2017 National Women's Soccer League season
The 2017 National Women's Soccer League season was the fifth season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer and the Women's United Soccer Association, it was the eleventh overall season of FIFA- and USSF-sanctioned top-division women's soccer in the United States. The league is operated by the United States Soccer Federation and receives major financial backing from that body. Further financial backing is provided by the Canadian Soccer Association; both national federations pay the league salaries of many of their respective national team members in an effort to nurture talent in those nations.
The reigning champions Western New York Flash did not play under that name; the franchise was sold, relocated to Cary, North Carolina and rebranded as the North Carolina Courage.
After schedule disruptions in the previous two years caused by the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, NWSL teams in 2017 once again played 24 games, a schedule last played during the 2014 season. The Courage won the NWSL Shield, topping the Portland Thorns by two points.
The NWSL Playoff semifinals were held October 7–8, 2017, and were won by the Thorns and the Courage. The NWSL Championship Game was held on October 14, 2017 at Orlando City Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The Thorns won 1–0, becoming NWSL Champions, their second championship.
Teams, stadiums, and personnel
Stadiums and locations
Two teams, the Dash and Reign, do not make their stadiums' entire capacity available for home games, instead restricting ticket sales at a lower level. The full capacities of their venues are included in parentheses and italics.| Team | Stadium | Capacity |
| Boston Breakers | Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium | 4,000 |
| Chicago Red Stars | Toyota Park | 20,000 |
| Houston Dash | BBVA Compass Stadium | 7,000 ' |
| FC Kansas City | Swope Soccer Village Children's Mercy Park | 3,500 18,467 |
| North Carolina Courage | Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park | 10,000 |
| Orlando Pride | Orlando City Stadium | 25,500 |
| Portland Thorns | Providence Park | 21,144 |
| Seattle Reign FC | Memorial Stadium | 6,088 ' |
| Sky Blue FC | Yurcak Field | 5,000 |
| Washington Spirit | Maryland SoccerPlex | 4,000 |
Personnel and sponsorship
Note: All of the teams use Nike as their kit manufacturer.| Team | Head coach | Captain | Shirt sponsor |
| Boston Breakers |  |  | Steward Health Care |
| Chicago Red Stars | | | Illinois Bone and Joint Institute |
| Houston Dash | Omar Morales | | BBVA Compass |
| FC Kansas City |  | | Domino's |
| North Carolina Courage | |  | Blue Cross & Blue Shield of North Carolina |
| Orlando Pride |  | | Orlando Health |
| Portland Thorns | |  | Providence Health & Services |
| Seattle Reign FC | |  Jess Fishlock Lauren Barnes | Microsoft |
| Sky Blue FC | Vacant | | Meridian Health |
| Washington Spirit | | | ProChain Solutions, Inc. |
Coaching changes
Competition format
- Each team played a total of 24 games, 12 home and 12 away.
- The four teams at the end of the season with the most points qualified for the playoffs.
League standings
Tiebreakers
The initial determining factor for a team's position in the standings is most points earned, with three points earned for a win, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss. If two or more teams tie in point total, when determining rank and playoff qualification and seeding, the NWSL uses the following tiebreaker rules, going down the list until all teams are ranked.- Head to Head win/loss record between the teams.
- Greater goal difference across the entire season.
- Greatest total number of goals scored.
- Apply #1–3 to games played on the road.
- Apply #1–3 to games played at home.
- If teams are still equal, ranking will be determined by a coin toss.
Weekly live standings
Considering each week to end on a Sunday.| → | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team ↓ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Carolina Courage | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Portland Thorns | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Orlando Pride | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 3 | |||||||||||
| Chicago Red Stars | 9 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |||||||||||
| Seattle Reign FC | 5 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | |||||||||||
| Sky Blue FC | 6 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 6 | |||||||||||||||
| FC Kansas City | 2 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 7 | |||||||||
| Houston Dash | 1 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | ||||||||||
| Boston Breakers | 8 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |||||||||||
| Washington Spirit | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 |
Washington Spirit and Boston Breakers were eliminated from playoff contention in Week 18 on August 26, 2017 after losing their respective games. FC Kansas City and Houston Dash were both eliminated in Week 20 on September 9, after the Chicago Red Stars gained one more point in a tie against FC Kansas City. Sky Blue FC was eliminated later that weekend after a loss against the Washington Spirit. Seattle Reign was the last team to lose a playoff spot after a defeat in Week 21.
In Week 19, North Carolina Courage was the first team to clinch a playoff spot. Later that week, Portland Thorns clinched the second playoff spot. Both Chicago Red Stars and Orlando Pride clinched the remaining two spots in Week 21.
Attendance
Average home attendances
Ranked from highest to lowest average attendance.| Team | |||||
| Portland Thorns FC | 12 | 211,830 | 21,144 | 14,471 | 17,653 |
| Orlando Pride | 12 | 74,233 | 14,452 | 4,273 | 6,186 |
| Houston Dash | 12 | 54,938 | 6,707 | 4,578 | |
| North Carolina Courage | 12 | 52,672 | 7,020 | 2,383 | 4,389 |
| Seattle Reign FC | 12 | 48,449 | 6,041 | 2,727 | 4,037 |
| Washington Spirit | 12 | 41,891 | 5,200 | 2,365 | 3,491 |
| Chicago Red Stars | 12 | 38,379 | 4,934 | 1,827 | 3,198 |
| Boston Breakers | 12 | 34,754 | 4,321 | 2,276 | 2,896 |
| Sky Blue FC | 12 | 31,355 | 3,451 | 2,008 | 2,613 |
| FC Kansas City | 12 | 21,456 | 3,340 | 1,788 | |
| Total | 120 | 609,957 | 21,144 | 428 | 5,083 |
Updated to games played on October 1, 2017.
Highest attendances
Regular season| Rank | Home team | Score | Away team | Attendance | Date | Stadium |
| 1 | Portland Thorns FC | 3–1 | Chicago Red Stars | 21,144 | Providence Park | |
| 2 | Portland Thorns FC | 2–0 | Houston Dash | 19,672 | Providence Park | |
| 3 | Portland Thorns FC | 4–0 | Washington Spirit | 19,141 | Providence Park | |
| 4 | Portland Thorns FC | 2–0 | Boston Breakers | 18,637 | Providence Park | |
| 5 | Portland Thorns FC | 2–1 | Washington Spirit | 18,478 | Providence Park | |
| 6 | Portland Thorns FC | 2–1 | Houston Dash | 18,243 | Providence Park | |
| 7 | Portland Thorns FC | 4–1 | Orlando Pride | 18,193 | Providence Park | |
| 8 | Portland Thorns FC | 1–0 | North Carolina Courage | 16,804 | Providence Park | |
| 9 | Portland Thorns FC | 1–3 | Sky Blue FC | 16,736 | Providence Park | |
| 10 | Portland Thorns FC | 3–0 | FC Kansas City | 16,199 | Providence Park |
Updated to games played on October 7, 2017.
Statistical leaders
Top scorers
Updated: October 1, 2017Top assists
Updated: October 1, 2017NWSL Playoffs
The top four teams from the regular season competed for the NWSL Championship. In one semifinal, the North Carolina Courage defeated the Chicago Red Stars 1–0 on a dramatic 89th-minute goal. In the other, Portland Thorns FC defeated the Orlando Pride 4–1. One week later, in the final on October 14, Portland defeated North Carolina 1–0 to claim the NWSL Championship.Semi-finals
Championship
Individual awards
Monthly awards
Player of the Month
Team of the Month
| Month | Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Ref |
| April | Stephanie Labbé, WAS |  Estelle Johnson, WAS Becky Sauerbrunn, KC Emily Sonnett, POR | Julie Ertz, CHI Debinha, NC Rose Lavelle, BOS Jess Fishlock, SEA Sam Mewis, NC | Kealia Ohai, HOU Lynn Williams, NC | |
| May | Kailen Sheridan, NJ | Samantha Johnson, CHI Becky Sauerbrunn, KC Casey Short, CHI | Danielle Colaprico, CHI Amandine Henry, POR Rose Lavelle, BOS Sarah Killion, NJ |  Nahomi Kawasumi, SEA Christen Press, CHI Sam Kerr, NJ | |
| June | Stephanie Labbé, WAS | Casey Short, CHI Abby Dahlkemper, NC Ali Krieger, ORL Estelle Johnson, WAS | Marta, ORL Sam Mewis, NC Jess Fishlock, SEA | Megan Rapinoe, SEA Sam Kerr, NJ Ashley Hatch, NC | |
| July | Jane Campbell, HOU | Amber Brooks, KC Abby Dahlkemper, NC Casey Short, CHI Taylor Smith, NC | Andressinha, HOU Julie Ertz, CHI Marta, ORL McCall Zerboni, NC | Sam Kerr, NJ Megan Rapinoe, SEA | |
| August | Katelyn Rowland, NC | Steph Catley, ORL Emily Sonnett, POR Ali Krieger, ORL Taylor Smith, NC | Marta, ORL Sam Mewis, NC Lindsey Horan, POR | Hayley Raso, POR Alex Morgan, ORL Sam Kerr, NJ | |
| September | Adrianna Franch, POR | Emily Menges, POR Kelley O'Hara, NJ Becky Sauerbrunn, KC Casey Short, CHI | Alanna Kennedy, ORL Marta, ORL Sam Mewis, NC | Shea Groom, KC Christine Sinclair, POR Lynn Williams, NC |
Weekly awards
Annual awards
| Award | Winner | Team | Notes |
| Golden Boot | Sam Kerr | Sky Blue FC | 17 goals |
| Coach of the Year | Paul Riley | North Carolina Courage | NWSL Shield Winner |
| Rookie of the Year | Ashley Hatch | North Carolina Courage | 7 goals, 1 assist, 1,200 minutes |
| Goalkeeper of the Year | Adrianna Franch | Portland Thorns FC | 11 shutouts, 80 saves, 0.83 GA/A |
| Defender of the Year | Abby Dahlkemper | North Carolina Courage | Played all 2,160 minutes |
| Most Valuable Player | Sam Kerr | Sky Blue FC | League record 17 goals |