The Eastern Conference will have each divisional winner automatically qualify. Divisional bids will be based off points accumulated in regular season games. If an uneven number of games are played amongst the division, PPG will be the default qualifier.

The Western Conference will have each divisional winner automatically qualify. Divisional bids will be based off points accumulated in regular season games. If an uneven number of games are played amongst the division, PPG will be the default qualifier.

The Central Conference will have each divisional winner automatically qualify. Divisional bids will be based off points accumulated in regular season games. If an uneven number of games are played amongst the division, PPG will be the default qualifier.

The Southern Conference will have each divisional winner automatically qualify and a wild card bid shared between the South Central Division and the Southeast Division. Divisional bids will be based off points accumulated in regular season games. If an uneven number of games are played amongst the division, PPG will be the default qualifier. The wild card bid will be based off PPG.

With the goal of creating as much equity as possible, we evaluated each conference and each club’s chance of advancement to playoffs. Using the formula below, we designed a playoff structure that 3 would regionalize travel for all early rounds and give each division the most equitable representation possible in the playoffs based on the number of teams competing with that division. Additionally, when establishing our playoff size and dates we also took into consideration player welfare as established by our best practices.

Seeding

Each conference will have seeding applied to the first round of playoffs (Conference Semifinals). Seeding for each conference will be based off PPG. The USL W League will make every effort to avoid scheduling divisional opponents against each other in the first round. (See Seeding Example below). USL W League reserves the right to adjust the bracket as needed. Please note that hosts will be decided based on host bid submission. Being the highest seed in your conference does not guarantee the hosting of matches, however, it will be one of the several contributing factors when deciding the host site(s).