NWSL Power Rankings: San Diego Wave FC crash NWSL Shield party, as Gotham FC aim to hold on to top spot
Only two playoff spots are clinched and three matchdays remain as Gotham visits Washington with the top of the rankings at stake
• 1 min read
The October international window is over, and that means the 2026 NWSL season is back. With just three matchdays left on the schedule, the NWSL Shield is still up for grabs, and with only two playoff spots clinched, there's plenty left to compete for.
All 16 clubs will be back in action over the weekend, so it's the perfect time to bring back my power rankings. Power trends between teams have shifted all season on these lists, so if you're trying to keep track of where your favorite team lands, here are my previous rankings.
Gotham FC has been the team to chase in both the league table and the power rankings for the second half of the season. The Washington Spirit have fluctuated from first place to among the top five, but now they'll compete for more than just the top spot on a sports media content ranking.
The two sides meet Saturday at Audi Field, and Gotham can clinch the NWSL Shield, while the Spirit could play spoiler, stay in shield contention, and potentially clinch a playoff spot. Gotham FC needs a win or draw against the Spirit and a win by North Carolina Courage to lift the NWSL Shield. The Washington Spirit need a win, or help from positive results by San Diego, Bay FC, or Chicago, to clinch a playoff spot.
The two sides have an evolving rivalry dating back to Gotham FC's pre-branded Sky Blue FC days, and recent playoff meetings have only added fuel to the fire. Gotham narrowly leads the all-time record since the 2021 rebrand, with seven wins, five draws, and six losses between them.
More layers include multiple players returning from international duty for both teams, and a potential coaches' battle on the sidelines over player rotation and game management.
Fans can watch all the action on CBS.
Now, on to the most recent rankings:
Biggest Movers
2 San Diego Wave FC
2 Portland Thorns
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | The injuries keep coming, and yet somehow Gotham finds a way? Both Jordynn Dudley and Bruninha being out for the remainder of the season isn't great, but it makes Gotham's acquisition of Leila Ouahabi seem like a premonition. | -- | 16-4 |
| 2 |  | The Spirit's inconsistent form could be due to a number of things, from varying late-season fatigue, injuries, to player movement, but there's not much time to figure out a best eleven on the pitch with all the moving parts. | -- | 15-8 |
| 3 |  | The break may have come at the perfect time for an in-form San Diego. They're the hottest team in the league, and even with 10 players returning from international duty, plenty will come back having played limited minutes ahead of the final playoff stretch. | 2 | 16-8 |
| 4 |  | It makes sense that a team with so many highs and lows are from Utah. The Royals have been one of the breakout teams of the season, and hopefully the long break didn't add more disruption to their flow state. | -- | 14-9 |
| 5 |  | The Thorns need to figure out how to get their form back and fast. They'll have to figure it out without Sophia Wilson, who will miss remaining games due to a red card suspension. | 2 | 12-8 |
| 6 |  | The Courage have struggled against other playoff contender teams, and that will be their remaining challenge this season. Ashley Sanchez is on the verge of breaking a goal-scoring record, and hopefully the group can rally around that and the playoff push. | -- | 13-11 |
| 7 |  | The Los Angeles side has already made plenty of statements, especially Taylor Suarez with her late-game winners, and Sarah Gorden's standout defense, but can they keep up the momentum following a break? | -- | 12-8 |
| 8 |  | The Current will hope that the international break will have helped Croix Bethune and her hip injury, but Temwa Chawinga returns after scoring four goals, and Michelle Cooper returns from a massive camp with the USWNT. | 2 | 13-9 |
| 9 |  | The group got a bit of a layup against the worst team in the league before the international window, but their playoff push is already in progress, and it's win-or-die from here on out no matter the level of opponent. | 1 | 10-9 |
| 10 |  | There are some games where you wonder why there's not more of a sense of urgency from the Reign. But now there's no cushion of remaining games; they're on the outside looking in and running out of time. | 1 | 12-11 |
| 11 |  | It ain't over till it's over, and that's certainly the case when you have Barbra Banda, but when you need more help from others, sometimes it's about the moral victories more than anything else. | -- | 10-14 |
| 12 |  | The real race is the fight for next season, and Boston is already in the lead. If newly acquired Gift Monday gets significant time with the group down the stretch, that's already a success for next year. | 2 | 8-14 |
| 13 |  | Seems like the long season started to catch up with the Dash, so maybe the break came at a good time. If Kat Rader keeps scoring, she could shake up the rookie-of-the-year conversation. | 1 | 8-13 |
| 14 |  | Sellers during the break, the club traded forward Racheal Kundinanji to Chicago, further taking steps into next season after being eliminated from playoff contention. With Karli Lema still connecting on goal, things aren't so bleak. | 1 | 7-15 |
| 15 |  | Would love to see Racing Louisville throw caution to the wind and just treat us all to a real barn burner of bottom-ranked teams. Nothing to lose should mean more opportunities for fun. | 1 | 7-17 |
| 16 |  | The addition of Racheal Kundananji is the first big move of the Vlatko Andonovski era. If she and Mallory Swanson build any chemistry, watch out. | 1 | 5-20 |
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.