NWSL to Start 2027 Season Feb. 11 in LA, Earliest Ever
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- NWSL opens the 2027 season Feb. 11 at BMO Stadium with Angel City FC hosting, three days before Super Bowl XLI at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, about seven miles southwest
- The Feb. 11 start is the earliest in NWSL history by over a month, beating the previous mark of March 7, 2025 (an Orlando Pride-hosted NWSL Challenge Cup match vs. Washington Spirit)
- NWSL teams begin preseason between Jan. 2 and Jan. 7 — six weeks after the 2026 NWSL Championship, the shortest offseason in league history
- Carlin Hudson, NWSL's VP of strategy, said the league wanted to 'be a part of the conversation' rather than separate from it; the Super Bowl will air on ESPN for the first time on Feb. 14
- The league pauses from June 7 through the World Cup final on July 25 — seven total weeks off combining the CBA-mandated rest week and the tournament break
- MLS's calendar flip to a fall-to-spring model next year creates venue uncertainty since many NWSL clubs are secondary MLS tenants, and MLS won't finalize its 2027-28 dates until later than the NWSL needs a schedule
- The NWSL board scrapped a calendar-flip proposal after intense NWSLPA pushback over playing in harsh winter venues, and has committed to the current calendar through at least 2030
Why it matters: The schedule forces NWSL teams in cold-weather markets (Boston, New Jersey, Denver, Utah) to play games in February for the first time, while secondary-tenant venue conflicts with MLS's own calendar flip add scheduling uncertainty. With 18 teams and a potential 34-game schedule arriving in 2028, the squeeze on open weekends only intensifies.
