2024 is officially here and with it comes the first big event on the league calendar: The 2024 NWSL Draft.

This year’s edition will be held just up the coast in Anaheim this Friday night, January 12 beginning at 5 p.m. PT. 

San Diego Wave FC is coming off winning the 2023 NWSL Shield and will open preseason camp later this month before the start of the 2024 regular season in March.

Read below for everything you need to know ahead of draft night.

When & Where: The Draft will be hosted at the 2024 U.S. Coaches Convention at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim on Friday, Jan. 12 at 5 p.m. PT. It is free to attend and open to the public, with general admission seating on a first-come, first-served basis.

How to Watch on TV: The Draft will be televised live on ION (for the the first two rounds, 5 to 7 p.m. PT) and streamed on ION Plus (all rounds, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.). Viewers can find access to ION in their areas or via streaming platforms by visiting https://iontelevision.com/find-us. Fans tuning in to the NWSL Draft outside the U.S. can watch the entirety of the event on Watch.NWSLSoccer.com.

How to Watch with Friends: Our friends at Novo Brazil are celebrating the soft opening of their brand new location at Mission Valley Mall on Friday and will be showing the Draft on their massive TVs. Stop by 1640 Camino Del Rio North, #341, San Diego, CA to check out their fifth and newest location, featuring an 8,000 square-foot, 352-seat dining room with a 64-tap, 40-seat indoor-outdoor bar and a 3,500-square-foot fire-pit-equipped patio. Doors open for the first time at 11:30 a.m,. and the Draft will be shown when it begins at 5 p.m.

Elsewhere in San Diego, our Supporter Group, the San Diego Sirens, will be hosting a watch party beginning at 4:30 p.m. at Fairplay in North Park. 

Wave FC Draft Picks: The NWSL Draft features four rounds, totaling 56 picks with 14 selections in each round. San Diego enters Friday night’s Draft holding two picks: 1st Round (No. 12 overall) and 4th Round (54th overall). You can view the entire Draft order here.

Wave FC Draft History: In its expansion season, San Diego acquired Stanford University standout defender Naomi Girma as the first overall selection in the 2022 NWSL Draft. Girma has gone on to have one of the most successful starts to an NWSL career in league history, winning Rookie of the Year, 2022 and 2023 Defender of the Year, and earning 2022 and 2023 Best XI honors, while also starring on the international stage for the U.S. Women’s National Team. Last year, Wave FC picked San Diego native Sierra Enge 13th overall and goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy 33rd overall.

Who is registered for the Draft? The full list of players eligible to be drafted on Friday can be viewed here. Players eligible to be selected are those who have registered for the Draft and have been vetted as meeting the eligibility requirements by the League, which include:

  • Be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States or a foreign national who is currently or was enrolled at a university in the United States during the 2023-24 academic year;
  • Be an individual who has exhausted, lost, or renounced their remaining collegiate eligibility during the 2023 calendar year, including high school graduates choosing to forego;
  • Be at least 18 years old on or before December 31, 2023;
  • Not be under a current professional contract, nor have previously signed a contract to play soccer professionally;