Everything You Need to Know About NWSL 2023 Challenge Cup

The 2023 edition of the National Women’s Super League is here. Fans from all over the globe cannot wait to watch their favorite club challenge for the NWSL title in the new season. This season is a tad different from the others. Instead of stacking it all up during the beginning, the 2023 Challenge Cup will be well drawn out during the season.

Apart from that, this soccer season in America will be longer than the usual one. This is due to the FIFA Women’s World Cup clashing with the club soccer season.

Let’s take a glance at everything you need to know about the Challenge Cup.

What is the NWSL Challenge Cup all about?

Usually served as an appetizer prior to the regular season, but this time things will be different. The matches of the NWSL Challenge Cup are well spaced out during the season. The league will give more importance to the cup competition during the international break. This is to prevent the players from missing too many league games due to the World Cup.

US Soccer first organized this cup competition in 2020 as merely a one-off tournament. The Challenge Cup was the first piece of soccer that women soccer stars played after returning from the pandemic. Upon an appealing response from the fans, the NWSL declared that Challenge Cup would become its annual league cup competition.

Schedule

Potential collision with FIFA Women’s World Cup

In order to accommodate the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the clubs will not play a single league game from July 10-20 and from Aug 7-17. Apart from that, the NWSL will break from its regular season games from July 10 to August 17. Instead of giving the remaining players a complete break, the American soccer league will shift its focus towards the Challenge Cup during that period of time.

READ MORE: Everything You Need to Know About the 2023 NWSL: When, Where, and How to Watch

Past winners

Houston Dash won the first edition of the NWSL Challenge Cup. The teams played this game behind closed doors due to the COVID pandemic. Dash triumphed over Chicago Red Stars in the final by comfortably winning the game 2-0. Portland Thorns FC lifted the second edition of the Challenge Cup trophy. However, the finale went all the way down to the wire.

Portland Thorns managed to shrug off NJ/NY Gotham FC during the penalty shootout. The final score of the game was 6-5 after penalties. The most recent and defending champions are North Carolina Courage from 2022. Courage managed to beat Washington Spirit 2-1 in the final, last season.

WATCH THIS STORY: Serena Williams’ and Natalie Portman’s Success With ACFC Inspires Another Female-Led Group to Invest in Women’s Soccer

Can North Carolina Courage retain their Challenge Cup title this season? Let us know who you are rooting for in the comments below.