It’s time to expand the definition of NWSL MVP and ‘look beyond the scoring’

And the 2026 NWSL Most Valuable Player award goes to…? Before we start naming names, let’s discuss the different player profiles that have taken home the award in the past, and those in the running this season. A common MVP target is the Golden Boot winner. It’s happened eight out of 12 times in the history of the league, including with the two-time and reigning MVP and Golden Boot winner Temwa Chawinga of the Kansas City Current. The NWSL’s inaugural MVP, Lauren Holiday, accomplished the same dual-honors in 2013 with FC Kansas City, as did midfielder Kim Little of Seattle Reign FC in 2014. Crystal Dunn followed suit in 2015 with the Washington Spirit, Lynn Williams in 2016 with Western New York Flash, and Sam Kerr in 2017 with Sky Blue FC (and then again in 2019 with the Chicago Red Stars). In 2018 with the Portland Thorns, Lindsey Heaps (née Horan) was the first MVP to not have also been the league’s highest goal scorer. Midfielder Jess Fishlock of the Reign, forward Sophia Wilson (née Smith) of the Thorns, and forward Kerolin of the North Carolina Courage were also voted MVP without also winning the Golden Boot in 2021, 2022, and 2023. With the exception of Kerr’s 2017 campaign, every other MVP has reached the postseason. (It’s worth noting that the NWSL was made up of 10 teams back then, with only the top four reaching the postseason. Sky Blue finished as the No. 6 seed.) This exception, if treated as precedent, could bode well for Courage forward and this year’s Golden Boot leader Ashley Sanchez. The 27-year-old has bagged 20 goals this season, tying Chawinga’s record for most regular season goals even as her team were bumped out of the playoff picture this weekend after their loss to the San Diego Wave. However an athlete might personally feel about individual awards in a team sport, their public stance will always maintain that recognition means little if the team isn’t successful. Sanchez has been prolific this season, stringing together enough impressive performances to earn an invitation back to U.S. women’s national team camp after two years. But it’s difficult to make a case for the value of Sanchez’s 20-goal (and counting) output if the Courage miss out on the playoffs. It might be time to think deeper as awards season approaches. Look beyond goals Even considering who is next up in the Golden Boot race, Orlando Pride striker Barbra Banda with 17 goals, doesn’t clarify matters from an MVP perspective. The Pride have already been eliminated from the playoffs and Banda is among the Zambian players who will miss multiple NWSL matches due to Ebola travel restrictions from games played during the international break. Wilson follows behind Banda with 13 goals, but that’s a noticeable drop off for a player who must still serve one more game of suspension after receiving a red card for hair pulling. The Thorns are currently in seventh place. Unless Sanchez scores enough goals to help lift the Courage back into playoff position, we are unlikely to see another MVP-Golden Boot winner this season. And that’s a good thing. Outside of Sanchez and Banda, the goals this season have either been evenly distributed among players (see: Angel City), not occurring in abundance (Gotham FC), or they are the result of a remarkable buildup through the midfield that makes the goals themselves feel more like periods than exclamation marks. There is no award for the player who records the most assists, but the Golden Boot’s quieter cousin is just as intriguing this season and could have MVP implications. Current midfielder Croix Bethune and Royals winger Cloé Lacasse are level at 10, tied with the current regular season assist record set by Bethune herself. Neither recorded an assist in the Current’s 2-0 victory over the Royals this weekend, but it did bump the Current up into a more comfortable place in the table at No. 4. Utah slid to sixth with two games to go. Reigning NWSL champions Gotham are at the top of the table and fighting to win their first shield in club history but have scored just 35 goals this season. (The only other low-scoring team still in playoff contention is the No. 8 Reign with 36 total goals.) But Gotham’s shield hopes are afloat because they’ve conceded an average of 0.8 goals per match according to FotMob, the least goals of any other team in the league. Gotham midfielder Jaedyn Shaw has been involved in nearly half of their 35 goals with 10 of her own and five assists, but center back Tierna Davidson and defensive midfielder Jaelin Howell, whose steeliness at the back helped Gotham to 13 clean sheets this season, have earned shouts as well. Gotham’s defensive success is particularly impressive considering the key injuries to defenders they’ve dealt with this season. San Diego have been just as deserving of end-of-year recognition. But the Spirit follow Gotham with 0.9 goals conceded this year, and the Wave after them with one goal conceded per match on average. Forward-turned-center-back-turned-Defender-of-the-Year Tara Rudd of the Spirit has grown into a dependable force alongside Esme Morgan. Wave center back Kennedy Wesley is the focal point of the Wave’s backline, but fullback Mimi Van Zanten has been a revelation on both sides of the ball and deserves a rookie of the year nomination at the very least. Meanwhile, Angel City center back Sarah Gorden’s 131 recoveries, 22 blocked shots, and 32 interceptions have contributed significantly to their positive 17-goal differential, the highest of any team in the league right now. And then there are those who may not fit as cleanly into a defined category, or whose teams aren’t topping the table, but who have nonetheless had stellar seasons and individual growth: Utah Royals center back Kate Del Fava and midfielder Mina Tanaka, Denver Summit fullback Janine Sonis, Thorns forward Pietra Tordin and midfielder Jessie Fleming, and Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz come to mind here. End of season awards are voted on by members of the NWSL community and break down as: 50 percent players, 25 percent board/general managers/head coaches, and 25 percent media members. It’s no surprise that so many former MVPs have also been leading goal scorers. Their names are the ones shouted by announcers when the ball hits the back of the net, and their stats are the most tangible connection to what decides games. That will probably always be true, but the murkiness of this year’s MVP race feels like its own sign of growth. As the NWSL continues to expand, so, too, should its definition of value and how it is recognized. This article originally appeared in The Athletic . Portland Thorns, Chicago Red Stars, Houston Dash, North Carolina Courage, Seattle Reign, Orlando Pride, Gotham FC, Kansas City Current, Washington Spirit, Angel City, Racing Louisville FC, San Diego Wave, Utah Royals FC, Bay FC, Denver Summit FC, Boston Legacy FC, NWSL, Women's Soccer 2026 The Athletic Media Company