: ESPN, Prime Video, Scripps' ION network and CBS/Paramount+.
Additionally, the NWSL announced that all remaining matches will be available on the league's first direct-to-consumer streaming platform, NWSL+.
Ahead of the regular season, reigning NWSL champion NJ/NY Gotham FC, bolstered by the off-season arrivals of U.S. internationals Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Rose Lavelle and Emily Sonnett, will face the winner of the 2023 NWSL Shield , San Diego Wave FC, in the Challenge Cup on March 15.
The San Francisco Bay Area's new expansion team, Bay FC, will play its inaugural match on March 16 at Angel City in Los Angeles. The Utah Royals, returning to the league this season, host the Chicago Red Stars on opening day.
The 14 teams will compete in 26 regular season games, concluding the weekend of November 1-3 before the NWSL playoffs. Unlike last year, all teams will not play their final regular season games simultaneously.
Eight clubs will advance to the playoffs, beginning with the quarterfinal round on November 9 and 10. The NWSL championship will take place on November 23 and will air on CBS during prime time.
During the regular season, Friday games will air on Prime Video. Two games will be broadcast each Saturday on Scripps' ION network. CBS and its sports channels, as well as Paramount+, will broadcast a package of games, as will ESPN networks, including ABC and ESPN Deportes.
Associated Press reporting contributed to this report.
