Racheal Banda Shines in NWSL as May's Best XI

ORLANDO, Fla. — Racheal Banda is turning the NWSL season into her own personal showcase, and the league has taken notice.

The Orlando Pride striker has been named to the NWSL Best XI of the Month for May, presented by Prime, her third straight selection to open the 2026 campaign. No dip, no lull, no cooling off. Just relentless production.

Eight different clubs are represented in May’s Best XI, but Banda’s presence feels inevitable at this point. The Zambian forward has become the league’s most ruthless finisher, and the numbers back it up.

She leads the NWSL Golden Boot race with 11 goals in 12 games this season, a strike rate that has turned Orlando’s attack into one of the most feared in the league. In May alone, she piled up six goals and one assist, dragging the Pride through tight games and turning half-chances into match-winners.

Key Performances

The pressure told early in the month. On May 2, Banda hit her first brace of May against the Washington Spirit, a performance that underlined just how difficult she is to contain when she finds space around the box.

Then came the decisive moments.

On May 8, with the match on a knife edge at Inter&Co Stadium, Banda delivered the only goal in a 1-0 win over the North Carolina Courage. One chance, one finish, three points. Later in the month, she repeated the trick in a different way: a brace in a 3-1 home win over Bay FC on May 29, including another game-winner that broke the visitors’ resistance and tilted the night firmly in Orlando’s favor.

Those two match-winning goals at home were the headline moments, but the bigger picture is just as striking. Banda now sits second on the Pride’s all-time scoring chart, with 36 goals in 54 matches across all competitions. That’s not just form. That’s a legacy being built in real time.

Her influence stretches beyond the stats sheet. With Banda on the pitch, defenders drop a yard deeper, midfielders look up a second quicker, and Orlando’s confidence swells. She has become the reference point for everything the Pride do in the final third.

The league now pauses for the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, a rare breather in a season Banda has been driving at full throttle. For Orlando, the break offers a chance to reset, recover, and then ride their in-form striker into the heart of the summer schedule.

The Pride return to action on Friday, July 3, when they travel west to face Angel City FC at BMO Stadium. Kickoff is set for 10 p.m. ET on Prime Video.

By then, the Golden Boot race may feel like a storyline. Banda is trying to turn it into a procession.