NWSL Shield

The NWSL Shield is an annual award given to the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) team with the best regular season record as determined by the NWSL points system. The NWSL Shield has been awarded annually since 2013 and is recognized as a major trophy by the league.

The North Carolina Courage and Seattle Reign FC, each with three NWSL Shields since the league's inception in 2013, are tied as of 2023 for the most shields won by any NWSL team. The Orlando Pride are the current (2024) winners.

In 2024, CONCACAF announced that the NWSL Shield winner and runner-up qualified by virtue of those accomplishments for the 2024–25 CONCACAF W Champions Cup, the inaugural edition of that competition.

History

When the NWSL was launched in 2013, the league's format was set up similarly to other contemporary North American leagues. After the regular season, the NWSL playoffs were held, with the top four teams vying for a spot in the postseason championship match. The club with the most regular-season points was awarded the NWSL Shield and earned the top seed in the playoffs.

A new NWSL Shield trophy, designed by Tiffany & Co., was unveiled by the league in 2024. It includes a depiction of a soccer ball and uses 24-karat gold vermeil and sterling silver.

Point system and tiebreakers

Since the 2013 inaugural season, the system of awarding points in the NWSL is the same as the international standard: three points for a win, one for a draw, and no points for a loss.

Since the 2022 season, in the event of an end-of-season tie in total accumulated points, the following tie-breakers are used among all teams with the same number of points:

Greater goal difference across the entire regular season (against all teams, not just tied teams).
Most total wins across the entire regular season (against all teams, not just tied teams).
Most goals scored across the entire regular season (against all teams, not just tied teams).
Head-to-head results (total points) between the tied teams.
Head-to-head most goals scored between the tied teams.
Least disciplinary points accumulated across the entire regular season (against all teams, not just tied teams).
Coin flip (if two teams are tied) or drawing of lots (if three or more teams are tied).

All tiebreakers involving goal counts (goal differential, goals for) include all regular-season games, not just games against tied teams.

Prior to the 2022 season, the first tie-breaker was head-to-head record.