NWSL Power Rankings: Gotham rocket up the order as Esther makes historyArianna CasconeMultiple AuthorsJul 13, 2026, 12:20 PM ET
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It’s Monday, and with another weekend of 2026 NWSL regular season in the books, it’s time for ESPN’s Power Rankings.
Who’s set for a climb up the table? Who’s in danger of a free fall? Our writers studied the action from across Matchday 12 to come up with this week’s order of all 16 teams in the league. Let’s dive in.
1. Washington Spirit
Previous ranking: 1
Next match: at Gotham FC, Wednesday, 8 p.m. ET (stream live on ESPN)
The Spirit beat North Carolina on the road by a 2-0 scoreline. Their lights-out first-half performance powered them to this win. In the 37th minute, Leicy Santos scored the goal of the weekend on a stunning left-footed volley from the top of the 18-yard box. Trinity Rodman added an insurance tally just before the half, too, scoring her sixth goal in the past eight games. This was Washington’s third straight win, and a great confidence-building result ahead of their midweek matchup against red-hot Gotham at Citi Field for the Queens Classic.
2. NJ/NY Gotham FC
Previous ranking: 7
Next match: vs. Washington Spirit, Wednesday, 8 p.m. ET (stream live on ESPN)
Gotham beat Utah 3-1 to secure their seventh win of the season. After conceding in the 23rd minute, Gotham responded just three minutes later to even the score. Esther González put away a penalty kick that was earned by rookie Jordynn Dudley, who continues to be a difference maker for this Gotham team. After center back Tierna Davidson scored off a corner, Esther returned to the scoresheet to ice this win with her first goal in the run of play since Matchweek 1. Her second goal put her in first place — with new teammate Sam Kerr — for most goals in club history.
3. San Diego Wave FC
Previous ranking: 2
Next match: at Kansas City Current, Friday, 8 p.m. ET
San Diego fell to Angel City 2-0 at home. The loss snapped the Wave’s 242-minute shutout streak after they conceded two first-half goals. Still, San Diego didn’t go down without a fight. Early in the game, the Wave had trouble breaking down Angel City’s compact, organized defending, but they looked dangerous going forward, edging out their opponent on total shots, opposition box touches and corners on their way to generating nearly the same amount of open play expected goals as Angel City. A missed penalty kick late in the second half sealed San Diego’s fate on their way to their fifth loss of the season.
4. Portland Thorns
Previous ranking: 3
Next match: at Denver Summit, Saturday, 2 p.m. ET
The Thorns were blanked 2-0 on the road against longtime rival Seattle. Despite recording more touches in the final third, opposition box and putting up more shots than the Reign, the Thorns’ attack just couldn’t get it done. They managed only 1.37 expected goals on 26 shots and were largely kept at bay by an impressive defensive performance by Seattle. With the loss, Portland fumbled an opportunity to top the table after this weekend, so they’re sliding a spot in the rankings this week.
5. North Carolina Courage
Previous ranking: 6
Next match: at Bay FC, Saturday, 4 p.m. ET
The Courage lost 2-0 to Washington at home, ending their longest winning streak since the 2023 season. North Carolina was held to zero shots in the first half but truly came alive in the second. All 13 of their shots came in the second period, when they found a way to regain possession despite conceding 61% of the ball to the Spirit in the opening frame. The Courage even found the back of the net thanks to none other than Ashley Sanchez just after the break, but the goal was ultimately pulled back. It’s a frustrating result for a North Carolina team that managed to grow through the game, make adjustments at the half, and put on a strong second-half performance.
6. Utah Royals
Previous ranking: 4
Next match: vs. Orlando Pride, Saturday, 8:45 p.m. ET
The Royals fell to Gotham 3-1 at home. This marked their fourth loss of the season and the first time they’ve lost back-to-back games since their losses to Kansas City and San Diego to start the season. Although Cece Delzer gave Utah the lead after 23 minutes, the Royals conceded three straight goals on their way to losing this match. Utah actually recorded more shots on target and box touches than Gotham and never looked totally out of the match, but it just wasn’t their day. All eyes will be on Utah’s match up against the Pride next weekend to see if their slide continues.
7. Angel City FC
Previous ranking: 8
Next match: at Chicago Stars, Saturday, 6:30 p.m. ET
Angel City blanked their SoCal rivals by a 2-0 scoreline in San Diego. Despite the attack clearly firing thanks to Maiara Niehues and Ary Borges’ tallies, it was really Angel City’s defensive unit that stole the show in this one. Goalkeeper Angelina Anderson recorded six saves on her way to this win, and Los Angeles edged the Wave on every major defensive statistic: tackles, interceptions, blocks, clearances and duels won. This decisive victory extended Angel City’s away unbeaten streak to five matches against the Wave.
8. Orlando Pride
Previous ranking: 10
Next match: vs. Boston Legacy, Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET
After another weather delay in Orlando, the Pride beat Kansas City 3-0. All three of the Pride’s goals were scored in the second half of the match. Brazilian legend Marta netted a left-footed shot from distance to mark her 50th goal for the club and Hannah Anderson put away an Ally Lemos corner kick shortly after. Then, just nine minutes after subbing into the match in her return from injury, Barbra Banda took advantage of a goalkeeping blunder to notch her 12th goal of the season. Although the scoresheet suggests Orlando were dominant in this one, that’s not exactly how this match went down. The Pride struggled with Kansas City’s press and conceded much of the momentum to the visitors. Still, this is a good sign for a team who has been hot-and-cold through the first third of the season, so they’re up in the rankings this week.
9. Kansas City Current
Previous ranking: 5
Next match: vs. San Diego Wave, Friday, 8 p.m. ET
The Current fell 3-0 to Orlando on the road. This was the first time Kansas City has been held scoreless in eight games, although the scoresheet doesn’t capture the full narrative of this game. Kansas City edged out the Pride in possession (55%), shots (20 vs. 11), box touches (28 vs. 16), accurate passes (433 vs. 333) and final-third passes (110 vs. 62), but they just couldn’t find the back of the net. The one time they did, which came in the 26th minute, the goal was called back for offside. This result will hurt the Current’s goal differential, which could come back to haunt them in such a tight playoff race.
10. Seattle Reign FC
Previous ranking: 11
Next match: at Gotham FC, Saturday, noon ET (stream live on ESPN)
The Reign beat Portland by a 2-0 scoreline at Lumen Field over the weekend. This was an impressive showing for a Seattle side that has struggled to generate much by way of the attack, heading into this match having scored only 11 goals through their first 12 games. The eventual game-winning goal was scored by Ryanne Brown — her career first — and it was a beauty. Even so, the Reign’s defense — and goalkeeper Cassie Miller — were the star of the show in this one. Miller, stepping in for injured No. 1 goalkeeper Claudia Dickey, became the first Seattle goalkeeper to record nine saves in a shutout win.
11. Denver Summit FC
Previous ranking: 9
Next match: vs. Portland Thorns, Saturday, 2 p.m. ET
Denver tied Houston 2-2 at home to close out the weekend. While there is something to be stated for securing a point after last week’s disastrous outing against Kansas City, Denver conceded two leads in this match and ultimately left points on the table. After taking the lead in the 14th minute thanks to a Yazmeen Ryan stunner, the Summit let the Dash get on the board about a minute later. A Janine Sonis penalty kick in first-half stoppage time had Denver take the lead again, only to see them concede just minutes after the second half kicked off. Denver will need to shore up their defense, because it’s never a good sign to allow half of your opponent’s shots on goal to end up in the back of the net.
12. Boston Legacy FC
Previous ranking: 12
Next match: at Orlando Pride, Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET
Boston won their third game of the season by blanking Chicago 2-0 in Pawtucket. Amanda Gutierres converted a first-half penalty to notch her third goal of the year from the spot. Then, Nichelle Prince added an insurance goal in the second half to put an exclamation mark on her 100th NWSL start. Although it’s hard to weigh the importance of this win against league cellar dweller Chicago, the victory ended Boston’s four-game winless streak and marked the first time they held an opponent scoreless all year. Plus, it was the first time the Legacy held on to a lead through the last whistle. Are things looking up in Boston?
13. Bay FC
Previous ranking: 13
Next match: vs. North Carolina Courage, Saturday, 4 p.m. ET
Bay FC steamrolled Louisville in Kentucky on their way to a 2-0 win. This marked Bay’s first win since May 3 against San Diego, ultimately snapping their six-game winless streak. Kennedy Fuller scored her first goal in a Bay jersey since being traded from Angel City during the summer break. Then, Karlie Lema netted the insurance goal in the second half after forcing goalkeeper Jordyn Bloomer to turn the ball over in the Louisville defensive third. Bay held 62% possession in this match, and really stifled Louisville’s ability to produce much throughout the whole 90 minutes.
14. Houston Dash
Previous ranking: 15
Next match: at Racing Louisville, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET
The Dash battled their way to a 2-2 draw with Denver on the road. It’s a better result for a Houston team that’s having a poor run of form at the moment, as they’re winless through their past three matches. Still, this effort let the Dash avoid their third straight loss, which is impressive given that they conceded most of the attacking momentum to Denver and struggled to build any of their own. Plus, goals from Kat Rader and Linda Ullmark came soon after Summit strikes, so there’s something to be stated of the Dash’s resiliency in this one.
15. Chicago Stars FC
Previous ranking: 14
Next match: vs. Angel City, Saturday, 6:30 p.m. ET
Chicago lost 2-0 on the road to Boston. This was a rough outing for the Stars, who never fully settled into the match. They struggled to string passes together and couldn’t generate much by way of the attack, either. Star forward Mallory Swanson was held to just four touches in the first 45 minutes of the game and only managed a single touch in the opposition box in the whole match. Plus, the Stars’ defensive issues were on display, again: Boston took advantage of a questionable back-pass in the Chicago defensive third to double their lead and hand the Stars their 10th loss of the season.
16. Racing Louisville FC
Previous ranking: 16
Next match: vs. Houston Dash, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET
Racing dropped their fifth straight game by a 2-0 scoreline to Bay FC. This team managed just a single shot on target against Bay and only recorded 13 touches in the opposition box. It’s the third straight game that Louisville have failed to find the back of the net, too. It’s just impossible to win games if you can’t score goals. Given that Racing have never lost this many regular-season games in a row in their history, it may be time to make some changes in Louisville.
