One weekend down and two weekends to go before the 2026 and 5th season of the USL W League finishes. Coming out of the first weekends Conference playoff rounds were four teams who have a combined record of 35 wins, 7 draws, and two losses in the regular season. Leading the charge of the four are Minnesota Aurora, the only team in the W League who did not drop any points in the regular season. First year club Vermont Green follow them, and like Aurora have had massive crowds pack Virtue Field in Burlington, VT.
Second year club Salmon Bay FC made their first ever appearance in the USLW Playoffs and won the Western Conference following a one loss regular season. And last but certainly not least is Asheville City FC, the oldest club in the National Playoffs. Starting off in the WPSL in 2018, after four seasons in that league they moved to USLW in 2022. Two years ago Asheville's season ended in the Conference Finals, last season in the National Semi-Finals, and this year the goal is to do one better and head to the National Championship.
"Eastern" Semi-Final
Vermont Green (6-4-0, Eastern Conf.) vs Asheville City (8-1-1, Southern Conf.) - 6pm CT in Burlington, VT
The two best teams from the Eastern half of the league will meet in Vermont in the first of two Semi-Final matches. In their first season in the league Vermont Green has turned their home stadium into an absolute fortress, having not lost a match all season. Asheville on the other hand has only lost one match, coming in their second contest of the season at Birmingham Legion.
How They Got Here:
Vermont: Four draws may seem like a lot, but they were tantamount to winning the small five team Northeast Division with 22 points. Just two ahead of second place Hudson Valley Crusaders (NY) and four ahead of third place Hartford Athletic (CT), the division was tight until the end. With the division title under their belt Vermont Green used their home pitch advantage to win the Eastern Conference title. First with a 3-0 win over Long Island Rough Riders (NY) in the Semi-Finals that was followed up with a 2-0 win over Eagle FC (PA) in the Final.
Asheville: With 25 points ACFC nearly ran away with the South Central Division title, coming up six points ahead of second place Birmingham Legion WFC. During the regular season Asheville allowed only four goals on their way to the Division title and a playoff spot. That stout defence has continued in the playoffs with ACFC scoring two clean sheets in the Southern Conference playoffs. A 3-0 win over Lonestar SC (TX) and nil-nil draw followed by a penalty shootout win over FC Miami City (FL) put Asheville into the National Playoffs for the second consecutive season.
"Western" Semi-Final
Salmon Bay (9-2-1, Western Conf.) vs Minnesota Aurora (12-0-0, Central Conf.) - 9:30pm CT in Seattle, WA
Late on Saturday night will be the battle to become the Best in the West. Salmon Bay in only their second season won the Western Conference while Aurora pushed through for their third overall (and second consecutive) Central Conference title. While Aurora will have to travel once again for the Semi-Finals, the team is taking it in stride with the goal of getting back to the National Final for the first time since 2022. Salmon Bay will hope to be the first team to unseat and defeat Aurora for the first time in 2026 and hand them only their fifth ever loss, all of which have come in the playoffs.
How They Got Here:
Salmon Bay: In 2026 the Northwest Division came down to the wire with only three points separating the top three clubs. But winning the Northwest Division by just a single point over West Seattle Rhodies was good enough to get the second year club into the playoffs. In the first round of the Western Conference playoffs Salmon Bay scraped a penalty shootout win over the Colorado Storm after drawing nil-nil through 120 minutes. That was followed by a smashing 3–0 win over Capo FC (CA) to send them into the National Semi-Finals.
Minnesota: Twelve wins in the regular season, with no draws or defeats. Aurora railroaded the rest of the Heartland Division for the fifth consecutive year becoming the only club to win their division each of the leagues first five seasons. In Pittsburgh a 2-0 Conference Semi-Final win over Union FC Macomb put Aurora into the Central Conference Final. Two days later Aurora defeated Pittsburgh Riveters on their home pitch for the second straight year. The 2-1 win over the Riveters gave Aurora back to back Central Conference titles and another trip to the National Semi-Finals.
