# 2015 National Women's Soccer League season

The 2015 National Women's Soccer League season was the third 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 (2009–2011) and the Women's United Soccer Association (2001–2003), it was the ninth overall season of FIFA and USSF-sanctioned top division women's soccer in the United States. The league was operated by the United States Soccer Federation and received major financial backing from that body. Further financial backing was provided by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Mexican Football Federation. All three national federations paid the league salaries of many of their respective national team members in an effort to nurture talent in those nations.
In January, Jeff Plush was named NWSL commissioner, replacing Cheryl Bailey.
To accommodate the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, the league announced it would take a two-week break from June 7–19, reduce the season to 20 games, and extend the playing calendar into September.
For the second straight season, FC Kansas City defeated the NWSL Shield winners Seattle Reign FC 1–0 to win the NWSL 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.

### Personnel and sponsorship

Note: All of the teams use Nike as their kit manufacturer.
| Team | Head coach | Captain | Shirt sponsor |
| Boston Breakers | Tom Durkin | Katie Schoepfer Kassey Kallman Julie King | Steward Health Care |
| Chicago Red Stars | Rory Dames | Lori Chalupny | CJ Wilson Mazda |
| Houston Dash | Randy Waldrum | Ella Masar | BBVA Compass |
| FC Kansas City | Vlatko Andonovski | Becky Sauerbrunn | Research Medical Center |
| Portland Thorns | Paul Riley | Christine Sinclair | Providence Health & Services |
| Seattle Reign FC | Laura Harvey | Keelin Winters | Moda Health |
| Sky Blue FC | Jim Gabarra | Christie Rampone | Meridian Health |
| Washington Spirit | Mark Parsons | Ali Krieger | ProChain Solutions, Inc. |
| Western New York Flash | Aaran Lines | Brittany Taylor | Sahlen's |

### Player acquisition

Players were acquired through the 2015 Allocation of national team players on January 14 and the 2015 NWSL College Draft on January 16, as well as free agency and trades.
Notable acquisitions and losses
* Carli Lloyd, the scoring and assist leader for the US women's national team in 2014, was traded from the Western New York Flash to the Houston Dash on October 16, 2014.
* Heather O'Reilly, the scoring and assist leader for the Boston Breakers in 2014, was traded from Boston to FC Kansas City on October 27, 2014.
* Samantha Kerr, the leading scorer for the Western New York Flash in 2014, was traded from Western New York to Sky Blue FC on November 24, 2014.
* Sophie Schmidt, a veteran Allocated Player for the Canadian women's national team, announced in January 2015 she would not play for either Sky Blue FC or the NWSL in order to focus on the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.
* Morgan Brian, the two-time Hermann Trophy winner, was chosen No. 1 overall by the Houston Dash in the College Draft on January 16, 2015.
* Jessica McDonald, the leading scorer for the Portland Thorns in 2014, was traded from Portland to the Houston Dash during the draft on January 16, 2015.
* Jodie Taylor, the leading scorer for the Washington Spirit in 2014, was traded from Washington to the Portland Thorns during the draft on January 16, 2015.
* Abby Wambach, the scoring and assist leader for the Western New York Flash in 2013, announced on March 18, 2015, she would not play for either Western New York or the NWSL in order to focus on the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. Her rights were subsequently traded to the Seattle Reign in exchange for Sydney Leroux.

## Competition format

* Each team will play a total of 20 games, 10 home and 10 away.
* Each team will play all opponents twice, once home and once away, plus four opponents an extra time, split two opponents at home and two away.
* The four teams at the end of the season with the most points will qualify for the playoffs.

### Results table

Abbreviation and Color Key: Boston Breakers – BOS • Chicago Red Stars – CHI • Houston Dash – HOU • FC Kansas City – KC • Portland Thorns FC – POR Seattle Reign FC – SEA • Sky Blue FC – NJ • Washington Spirit – WAS • Western New York Flash – WNY Win  • Loss  • Tie  • Home Game :
| Club | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match |
| Club | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| Boston Breakers | POR | HOU | WNY | CHI | POR | NJ | KC | WAS | SEA | WNY | KC | CHI | CHI | NJ | SEA | POR | WAS | KC | SEA | HOU |
| Boston Breakers | 4–1 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 5–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 |
| Chicago Red Stars | SEA | POR | NJ | BOS | HOU | KC | SEA | WNY | NJ | HOU | BOS | BOS | WAS | KC | POR | NJ | WAS | WNY | WNY | HOU |
| Chicago Red Stars | 3–2 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 |
| Houston Dash | WAS | NJ | BOS | KC | CHI | POR | NJ | POR | WNY | WAS | CHI | KC | WNY | KC | WAS | NJ | SEA | SEA | BOS | CHI |
| Houston Dash | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| FC Kansas City | NJ | WAS | SEA | HOU | WNY | WNY | CHI | BOS | POR | SEA | WAS | BOS | HOU | HOU | CHI | WNY | POR | BOS | WAS | NJ |
| FC Kansas City | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 |
| Portland Thorns FC | BOS | WNY | CHI | WAS | BOS | HOU | WAS | HOU | KC | NJ | NJ | SEA | SEA | WNY | BOS | CHI | KC | NJ | WAS | WNY |
| Portland Thorns FC | 4–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–2 | 5–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 2–3 |
| Seattle Reign FC | WNY | CHI | KC | WAS | NJ | CHI | NJ | BOS | KC | WNY | WNY | WAS | POR | POR | BOS | HOU | HOU | BOS | NJ | WAS |
| Seattle Reign FC | 5–1 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 |
| Sky Blue FC | KC | HOU | WAS | CHI | SEA | WAS | BOS | HOU | SEA | CHI | POR | POR | WNY | BOS | WNY | HOU | CHI | POR | SEA | KC |
| Sky Blue FC | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–3 |
| Washington Spirit | HOU | KC | NJ | SEA | POR | NJ | WNY | POR | BOS | HOU | KC | SEA | CHI | HOU | BOS | WNY | CHI | KC | POR | SEA |
| Washington Spirit | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 1–2 |
| Western New York Flash | SEA | POR | BOS | KC | KC | WAS | CHI | HOU | BOS | SEA | SEA | NJ | HOU | POR | NJ | KC | WAS | CHI | CHI | POR |
| Western New York Flash | 5–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 3–2 |
Scores listed as home-away

## League standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Seattle Reign FC | 20 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 41 | 21 | +20 | 43 | NWSL Shield |
| 2 | Chicago Red Stars | 20 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 31 | 22 | +9 | 33 | NWSL Playoffs |
| 3 | FC Kansas City (C) | 20 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 32 | 20 | +12 | 32 | NWSL Playoffs |
| 4 | Washington Spirit | 20 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 31 | 28 | +3 | 30 | NWSL Playoffs |
| 5 | Houston Dash | 20 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 21 | 26 | −5 | 24 | |
| 6 | Portland Thorns FC | 20 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 27 | 29 | −2 | 23 | |
| 7 | Western New York Flash | 20 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 24 | 34 | −10 | 23 | |
| 8 | Sky Blue FC | 20 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 22 | 28 | −6 | 22 | |
| 9 | Boston Breakers | 20 | 4 | 3 | 13 | 22 | 43 | −21 | 15 | |

### 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.
If two teams tie:
* Head-to-head win–loss record between the two teams.
* Greater goal difference across the entire season (against all teams, not just tied teams).
* Greatest total number of goals scored (against all teams).
* 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.
If three or more teams tie, the following rules apply until only two teams remain tied, at which point the two-team tiebreakers listed above are used:
* Points per game against all other tied teams (total all points earned in games against tied teams and divide by games played against tied teams).
* Greater goal difference across the entire season (against all teams, not just tied teams).

### Weekly live standings

Considering each week to end on a Sunday
| Team \ Week | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| Seattle Reign FC | 1 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Chicago Red Stars | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| FC Kansas City | 6 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Washington Spirit | 7 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Houston Dash | 3 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 5 |
| Portland Thorns FC | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| Western New York Flash | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
| Sky Blue FC | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 8 |
| Boston Breakers | 8 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |

## Statistical leaders
### Goalkeeping

    As of September 6, 2015
(Minimum of 900 minutes played)
| Rank | Goalkeeper | Club | GP | MINS | SOG | SVS | GA | GAA | W-L-T | SHO |
| 1 | Michele Dalton | Chicago Red Stars | 12 | 1080 | 58 | 47 | 11 | 0.917 | 6–1–5 | 5 |
| 2 | Nicole Barnhart | FC Kansas City | 17 | 1530 | 70 | 54 | 16 | 0.941 | 8–6–3 | 8 |
| 3 | Haley Kopmeyer | Seattle Reign FC | 11 | 990 | 52 | 41 | 11 | 1.000 | 7–1–3 | 4 |
| 4 | Michelle Betos | Portland Thorns FC | 14 | 1260 | 63 | 45 | 18 | 1.286 | 5–7–2 | 2 |
| 5 | Brittany Cameron | Sky Blue FC | 20 | 1792 | 114 | 87 | 27 | 1.357 | 5–8–7 | 4 |
| 6 | Erin McLeod | Houston Dash | 11 | 932 | 74 | 60 | 15 | 1.364 | 3–4–3 | 2 |
| 7 | Kelsey Wys | Washington Spirit | 11 | 990 | 51 | 35 | 16 | 1.455 | 5–4–2 | 3 |
| 8 | Chantel Jones | Western New York Flash | 13 | 1155 | 81 | 60 | 21 | 1.615 | 4–4–5 | 2 |
| 9 | Alyssa Naeher | Boston Breakers | 12 | 1080 | 95 | 65 | 30 | 2.500 | 2–9–1 | 0 |

## NWSL Playoffs

The top four teams from the regular season will compete for the NWSL Championship.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Championship | Championship | Championship |
| 1 | Seattle Reign FC | 3 | | | |
| 4 | Washington Spirit | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Washington Spirit | 0 | 1 | Seattle Reign FC | 0 |
| | | | 3 | FC Kansas City | 1 |
| 2 | Chicago Red Stars | 0 | 3 | FC Kansas City | 1 |
| 3 | FC Kansas City | 3 | | | |

### Championship
## Individual awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Player of the Month | Club | Month's Statline |
| April | Christen Press | Chicago Red Stars | 4G, 1A in 2 games; Red Stars 1-0-1 in April |
| May | Sofia Huerta | Chicago Red Stars | 5G, 1A in 5 games; Red Stars 3-0-2 in May |
| June | Kim Little | Seattle Reign FC | 3G, 1A in 3 games; Reigh FC 3-0-0 in June |
| July | Carli Lloyd | Houston Dash | 3G in 3 games; Dash 2-1-1 in July (2-0-1 in Lloyd appearances) |
| August | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 6G, 1A in 6 games; Spirit 2-1-3 in August |

### Weekly awards

| Week | Player of the Week | Club | Week's Statline |
| Week 1 | Megan Rapinoe | Seattle Reign FC | 3G, 1A |
| Week 2 | Christen Press | Chicago Red Stars | 2G, 1A |
| Week 3 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 2G |
| Week 4 | Becky Edwards | Western New York Flash | 1G, 1A |
| Week 5 | Sofia Huerta | Chicago Red Stars | 2G, 1A |
| Week 6 | Sofia Huerta | Chicago Red Stars | 2G |
| Week 7 | Bianca Henninger | Houston Dash | 8 saves |
| Week 8 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 1G (GWG) |
| Week 9 | Jessica Fishlock | Seattle Reign | 1G, 1A |
| Week 10 | Michelle Betos | Portland Thorns FC | 4 saves, 1G (GTG) |
| Week 11 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 1G (GWG) |
| Week 12 | Sinead Farrelly | Portland Thorns FC | 1G (GWG) |
| Week 13 | Shea Groom | FC Kansas City | 1G (GWG), 2A |
| Week 14 | Michelle Heyman | Western New York Flash | 1G |
| Week 15 | Beverly Yanez | Seattle Reign FC | 2G |
| Week 16 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 3G (GWG) |
| Week 17 | Alyssa Naeher | Boston Breakers | 12 saves in August 8 Spirit game |
| Week 18 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 1G (GWG) |
| Week 19 | Kim Little | Seattle Reign FC | 3G (GWG) |
| Week 20 | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 2G 1A |
| Week 21 | Karina LeBlanc | Chicago Red Stars | 19 Shots/10 SOG/9 Saves vs Houston |

### Annual awards

| Award | Winner | Winner | Winner |
| Golden Boot | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 15 goals |
| Rookie of the Year | Danielle Colaprico | Chicago Red Stars | Played in all 20 games |
| Goalkeeper of the Year | Michelle Betos | Portland Thorns FC | 1.286 GAA, 45 saves |
| Defender of the Year | Becky Sauerbrunn | FC Kansas City | 990 minutes |
| Coach of the Year | Laura Harvey | Seattle Reign | 13–3–4 regular season |
| Most Valuable Player | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 15 goals, 3 assists |
NWSL Best XI :
| Position | First team | First team | First team | Second team | Second team | Second team |
| Goalkeeper | Michelle Betos | Portland Thorns FC | 45 saves | Nicole Barnhart | FC Kansas City | 8 shutouts |
| Defender | Lauren Barnes | Seattle Reign FC | 1,800 minutes | Stephanie Cox | Seattle Reign FC | 1,800 minutes |
| Defender | Julie Johnston | Chicago Red Stars | 1.10 team GAA | Kendall Fletcher | Seattle Reign FC | 2 goals, 2 assists |
| Defender | Amy LePeilbet | FC Kansas City | 1,800 minutes | Arin Gilliland | Chicago Red Stars | 1.10 team GAA |
| Defender | Becky Sauerbrunn | FC Kansas City | 1.00 team GAA | Leigh Ann Robinson | FC Kansas City | 1,800 minutes |
| Midfielder | Jess Fishlock | Seattle Reign FC | 8 goals, 2 assists | Danielle Colaprico | Chicago Red Stars | 1,776 minutes |
| Midfielder | Kim Little | Seattle Reign FC | 10 goals, 7 assists | Lauren Holiday | FC Kansas City | 2 goals, 2 assists |
| Midfielder | Allie Long | Portland Thorns FC | 10 goals, 4 assists | Carli Lloyd | Houston Dash | 4 goals |
| FW // MF | Crystal Dunn | Washington Spirit | 15 goals, 3 assists | Keelin Winters | Seattle Reign FC | 1,654 minutes |
| Forward | Christen Press | Chicago Red Stars | 10 goals, 2 assists | Sofia Huerta | Chicago Red Stars | 6 goals, 3 assists |
| Forward | Beverly Yanez | Seattle Reign FC | 9 goals | Megan Rapinoe | Seattle Reign FC | 5 goals, 5 assists |
NWSL Championship Game MVP :
| Player | Club | Record |
| Amy Rodriguez | FC Kansas City | Scored the game-winning goal |