All photos courtesy of NWSL
The new 2025 National Women’s Soccer League kits have arrived, with each team rolling out at least one new look ahead of the season.
New kits can only mean one thing: Kit rankings! Who delivered and which clubs got it totally wrong? Allow me to do my annual moonlighting as a fashion critic, through the lens of an NWSL expert.
We’re going worst to first here on each new kit:
14. Chicago Stars
Look, some of this is about a rebrand that is a downgrade and never needed to happen, but the kit itself is also a far cry from the days of standard-setting creativity found in the “Elevated” kit or even the “Foundation” kit. Chicago once set the bar in branding and kits. Now, the “Stars” have “liquid metal-like patterns symbolizes the relentless intensity that lies within.”
Luckily, their primary jersey is great. Here’s to hoping they were that blue one as much as possible in 2025.
13. NJ/NY Gotham FC
Gotham and Nike got it right by going back to the Sky Blue FC roots with this color palette, and that should be the standard going forward. The light blue and black play off each other nicely, and they will always contrast enough to serve as the primary color of a separate kit.
That said, it’s impossible to look past the shoulder-pad vibes here. Are shoulder pads in again? I’m saying no.
12. North Carolina Courage
Utilizing a bold red — an actual color in the team crest — is a step up from last year’s dip into the world of pink, and the marketing around this jersey as having “subtle rosettes, the unique markings found on lionesses — symbols of both power and grace,” all sounds great.
From a distance, however, those details are unlikely to show up, and this could look like the early NWSL days of red color blocks.
11. Racing Louisville FC
On the one hand, I like this kit. On the other hand, I want more from it.
I, among others, have been begging Louisville for a real take on a mint kit, and this is it from the club and Nike. The expectation around that was for a lighter, ‘minty’ green rather than this darker hue, but the team already has a light-colored kit, so this had to be a darker color.
Green and black go great together, so there’s that. They beat Boston and Denver to this colorway, too, so points to Louisville. Unfortunately, this is not really a mint kit, with the NWSL/Nike marketing even mentioning “hints of mint green.” It’s OK, but it isn’t a home run and seems off brand.
10. Washington Spirit
Obnoxiously bright yellow is back in the nation’s capital, and at least this time it looks better than last year’s gradient template that unfortunately had to be worn in a final.
Still, it’s hard to know what’s going on here. It has been two years since Spirit owner Michele Kang said the team’s black-and-white logo marked a “rebrand in progress.” Since then, they’ve stuck with black and loud yellow, but they haven’t made any big, formal announcements about long-term branding.
The yellow remains, and the best explanation we have is ‘just because.’ I really don’t hate it, although it’s hard not to see this as an Australia kit.
9. Houston Dash
Well, they certainly tried something different. The Dash will wear purple for the first time because… well, why not? Hard to say. Credit to the Dash for leaning into their recent ethos: “The kit represents organizing the chaotic energy to create a cosmic storm and a new beacon of hope for the club.”
I guess? There’s literally almost nothing they’d want to repeat about last year, so any fresh start is a good one. The socks stand out. I don’t love this having nothing to do with the actual Dash branding, but alternate jerseys are aloud to do that sometimes.
8. Bay FC
Speaking of on-brand, Bay FC gets its first kit in actual team colors in year two of operation. Last year’s offering was abysmal – so much so that the white jersey also got replaced in 2025 – but it was always going to be boring due to production cycles of two-plus years and a shorter timeline on an expansion decision.
Let’s focus on the new primary, the navy blue: The blue and red play off each other nicely, and the explanation that nine lines represent the nine counties of the Bay is at least something localized. However, the centered badge above the Nike Swoosh is bizarre.
7. Portland Thorns
This is a true middle-ground kit. Is it bad? No. Is it amazing or creative? Also no. Would I objectively wear it? Yes, I think so.
Portland is one of the most storied franchises in the NWSL, so consistency isn’t a bad thing. The Thorns have leaned into black as a primary for the better part of a decade now, and there’s nothing wrong with what they’ve done here. It is infinitely better than whatever that green kit was last year.
6. San Diego Wave
The water look might take some getting used to at first, but two things jump out about the design:
One, it actually exists. The loud pink alternate was cool and all, but it was just a gradient template like the rest of the league. This jersey at least tries to be something. Which leads to point No. 2.
The storytelling earns points here. San Diego won the entire 2024 kit rollout with its bold, colorful Del Sol Kit that represented the gorgeous skies of the area. This Altamar Kit represents the sea, completing the collection of sun and sea. What better describes San Diego?
5. Seattle Reign FC
Yes, it’s a white (sponsor-less) kit, but the gold accents and blue trim really make this Reign kit stand out.
This is a crisp, modern take on the classic Reign brand, one that was mercilessly chopped to pieces for a few years by its French overlords before returning last year. Maybe I’m guilty of nostalgia with rating this so highly, but I suspect I am not alone.
4. Utah Royals FC
Putting aside the sponsor here – which isn’t a heavy factor in the other kits – the actual design of the whole combination is great. The Utah mountains and terrain are always worth highlighting, the blue and yellow pop – great choice to go with yellow socks – and the use of a secondary logo really works well in this case, considering it is the shape of the state.
The designers don’t control the sponsors. This design and color combination gets high marks.
3. Angel City FC
Don’t call this black-and-white kit boring. It has a classic look with enough detail to be interesting, from the LA-area landmarks in the toile pattern to near-perfect execution of Sol Rosa pink accents. The V-neck was a very smart choice here.
If you had told me Angel City was going to ditch a Sol Rosa-based kit for white, I would have been mad. But seeing what they did makes a big difference. This is game-ready and street-ready, which should have mass appeal.
2. Orlando Pride
Remember how that one leaked image made it look like the Pride were going to wear blue? Me either.
Orlando’s new purple kit is going to be its primary, shifting the thoughtful peach outfit to its rightful place as a secondary kit. The purple hue is on point, the light blue accents – pulling from the original 2016 Lake Eola inspiration – are great complements, and the iridescent crest meant to represent the Shield and NWSL Championship double is a nice touch (still don’t like centered crests, though).
Take a look at all the new kits together, and Orlando’s really stands out, especially as Louisville leans away from purple — for now.
1. Kansas City Current
They just had to do it — and they finally did. Kansas City, the team whose motto was “Teal Rising” — with no other teams in the league utilizing teal — kept failing to deliver a truly teal kit. Now it’s here, and it should be a hit.
The details are cool, although (like others in this list) they won’t show up on TV: The Teal Town Kit features a map view of Kansas City and the Missouri River, and the Current’s crest sits over the location of CPKC Stadium.
It’s a distinct color. Who would have ever thought teal and red work? I was skeptical a few years ago, but the important thing is that they’ve owned it.
