The 2005 W-League Season was the USL W-League's 11th season.
Changes from 2004 season
Name changes Three teams changed their name in the off-season:
Team name Metro area Previous name Chicago Gaels Chicago area Chicago Cobras Mile High Edge Boulder area Mile High Mustangs Real Colorado Cougars Denver area Denver Lady Cougars
Expansion teams Five teams were added for the season:
Team name Metro area Location Previous affiliation Atlanta Silverbacks Women Atlanta area Atlanta, GA expansion Central Florida Krush Orlando area Winter Park, FL expansion San Diego Gauchos Women San Diego area San Diego, CA expansion Toronto Lady Lynx Toronto area Toronto, ON expansion Vermont Lady Voltage Burlington area St. Albans, VT expansion
Teams leaving One team left for the WPSL: St. Louis Archers
Eight teams folded after the 2004 season: Asheville Splash Calgary Wildfire Columbus Lady Shooting Stars Edmonton Aviators Women Montreal Xtreme Rhode Island Lady Stingrays Toronto Inferno Windy City Bluez
Standings Orange indicates W-League title and bye into W-League semifinals. Blue indicates division title clinched Green indicates playoff berth clinched
Central Conference
Atlantic Division
Midwest Division
Eastern Conference
Northeast Division
Northern Division
Western Conference
Playoffs
Format Five teams from the Eastern Conference, four teams from the Central Conference and two from the Western Conference qualify for the playoffs. All match-ups are in a one-leg format.
In the Central Conference, the division champions play the second-place team from the opposite division.
In the Eastern Conference, the division champion with the best record receives a bye, and will play the winner of the teams with the 4th and 5th-best conference records. The other division champion will play the seventh-place team, and plays the winner of the third-place and sixth-place teams.
The two teams in the Western Conference will play each other to advance to the W-League Semifinals.
The regular season champion, New Jersey Wildcats, received a bye into the W-League semifinals, with the eighth-place team from the Eastern Conference receiving a playoff berth.
Conference brackets Central Conference
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
W-League Championship bracket
Divisional Round
Conference Semifinals
Conference Finals
W-League Semifinals
W-League Third Place Game
W-League Championship
See also United Soccer Leagues 2005 2005 PDL Season
References