Since playoff games cannot end in draws, they are broken by two consecutive 15-minute extra time periods, followed by penalty shoot-outs of best-of-five rounds with additional rounds as required.
Format
Since the 2024 season, the top eight teams in the final standings at the end of the regular season qualify for the playoffs and are seeded in order of their record. The top-seed hosts the eighth seed and the fourth hosts the fifth in one arm of the quarterfinals bracket, and the runner-up hosts the seventh seed and the third hosts the sixth in the other arm. In the semifinals, teams are not reseeded and the winners within each quarterfinals arm play each other.[1]
From 2021 to 2023, the top 6 teams qualified for a three-round playoff, and the top two seeds had a first-round bye.[2] From 2013 to 2019, the top 4 teams qualified for a two-round playoff.[3]
In 2013 and 2014, the higher seeded team to reach the championship hosted the match. Since 2015, the championship has been hosted at a predetermined site.[4]
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 none for a loss. Since the 2022 season, if at least two 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.[6]: 6
Only one of the above point totals shall be applied to a player in a single game.
Coin flip (2 teams)/Drawing of lots (3+ teams)
If two clubs remain tied after another club with the same number of points advances during any step, the tie breaker reverts to step 1 of the two-club format.
Prior to the 2022 season, the first tiebreaker was head-to-head record.[7]: 6
