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National Women's Soccer League

FC Kansas City Enters Weekend with a Chance to Clinch Home Field

August 1, 2014 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) News Release


CHICAGO (Aug. 1, 2014) - The race for the 2014 NWSL Playoffs continues into Week 17's weekend matches. FC Kansas City squandered an opportunity to clinch a playoff spot and home field advantage on Wednesday in a 2-1 loss to the Washington Spirit on the road.

While a win this weekend would clinch a playoff spot, the Blues will need some help in order to clinch home field advantage. In any condition, points will not come easy against NWSL Shield winners Seattle Reign FC.

The three-team logjam for the final two playoff spots continues, with the Spirit, Portland Thorns FC and the Chicago Red Stars separated by just three points. Saturday's match between the Spirit and the Red Stars will be crucial in the final playoff push, while Thorns FC will feel the pressure in a match against the Houston Dash - a team that will be fighting for their own playoff lives - on Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

The Western New York Flash will also be fighting to stave off elimination this weekend against the Boston Breakers, who are already knocked out of playoff contention. The Flash's playoff hopes hinge largely on other results of the weekend, however it is important that they seal a result themselves.

Week 17 Scenarios

FC Kansas City will clinch home field advantage in the Semifinals if...

...FCKC win vs. Reign FC AND the Spirit draw vs. the Red Stars

OR the Spirit lose vs. the Red Stars*

FC Kansas City will clinch a spot in the 2014 NWSL Playoffs if...

...FCKC win vs. Reign FC

OR

...FCKC draw vs. Reign FC AND the Red Stars win at the Spirit

OR the Red Stars draw at the Spirit*

OR

...Thorns FC lose vs. the Dash

OR

...the Red Stars lose at the Spirit*

*= FC Kansas City would clinch because it would hold the head-to-head tie breaker over the Red Stars (2-0-0)

The Houston Dash will be eliminated from the 2014 NWSL Playoffs if...

...the Dash lose at Thorns FC

OR

...the Dash draw at Thorns FC**

**= Houston Dash would be eliminated because the Washington Spirit (2-0-1 against Houston) and Portland Thorns FC (2-0-0 against Houston) hold the head-to-head tie breakers against the Dash.

The Western New York Flash will be eliminated from the 2014 NWSL Playoffs if...

...the Flash lose at the Breakers AND the Red Stars win at the Spirit

OR Thorns FC win OR draw vs. the Dash

OR

...the Flash draw at the Breakers AND Thorns FC win vs. the Dash***

***= Western New York Flash would be eliminated because the Washington Spirit (2-1-0) hold the head-to-head tie breaker against the Flash.

Magic Number or Elimination Number for all nine teams:

# Team Pts. GD GR Max Pts. Magic No. Elimination No.

1 Seattle Reign FC - x 49 28 4 61 Clinched --

2 FC Kansas City 37 7 3 46 4 --

3 Washington Spirit 31 -7 3 40 10 --

4 Portland Thorns FC 30 4 3 39 11 --

5 Chicago Red Stars 28 4 4 40 -- 11

6 Western New York Flash 24 4 3 33 -- 4

7 Sky Blue FC 22 -12 4 34 -- 5

8 Houston Dash 18 -13 5 33 -- 4

9 Boston Breakers 14 -15 5 29 -- Eliminated

Glossary - Pts: Points, GD: Goal Difference, GR: Games Remaining, Max: Maximum points possible

x- clinched NWSL Shield

**The Magic Number or Elimination Number for each team does not reflect scenarios that require tiebreakers. Tiebreaker scenarios are required when a team's Magic Number or Elimination Number is 1.

Formulas for Magic and Elimination numbers

Magic Number formula

The Magic Number for a team to clinch a playoff spot is determined by subtracting that team's current points total from the maximum number of points possible for the fifth-place team, then adding one.

For example:

Team Pl Pts Max

FC Kansas City 2nd 37 46

Chicago Red Stars 5th 28 40

Then the magic number for FC Kansas City to clinch a playoff spot is 40 - 37 + 1 = 4

Elimination Number Formula

The Elimination Number for a team to confirm their exclusion from the playoffs is determined by subtracting that team's maximum number of possible points from the current number of points of the fourth-place team, then adding one.

For example:

Team Pl Pts Max

Portland Thorns FC 4th 30 40

Houston Dash 8th 18 33

Then the magic number for the Houston Dash is 33 - 30 + 1 = 4

Tiebreaker Procedures

TO BREAK A TIE IN THE STANDINGS

If two or more teams are tied on points at the end of the regular season, the tie will be broken through the following steps:

Two teams

Head-to-head record Overall goal difference Overall goals scored Head-to-head road record Goal difference in all road games Goals scored in all road games Head-to-head home record Goal difference in all home games Goals scored in all home games Coin toss

Three teams

Points per game against other two teams Overall goal difference See tiebreaker procedure for two-team scenarios

NOTE: If two teams are still tied after the third team has advanced via the tiebreaker, the tie will be broken using the two-team tiebreaker rules.

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