2025 NWSL Challenge Cup: What to know, what is it, where to watch, how to live stream, past winners

The NWSL celebrates its first competitive fixture of the year with the 2025 NWSL Challenge Cup on Friday evening. This year it will be a rematch of the NWSL championship final of 2024 between reigning title holders Orlando Pride and second place in Washington Spirit. The first competition of the year will be a unique competition with a cup title on the line while the NWSL goes into its latest campaign. The regular season 2025 starts with the opening weekend on March 14.

But why does the competitive agenda for NWSL start with this game? Let’s see what to know about the Challenge Cup:

How to look and opportunities

• Date: Friday, March 7 | Time8 p.m. and
• Location: Inter & Co Stadium – Orlando, FLA.
• Live stream: Amazon Prime Video
• Chances: Orlando Pride +130; Drawing +230; Washington Spirit +200

History of the Challenge Cup

The Challenge Cup was launched in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 Pandemie. The month -long tournament was founded as a temporary designation instead of a traditionally several weekly season. The original competition took place in Utah, with eight of the teams at the time who participated, because Orlando Pride was forced to withdraw due to a series of several positive COVID tests a day before the tournament. Players, coaches and employees lived and worked in a “bubble” environment prior to closed doors tournament matches.

Since 2020, the Challenge Cup has evolved into several iterations. In the coming years in 2021 and 2022, the Challenge Cup was a Round-Robin style tournament with “regional groups” of four teams to take travel into account. It was made ahead at the end of the preseason just before the regular season match. The 2023 version was the same group format, but was held simultaneously in addition to the regular season as other Cup competitive functions around the world.

Last year the competition renewed the Challenge Cup again, and now in its sixth edition as a one -off cup final between two teams. The current version of the event serves as a selection frame event between the top teams of the competition. Per competition rules, the reigning NWSL championship (winner after the season) and the NWSL Shield winner (awarded to the team with the best regular season record) square for the Challenge Cup.

In the event, one club is the winner of both titles the previous year, the Challange Cup will be a rematch of the previous NWSL championship, as is the case this season.

Winners from the past Challenge Cup

• 2020 – Houston Dash
• 2021 – Portland Thorns FC
• 2022 – North Carolina Courage
• 2023 – North Carolina Courage
• 2024 – San Diego Wave FC

Who plays?

Orlando Pride had a remarkable 2024 season and won both the NWSL championship and the NWSL shield while getting winning stripes and other individual awards. They will come across the Washington Spirit, second place in both the NWSL Championship 2024 and NWSL Shield Race. Orlando is led by leading goal scorer and Zambia International Barbra Banda and Brazil International Marta. De Geest is led in attack by the American national team attacker and 2024 Olympic gold medal winner Trinity Rodman and Colombia International Leique Santos.

What’s at stake?

In addition to winning the first trophy of the year in a knockout final, there is the celebration and bragging, but more importantly, there is prize money. NWSL partner UKG will provide prize money for the competition. The Challenge Cup-winning players from last year earned $ 3,500 in prize money, while players in the other team each receive $ 2,200. The Challenge Cup MVP received an extra $ 2,000 extra.