NWSL Power Rankings: Can anyone stop Kansas City?

It's Monday, and different week of NWSL enactment is successful the books, which means it's clip for ESPN's Power Rankings.

Who's climbing the table? Who's successful escaped fall? Our writers studied the enactment from crossed Matchday 12 to travel up with this week's bid of each 14 teams successful the league. Let's dive in.

1. Kansas City Current

Previous ranking: 1
Next match: Friday, June 20 vs. Angel City, 8 p.m. ET

When the Kansas City Current are firing connected each cylinders, there's nary stopping them. Just inquire Racing Louisville, who watched arsenic 3 goals deed the backmost of their nett wrong the archetypal 19 minutes astatine CPKC Stadium connected Saturday. Between their accelerated counter-attacking play -- bully luck dealing with Temwa Chawinga and Michelle Cooper connected the interruption -- and their incisive possession approach, adjacent a second-half flurry from the visitors couldn't rob Kansas City of each 3 points successful a 4-2 victory.

2. San Diego Wave FC

Previous ranking: 3
Next match: Sunday, June 22 vs. Washington Spirit, 10 p.m. ET

One of the hottest teams successful the league, San Diego collected their sixth triumph successful their past 8 games successful a 3-2 triumph implicit the Houston Dash connected Friday. Playing distant from home, the Wave got retired to a 2-0 pb successful the archetypal fractional successful nary tiny portion owed to their interchanging attackers and surging runs from goal-scorer Kenza Dali retired of midfield. Though they were outscored successful the 2nd fractional and conceded a sloppy extremity to Yazmeen Ryan, Jonas Eidevall's squad continues to impress.

3. Orlando Pride

Previous ranking: 4
Next match: Friday, June 20 vs. Racing Louisville, 8 p.m. ET

If you look up "smash and grab" successful the dictionary, it'll amusement you a representation of the Orlando Pride aft their 1-0 triumph implicit Bay FC. Alright, fine. It won't. But it should. Despite allowing 20 shots and 1.7 xG connected Friday, arsenic per FBref, Orlando inactive managed a constrictive triumph acknowledgment to nary different than Barbra Banda. After a speedy escaped footwear connected the near broadside of midfield, Banda surged into space, worked her mode into the box, and capitalized connected a deflection to people the game's lone goal. The Pride person a fewer antiaircraft frailties to address, but they'll instrumentality the 3 points.

4. Washington Spirit

Previous ranking: 2
Next match: Sunday, June 22 vs. San Diego Wave, 10 p.m. ET

Playing without caput manager Jonatan Giráldez (not due to the fact that of his upcoming determination to France but due to the fact that helium and his spouse were expecting their 2nd child), the Spirit fell 2-0 to the Portland Thorns to adjacent retired the NWSL's play slate. Washington's constrictive midfield helped them clasp the bulk of possession successful Portland. But a sloppy turnover enactment them successful a first-half spread and an inability to capitalize connected immoderate of their 13 shots kept them from digging their mode out.

play

1:59

Portland Thorns FC vs. Washington Spirit - Game Highlights

Watch the Game Highlights from Portland Thorns FC vs. Washington Spirit, 06/16/2025

5. NJ/NY Gotham FC

Previous ranking: 5
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Bay FC, 7.30 p.m. ET

Though they won the CONCACAF W Champions Cup past month, Gotham FC collected their archetypal league triumph since April successful a 3-0 triumph implicit the Utah Royals connected Friday. With a punishment footwear extremity from Esther Gonzalez and a brace of reddish cards, 1 to Jess Carter and 1 to Jaelin Howell, Gotham's way to 3 points was acold from uneventful. Still, the visitors mostly controlled the crippled and Rose Lavelle made her 2nd quality of the year. Not atrocious for a roadworthy trip.

6. Portland Thorns

Previous ranking: 7
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Chicago Stars, 10 p.m. ET

In the NWSL, determination are fewer amended ways to bounce backmost from a disappointing nonaccomplishment than by besting the Washington Spirit. Even with the Spirit successful a authorities of managerial transition, the Portland Thorns' 2-0 triumph was an awesome 1 implicit a squad that hadn't mislaid since the opening of May. Between immoderate timely precocious pressing and lethal modulation attacking, Portland ended Sunday's lucifer worthy of earning each 3 points.

7. Seattle Reign FC

Previous ranking: 6
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Utah Royals, 5 p.m. ET

Even playing connected the road, it's a situation not to look astatine a gully with the Chicago Stars arsenic 2 points dropped. Due to a mediocre commencement that featured their modulation defence getting torn isolated connected 2 abstracted occasions wrong the archetypal 15 minutes connected Saturday, it took everything successful the Reign to claw backmost for a 2-2 draw. Yes, getting those 2 goals backmost not agelong earlier the last whistle helped salvage the outing, but consistency inactive lacks for Laura Harvey's team.

8. Racing Louisville FC

Previous ranking: 8
Next match: Friday, June 20 vs. Orlando Pride, 8 p.m. ET

At their best, Racing Louisville person been a compact, effectual antiaircraft squad that makes beingness perfectly miserable for anyone and everyone connected their schedule. It's that hard-nosed benignant that's held them supra the playoff enactment truthful acold this season. But connected Saturday successful Kansas City, that corporate antiaircraft enactment was absent. Louisville was sluggish successful transition, gappy successful possession, and ne'er successful the crippled successful a 4-2 nonaccomplishment to the Current.

9. Bay FC

Previous ranking: 9
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Gotham FC, 7.30 p.m. ET

It's hard to spot positives successful a loss, but if determination was ever a infinitesimal to bash truthful for Bay FC, it's aft their constrictive decision to the Orlando Pride connected Friday. While a deflected changeable from Banda earned Orlando a 1-0 lead, Bay outplayed the Pride for astir of the match. The location broadside utilized the shot good successful possession and connected acceptable pieces, managing 20 shots compared to conscionable 7 for their opponents. So overmuch was moving for Bay FC -- speech from the last touch.

10. North Carolina Courage

Previous ranking: 11
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Houston Dash, 7.30 p.m. ET

Saturday's 2-1 triumph implicit Angel City was nervy, featuring a near-last infinitesimal victor successful second-half stoppage-time from Brianna Pinto. But it was a well-earned 3 points for North Carolina, who outshot their hosts 24 to 13, adjacent with Jaedyn Shaw and Ashley Sanchez some opening the crippled connected the bench. Playing retired of Sean Nahas' back-three setup, the Courage managed their third-highest xG full of the twelvemonth and inched person to the playoff line.

play

1:58

Angel City FC vs. North Carolina Courage - Game Highlights

Watch the Game Highlights from Angel City FC vs. North Carolina Courage, 06/15/2025

11. Angel City FC

Previous ranking: 10
Next match: Friday, June 20 vs. Kansas City Current, 8 p.m. ET

The 2nd youngest squad successful the NWSL based connected FBref's mean property weighted by minutes played metric, determination were ever going to beryllium increasing pains for Angel City successful 2025. Those increasing pains played retired successful existent clip successful a heartbreaking 2-1 nonaccomplishment to the North Carolina Courage connected Saturday, a crippled wherever the hosts allowed the opener successful the archetypal infinitesimal and the game-winner heavy successful 2nd fractional stoppage time. Both Thompson sisters were bright, but determination wasn't capable successful the onslaught to flooded Angel City's sloppy defending wrong their ain box.

12. Houston Dash

Previous ranking: 12
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. NC Courage, 7.30 p.m. ET

Despite a surge successful the 2nd fractional wherever they outscored the Wave, the Houston Dash fell 3-2 to San Diego connected Friday. Generating prime attacking chances successful unfastened play continues to beryllium a conflict for Houston, who managed conscionable 2 passes into the attacking punishment container connected the evening, according to FBref. Yazmeen Ryan and Barbara Olivieri, who each scored against San Diego, supply a utile level of incision -- but the 2 request help.

13. Chicago Stars FC

Previous ranking: 14
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Portland Thorns, 10 p.m. ET

Things ne'er look to look up for the Chicago Stars for excessively long, bash they? After Ludmila's brace wrong the archetypal 13 minutes enactment Chicago up connected Saturday, the Stars proceeded to vessel 2 goals, 1 successful the 87th infinitesimal and 1 successful the 89th, to gully 2-2 with the Seattle Reign. The accidental for a 2nd triumph successful 2025 was wrong their grasp, but it wasn't to be.

14. Utah Royals

Previous ranking: 14
Next match: Saturday, June 21 vs. Seattle Reign, 5 p.m. ET

From a sloppy punishment concession to incredibly sluggish betterment defending successful their ain half, Utah enactment successful a sub-par show against NJ/NY Gotham FC connected Friday. Losing 3-0 successful beforehand of their location crowd, the Royals lone managed six full shots contempt trailing for each but 9 minutes of the match. Friday's disappointment was the latest reminder successful a agelong drawstring of specified reminders that Utah person a ways to spell arsenic a club.