It’s all drama in Hollywood at the moment. After a promising start to the season, Angel City suddenly found themselves sliding out of the playoffs, into 11th place, and irrelevance on the pitch.
Head coach Alexander Straus failed to win any of his first six matches in charge of ACFC, but now the Los Angeles club has won back-to-back games after beating Bay FC 2–1 on Monday. Back up to ninth, and one point off of eighth, the fans were starting to look back up the standings again instead of down.
Then came the news reports that the face of the team, and Los Angeles native Alyssa Thompson, was exploring an opportunity to join Chelsea FC in the English Women’s Super League for a world record fee. What a rollercoaster.
Thompson’s conspicuous absence made Angel City’s win sweeter and more impressive. But will Thompson stick around long enough to see the turnaround blossom into a proper playoff push?
Here are your NWSL power rankings after Matchday 18.
14. Bay FC (4-8-6) [Previous: 12]
Finally, after many months, there has been a change at the bottom of the power rankings. Bay FC is on a hard dip with no end in sight. It is now three consecutive defeats for Bay FC. Despite the 2-1 loss to Angel City being one of its better performances, the personnel issues are mounting, and the head coach may not have too much time left at the helm.
13. Utah Royals (2-11-5) [Previous: 14]
Well, it’s not much, but it’s something. The Utah Royals have emerged from the basement of the power rankings for the first time since April. KK Ream became the youngest goalscorer in NWSL regular-season history when she netted the winner in the 85th minute of the 2–1 over the Portland Thorns. There’s life and good feelings in the squad that just ended a 12-match winless streak.
16-year-old KK Ream scores her first-ever NWSL goal to double Utah's lead! pic.twitter.com/tSG3RbWvyL
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) August 30, 2025
12. Chicago Stars (1-9-8) [Previous: 13]
Onwards and upwards. A slight jump up the ranking is the reward for the Chicago Stars’ truly bizarre streak of five consecutive draws. There is still a heavy reliance on Ludmila at the moment, but with five goals in her past three games, this is a player in a rich vein of career form. That deserves a boost.
11. North Carolina Courage (5-7-6) [Previous: 11]
No doubt there are some direction issues for the North Carolina Courage, who are without a head coach. It is, of course, hard to read too much into a 2–0 away loss to the KC Current. Almost every team will go to CPKC Stadium and lose this season. It’s as you were for the stunted Courage.
10. NJ/NY Gotham FC (6-6-6) [Previous: 10]
Gotham secured a massive win this past weekend as concerns and pressure mounted on the team. Even with the Orlando Pride missing plenty of star names, going on the road and coming back with three points is a considerable feat. While this statement certainly arrests the slump, more attacking creativity is needed beyond Esther González, who is up to 12 goals on the year.
HAD TO BE HER. 👑
— Sports on Prime (@SportsonPrime) August 30, 2025
Esther González opens the scoring for @GothamFC! pic.twitter.com/zkRzTl3N55
9. Angel City (6-7-5) [Previous: 9]
Winning without your top star and face of the team is impressive. There are plenty of question marks over consistency and what roster will finish out the season, but the organization and communication appear to be improved. Riley Tiernan is now up to eight goals after ending a five-game goalless streak.
8. Houston Dash (5-8-5) [Previous: 8]
Now five games undefeated, the Houston Dash are on their longest streak without a loss since 2023. After another come-from-behind performance, which ended in a 1–1 draw on the road to Racing Louisville, the Dash have now secured a league-best 12 points from losing positions this season. Evelina Duljan unleashed some late dramatics to get her first goal in a Dash kit.
Mental strength 💪
— Houston Dash (@HoustonDash) September 2, 2025
Evelina Duljan shares her inspiration for her goal celebration against Louisville pic.twitter.com/ELrTu5aaWr
7. Seattle Reign (7-5-6) [Previous: 7]
A 0–0 draw with the San Diego Wave on face value isn’t that remarkable, but the Seattle Reign really needed a strong defensive performance, and this was it. The backline trio of Lauren Barnes, Phoebe McClernon and Jordyn Bugg should be feeling much more confident after this one. Head coach Laura Harvey may begin to tinker less.
6. Portland Thorns (7-6-5) [Previous: 5]
After going 10 games undefeated at Providence Park, the Portland Thorns have now lost two consecutive home games. This latest one, a 2–1 defeat to the Utah Royals, feels a lot more embarrassing than the 2–0 defeat to the KC Current. The Royals exposed the Thorns on some simple plays, and alarm bells may start to ring for Portland’s defense.
5. Orlando Pride (8-6-4) [Previous: 4]
How low will the Pride fall? The injury to Barbra Banda is really hurting Orlando. The latest defeat, a 2–0 to Gotham, showcased just how poor this attack is right now as it searches for new ideas. The arrivals of Lizbeth Jacqueline Ovalle and Elyse Bennett can’t get going soon enough. In reality, 18 points behind the Current, the goal for Orlando is to figure out the best XI to play in the playoffs come October.
4. Racing Louisville (7-6-5) [Previous: 5]
The 2025 Coach of the Year candidate, Bev Yanez, and Racing Louisville are surging up the rankings. A 1–1 tie with the Houston Dash is a speed bump, but one troubling concern to note is that Racing has now dropped eight points from winning positions after the 86th minute. Racing is one of the hardest teams to match in terms of intensity in this league, but they still need to score more goals and secure some consistent results. Goalkeeper Jordyn Bloomer continues to be a real unsung hero.
Just a 𝙛𝙚𝙬 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙨 why we love @jblooms14 🫶
— Racing Louisville FC (@RacingLouFC) August 31, 2025
Jordyn Bloomer’s top saves from Friday night are a 𝙈𝙐𝙎𝙏-𝙎𝙀𝙀 👀 pic.twitter.com/dGD1BIXvrZ
3. San Diego Wave (8-4-6) [Previous: 3]
Another middling week for the San Diego Wave. A 0–0 draw with the Seattle Reign didn’t do much to cool down the argument that the Wave is the NWSL’s flat-track bully. It was great to see Trinity Armstrong back in the XI after a little bit of rotation the past fortnight. Hard to get too negative about a solid outing on the road.
2. Washington Spirit (9-4-5) [Previous: 2]
The Washington Spirit will be kicking themselves for throwing away a narrow 1–0 lead and tying 1–1 with the Chicago Stars. When the Spirit are fully healthy, there’s little doubt they are the next best team in the NWSL after the Current. But can the Spirit stay healthy? There was also another goal for the new arrival, Sofia Cantore, who is gracefully taking to the NWSL with ease.
1. Kansas City Current (15-2-1) [Previous: 1]
Kansas City is still untouchable. A routine 2–0 win over the Courage did nothing to damage the confidence or aptitude of the likely soon-to-be NWSL Shield trophy winners. Head coach Vlatko Andonovski also made some final lineup tweaks, handing Ally Sentnor and Debinha a start together. Lorena and the defense appear unbeatable, having secured five consecutive clean sheets. And now, Kansas City is tied for the fastest NWSL team to clinch a playoff spot.
CHEERS TO ROCKET RODRIGUEZ'S FIRST OF THE YEAR 🚀
— KC Current - x (@thekccurrent) August 31, 2025
PSA: @izzyrodriguezzz’s long-range shot is lethal 🔥
Moment of the Match | @Palmer_Square pic.twitter.com/ounhSIE0oS
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NWSL Matchday 19 Power Rankings: Angel City Back in the Mix After Turnaround.
