From the bottom of the table to the top: The story of the 2026 Utah Royals
In 2024, two new clubs joined the NWSL as expansion teams. One was brand new and the other, the Utah Royals, was coming back after initially playing in the league from 2018 to 2020. The Royals’ return to the NWSL was not quite the comeback story they were hoping for: they finished their first two seasons in 11th and 12th place in the table out of 14 total clubs, winning 13 of 52 games across those two years.
In both 2024 and 2025, Utah had a tendency of finding success at the very end of the season, at which point it was far too late to undo the damage of their earlier games. In 2026, they’re writing a different story. Entering the summer break, they sat in second in league standings (and even spent a week at the top!), having won seven of their 12 games so far this year. What’s causing this huge turnaround for the club?
An attack that’s clicking
In the back half of the 2025 season, Utah’s attack got some big boosts. Most notably, Canadian international forward Cloé Lacasse returned from an ACL injury sustained in October 2024. In addition, the club picked up prolific attacker Cece Delzer as a free agent, freeing up star forward Mina Tanaka to focus solely on her role as a central attacker. These changes paid off pretty quickly, as Utah won four of their last eight games that year. In 2026, they had the privilege of capitalizing on that continuity and enjoying an offense with chemistry from the get-go.
In their first 12 matches this season, the Royals have scored 18 goals, averaging 1.5 goals per game. That same figure in 2024 and 2025 was 0.8 and 1.1, respectively. In addition to scoring more goals, they’re creating more chances, particularly quality chances. The attack has learned how to press as a unit, with one forward forcing a turnover that another forward is in the position to capitalize off of. The press combined with continuous attacking chemistry has made the Utah offense a difficult one to stop.
A defense that’s stifling
Utah’s press contributes to their attack but has been far more vital to their defense. The team is initiating defense much higher up the pitch this season. This has prevented their opponents from building attacks out the back and has generally suffocated any offense they face. The press has paid off in dividends. After allowing 1.5 and 1.6 goals per game in 2024 and 2025, respectively, the Royals are now conceding only 0.8 goals per 90.
This new strategy didn’t pop up overnight, the Royals have been attempting a high press for a while, but they finally have the talent and team chemistry to make it work as effectively as it has now. How did they get to that point?
Investment in the club
The Utah Royals in 2024 that had just joined the league were unambitious. They didn’t make marquee international signings like fellow expansion side Bay FC did, and in general didn’t seem to be investing a lot of money into the team. Since then, the club has gone out and signed global superstars like Cloé Lacasse, Mina Tanaka, Kiana Palacios, Nuria Rábano, and Lara Prašnikar. The Royals have also invested a lot into the development of the players they already had, like Mandy McGlynn, Paige Cronin, and Kate Del Fava. All of their hard work is finally paying off this season, and they are getting to enjoy the rewards of investing in women’s football.
