Last week, the National Women’s Soccer League announced the finalists for the 2023 NWSL Awards featuring Coach of the Year. The 2023 NWSL Awards are voted upon in two rounds with fans having the opportunity to participate in the final round of the voting process.

Last week, the National Women’s Soccer League announced the finalists for the 2023 NWSL Awards featuring Coach of the Year. The 2023 NWSL Awards are voted upon in two rounds with fans having the opportunity to participate in the final round of the voting process.In the preliminary round of voting, players, owners, general managers, coaches and the media voted on individual awards to determine the finalists. The preliminary round used a weighted scale, broken down by players (50%), owners/GMs/coaches (25%) and media (25%). The final round of voting uses a weighted scale of players (40%), owners/GMs/coaches (25%), media (25%) and fans (10%). Below is a recap of notable statistics and performances from the Defender of the Year finalists during the 2023 NWSL regular season. For a full list of award finalists, including Most Valuable Player, Presented by Bud Light, Defender of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, and Rookie of the Year, presented by Ally, click here.

Juan Carlos Amorós - NJ/NY Gotham FC

First year head coach Juan Carlos Amorós took over the team with the worst record last season, improving NJ/NY Gotham FC’s ledger from 4-17-1 in 2022 to 8-7-7 in 2023. Under Amorós’ leadership, Gotham FC reached the playoffs for just the third time in club history and the second time since 2013 when the club was known as Sky Blue FC. This season marked Amorós’ second straight NWSL season to lead a team to the playoffs, after guiding the Houston Dash to their first playoff appearance in 2022 as interim head coach.

Casey Stoney – San Diego Wave FC

2022 NWSL Coach of the Year Casey Stoney took San Diego Wave FC to new heights this season. After reaching the playoffs in the club’s debut season last year, the Wave improved to 11-7-4, winning its first NWSL Shield and securing its second straight trip to the semifinals. The Wave finished the regular season with 31 goals scored and 22 conceded, top five in both categories

Becki Tweed – Angel City FC

Angel City FC reached the NWSL playoffs for the first time in 2023, finishing the season with an 8-7-7 record, including a 6-1-4 record under coach Tweed. Tweed was named Angel City’s interim head coach on June 15, taking over a club that was 2-6-3 through the Week 11. Under Tweed’s guidance, Angel City went on an eight-game unbeaten streak through Week 19, the longest streak in the league this season. Award winners will be announced in the days surrounding the 2023 NWSL Championship, presented by Bud Light, which is set to kick off Saturday, November 11 at 8 p.m. ET at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California. The contest will air live on the CBS Television Network and stream on Paramount+ and internationally on Watch.NWSLSoccer.com.

In addition to the awards listed above, the winner of the third annual Nationwide Community Impact Award will be announced and honored at halftime of the Championship match. For more details on the Nationwide Community Impact Award, please click here. The league will also announce the Championship MVP, presented by Bud Light, during the on-field post-match presentation.

Tickets for the 2023 NWSL Championship, presented by Bud Light, are available here.