NWSL MVP: Rodman, Chawinga, Marta among finalists for award

Kansas City Current forward Temwa Chawinga, who broke the single-season NWSL scoring record with 20 goals this campaign, headlines a group of five finalists for the league’s MVP award.

Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda and midfielder Marta join United States internationals Trinity Rodman and Sophia Smith, forwards for the Washington Spirit and Portland Thorns, respectively.

Chawinga and Kansas City face off with Banda, Marta and Orlando in a highly anticipated NWSL semifinal on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, ABC).

Banda and Chawinga, who are both in their first year in the league, were locked into a heated race for the Golden Boot throughout most of the season until Chawinga went on a record scoring run after the Olympics, scoring in seven of eight games. Banda finished the regular season with 13 goals.

Chawinga has scored in every regular-season game since June, except for the Current’s scoreless draw in Orlando in September. That run includes scoring the lone goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win over the North Carolina Courage in the quarterfinal.

Smith finished third in the league in scoring with 12 goals despite missing significant time after the Olympics due to an ankle injury. Rodman, who was also a central figure on the USWNT’s Olympic gold-medal winning team, scored eight goals and added six assists for the Pride.

Marta, who turns 39 in February, enjoyed her best year as a pro since joining the Pride in 2017. She registered nine goals and an assist this year.

Eighteen of the 24 finalists for awards are from the top four teams in the league, mirroring a season in which all four top seeds advanced to the semifinals this past weekend, and fourth and fifth place were separated by 16 points in the regular season.

The Orlando Pride lead all teams with seven nominations across the six awards. Marta is also nominated for the newly created Midfielder of the Year award, and Orlando head coach Seb Hines is the favorite to win Coach of the Year after the Pride set a new points record (60) while going unbeaten through the first 23 games of the season and winning the Shield.

Washington Spirit midfielder Croix Bethune leads the Rookie of the Year chase after tying Tobin Heath’s single-season assist record. Bethune registered 10 assists before sustaining a season-ending meniscus tear while throwing out a first pitch a Washington Nationals game. She was participating in the ceremony after earning an Olympic gold medal with the USWNT.

The final round of voting uses a weighted scale of players (40%), owners/GMs/coaches (25%), media (25%) and fans (10%).

2024 NWSL awards finalists