GSN’s Best XI of the 2024 NWSL Season
The NWSL’s Best XI is one of the more anticipated awards given to players at the end of the season. The goal is to highlight the best of the best and award those who had an incredible NWSL season. With the playoffs underway, we at GSN wanted to get a head start and make our own Best XI from the 2024 NWSL. Agree or disagree with our selections? Be sure to drop a comment on the website or social media!
Temwa Chawinga – Kansas City Current, Forward
This is the easiest choice on the list, and the first name will come up for every single person creating their Best XI. Temwa Chawinga took the NWSL by storm, shattering the NWSL single-season goal-scoring record by Sam Kerr. The superstar scored 20 goals and dished out six assists in the regular season. Plus, the Malawian scored the game-winner in a 1-0 win against the North Carolina Courage in the Quarterfinals. Chawinga has been unstoppable this season. Teams have learned that they cannot play a high line with her lurking in dangerous areas. If she gets even an inch of daylight, she’s putting the ball in the back of the net. She’s a true goal-scoring menace who is set to do this for years to come in the NWSL.
Barbara Banda – Orlando Pride, Forward
Barbara Banda’s move to Orlando flew under the radar, but those who knew what she had done for her country knew she would be something special in the NWSL. Banda gave the Orlando Pride the extra attacking piece necessary to step up into the league’s upper echelon. The Pride were by far the best team in the regular season, and Banda was at the forefront. Banda’s ability to get behind defenses, her movement in and around the box, and her aerial ability make her a complete striker. Every single defense has their hands full when going up against her. With 15 goals and six assists in 23 games, Banda put up numbers few have been able to do in the NWSL; she’s not just one of the best in the NWSL; she’s one of the best in the world.
Sophia Smith – Portland Thorns, Forward
Sophia Smith was hampered by injuries for parts of the season and left for the Olympics, only making 20 appearances. That didn’t stop SS9 from being a threat to score every time she stepped on the pitch. Smith managed to finish third in the league in goals scored (12) and tied for third in assists (6). It makes you wonder how much better a season she would have had if she played in every game. Smith’s numbers reflect her usual output, but her consistency in a tough league like the NWSL highlights how great of a superstar she is.
Ashley Sanchez – North Carolina Courage, Midfielder
What a difference a year makes. Ashley Sanchez went from losing her spot on the USWNT to getting traded to North Carolina to earning it once again with the NC Courage. Sanchez finished in the top 10 of the NWSL in chances created and became the first player in league history to score against every team in the NWSL. Sanchez looked like her old self, the version that first came into the league and burst onto the scene as a star. She’s restored her status as one of the league’s best. She gave the NC Courage that extra bit of cutting edge in the midfield.
Vanessa DiBernardo – Kansas City Current, Midfielder
Vanessa DiBernardo has been and will always be criminally underrated for what she has done in the league. The former Red Stars midfielder came to Kansas City and has provided the same sturdy presence. DiBernardo can defend and attack, pass and score, a true all-purpose midfielder in the middle of the park. The Current is loaded with talented players, but DiBernardo is the engine of this team. Finishing third in the league in assists with six shows how humble and unselfish she is. She’s not the type of player who wants the credit, she just wants to win, and it’s been a perfect fit for her in Vlako Andonovski’s system in Kansas City.
Rose Lavelle – Gotham FC, Midfielder
Rose Lavelle signed with Gotham after playing just seven NWSL games with Seattle in 2023. Gotham took a risk, and it paid off in a big way. Lavelle made the most appearances she’s ever made in an NWSL season with 22, and we got to see her brilliance far more often than we ever have. When Lavelle is on the ball and weaving in and out of defenders, she’s mesmerizing. Her ball control, balance, and dribbling are as good as it gets. Gotham knew they had to make some additions to repeat as champions. Lavelle not only scored seven crucial goals in the regular season for Gotham, but she also scored a late stoppage-time winner to beat Portland in the Quarterfinals. No one deserves the Best XI spot more than Rose Lavelle, who has overcome a lot to get back into some of the best form of her life.
Naomi Girma – San Diego Wave, Defender
The Stanford grad isn’t just the best defender in the NWSL. She’s emerged as a top 3 defender in the world. The amount of control Girma has over the game is astounding. Any time the ball enters her area, she makes the perfect play almost every single time. The technique, anticipation skills, movement, positioning, and everything else she does is as close to perfect as you could get. Girma has to be winning NWSL Defender of the Year for the third year in a row, something that hasn’t been done since USWNT legend Becky Sauerbrunn did it from 2013-2015. Girma is already at Sauerbrunn’s level of greatness at age 24; she has a chance to end her career as one of the best players of all time.
Emily Sams – Orlando Pride, Defender
Emily Sams is fulfilling her potential as a former No. 3 pick of the Orlando Pride. The center-back was rock solid for Orlando this season, leading the league’s best defense. Orlando tied Gotham for the fewest goals allowed this season at 20, but Orlando had more shutouts as a team, and Sams played in all 26 regular season games for the Pride. The best defender on the league’s best team deserves a spot on the Best XI.
Tierna Davidson – Gotham FC, Defender
Tierna Davidson was once as highly touted as Naomi Girma and lived up to the billing early in her career. Injuries have kept her off the field, but Gotham took a chance on her like they did with Rose Lavelle, and they again struck gold. Davidson returned to her stellar form, looking like the 2021 version with the Chicago Red Stars. Like Sams, the best defender on the team that allowed the fewest goals should get the nod for Best XI alongside Naomi Girma, Tierna Davidson wholeheartedly deserves it.
Jenna Nighswonger – Gotham FC, Defender
Jenna Nighswonger played a massive role as a rookie last season to help Gotham capture their first NWSL title, and she’s followed it up with another phenomenal season. Of all the wing-backs in the league, she’s the most versatile in making an impact in attack and defense. Rarely will you see a defender be the team’s designated set-piece taker. Nighswonger has shown to put crosses into the box, assist, score, and put a strong tackle in. The former Florida State star can play on the left or the right and is arguably the best overall outside back in the league, with Casey Krueger not too far behind. Considering the year Gotham had in the second half of the season, Nighswonger should get the last spot for defenders.
Jane Campbell – Houston Dash, Goalkeeper
Jane Campbell won NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year in 2023 and is set to do so again in 2024. Unfortunately, a bottom-three finish for the Dash in 2023 and a last-place finish this year have helped Campbell accrue the stats necessary to win the accolades she’s getting, which has to be bittersweet. Campbell recorded 113 saves, 24 more than the next goalie, Anna Moorehouse, who played in two more games than Campbell. Campbell led the league in Goals Against Average and tied for third for shutouts. Houston’s defense has allowed for Campbell to showcase what she can do, she’s the main reason they didn’t give up more goals and end up with the worst defensive record in the league. Jane Campbell has been great for a long time, she deserves these honors although she’ll likely say she’d prefer her team was winning over winning awards like these.
Honorable Mention – Croix Bethune, Washington Spirit, Midfielder
It was impossible to put this Best XI together with Croix Bethune, and I had to mention what an incredible rookie season she had. Bethune might still earn the NWSL Best XI spot despite playing in 17 games this season. Bethune broke the record for most assists in an NWSL season, and she did so within the first few months. The former USC and Georgia star also added five goals to her tally, showing she was worth all the hype she garnered entering the 2024 NWSL Draft. Here’s to a speedy recovery for Croix Bethune. The league is even more fun to watch when she wrecks opposing defenses regularly.
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