The 2025 NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship was the 43rd annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of NCAA Division I women's college lacrosse. The semifinal and championship rounds will be played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on May 23 and May 25. All other rounds were played at campus sites, usually at the home field of the higher-seeded team, from May 9âÂÂ15. First and second round games will be broadcast on ESPN+, quarterfinals and semifinal games will be broadcast on ESPNU, and the national championship will be broadcast on ESPN.
All NCAA Division I women's lacrosse programs are eligible for this championship, and a total of 29 teams will be invited to participate. 15 teams qualify automatically by winning their conference tournaments, while the remaining 14 teams qualify at-large based on their regular season records.
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The Boston College Eagles entered the tournament as the reigning national champions, after winning the national championship at the 2024 NCAA tournament. Boston College entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed in the tournament in its title defense season. However, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament was earned by North Carolina. The Tar Heels defeated the Eagles once during the regular season, 12-11 at Dorrance Field in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and again in the ACC Tournament Final 14-12 at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Analysts and the media considered the national title favorite to be North Carolina, with Boston College, Northwestern and Florida being among the other contenders.
Among the top contenders for the national championship in 2025, Boston College was seeking back-to-back titles, North Carolina was looking for its fourth title and first since 2022, Northwestern was playing for its ninth title and first since 2023, and Florida was hoping to win its first-ever national title.
North Carolina, Boston College, and Northwestern all earned first round byes in the tournament.