Women's National Xball League

The Women's National Xball League (WNXL) is a professional women's competitive paintball league established in 2021 as part of the National Xball League (NXL). The league provides women with a dedicated professional competition in the Xball format, with competitions in the United States and Europe.[1][2]

The WNXL held its first exhibition match in November 2021 and began its inaugural competitive season in 2022. It has subsequently expanded to include professional teams from multiple countries and additional women's amateur divisions.[1][3]

History

Establishment (2021)

The WNXL was introduced at the 2021 NXL World Cup as an initiative to increase opportunities and visibility for women in professional paintball.

On 13 November 2021, the league staged an exhibition match between two specially assembled teams, Fire and Ice. The match featured players drawn from the franchises preparing to enter the inaugural season.

Played under Xball rules, the exhibition ended with Fire defeating Ice 7–3.[1]

Inaugural season (2022)

The first WNXL professional season began at the 2022 NXL Sunshine State Major in March.

Six teams competed during the inaugural season:

Dallas Vibe won the inaugural tournament, defeating Destiny 5–3 in the final after completing the event undefeated.[3]

The Heroines subsequently won the inaugural season championship, finishing with 393 points ahead of Destiny on 384 and Dallas Vibe on 373.[4]

The 2022 World Cup also featured international entrants, including Shieldmaidens from Spain and Suricatos from Colombia.[4]

Expansion (2023–2026)

The WNXL continued operating as part of the NXL tournament structure, with professional competitions held at selected American events.

The 2023 season was won by Cheetahs, while The Heroines claimed the 2024 and 2025 championships.[5][6][7]

By 2026, the American professional competition had expanded to 11 teams, including entrants from Canada and Colombia.[12]

The league also developed additional competition opportunities through women's amateur five-player and three-player divisions.

WNXL Europe

The WNXL expanded its professional competition structure to Europe, with a separate women's Xball championship documented in NXL Europe results from 2023.[8]

The 2023 European competition included teams such as:

European WNXL competitions have been held alongside NXL Europe events, including the British Invitational and European Championships.

Drakaina won the 2023 European season championship. Belladonna subsequently won the titles in 2024, 2025 and 2026.[8][9][10][11]

Competition structure

The WNXL operates within the wider NXL tournament system, with its principal professional competition using the Xball format.

Matches consist of opposing five-player teams competing to score points within a timed match. Teams accumulate results across designated season events, with rankings used to determine the overall season champion.

The professional women's division is distinct from the wider women's amateur competitions, which include five-player and three-player formats.

The American and European professional championships maintain separate season rankings.[2][12]

Season champions

United States

The following teams finished first in the WNXL professional season standings.

Year	Season champion
2022	The Heroines [4]
2023	Cheetahs [5]
2024	The Heroines [6]
2025	The Heroines [7]

Europe

Year	Season champion
2023	Drakaina [8]
2024	Belladonna [9]
2025	Belladonna [10]
2026	Belladonna [11]

Significance

The WNXL established a dedicated professional women's championship within the NXL tournament system.

Its introduction provided an additional competitive pathway for established female players and created opportunities for newer women's teams to participate in professional and amateur competition.

The league also brought women's professional Xball into the NXL's event coverage and webcast programme.

Major League Paintball, which oversees the WNXL alongside other paintball competitions, has reported a 62 per cent increase in women's participation at national tournaments since the league's establishment. This figure is reported by the organisation itself.[2]

References

External links