NWSL Championship Game to be Held in Portland

The National Women's Soccer League will hold its 2015 championship match Oct. 1 at Portland's Providence Park. The date of the championship match was changed to allow for national television -- it will kick off at 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT on Fox Sports 1 -- and for the first time it will held at a predetermined venue.

NWSL 2015:
Standings | Schedule

NWSL commissioner Jeff Plush said league owners made the decision prior to the season to change the playoff format from the higher-seed hosting the final to a pre-determined location.

Providence Park, home to Thorns FC, seats 21,144 and has seen NWSL attendance records set in each of the team's first three seasons in the league. In 2015, Thorns FC have established an average attendance of 15,027 through nine games, surpassing their average attendance records from the 2013 and 2014 campaigns of more than 13,000. Only one other NWSL team is averaging even more than 4,200 fans a game.

With three games to play in the regular season, Portland is not assured of making the playoffs. It sits in fifth place, three points behind defending champion FC Kansas City. The top four teams qualify for the playoffs and the higher-seeded teams will each host semifinal matches on Sept. 13. Both semifinals and the championship match will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1.