22-452: W-League or W League may refer to: A-League Women , the top Australian women’s association football league, named the W-League from 2008 until 2021 USL W-League , a former North American women’s soccer (association football) league USL W League , a current American women’s soccer (association football) league Capital Football W-League ,
44-401: A New Zealand women's association football regional league Women's Japan Basketball League , the top Japanese women's basketball league See also [ edit ] WE League WK League Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title W-League . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
66-673: A league was run and was regressing. Later that year, the USL W-League suddenly announced that it would be ceasing operations. There had been no outward signs that the league or its teams were struggling, but the league had been contracting steadily over the preceding several years - from 30 teams in four divisions for 2012 to just 18 teams in three divisions for 2015 - and many of the teams that had left were recent finalists ( Buffalo Flash , Vancouver Whitecaps Women , Pali Blues , Ottawa Fury Women , and several Washington D.C.-area teams) leaving relatively few flagship teams. Spearheaded by
88-507: A response to the dual problems of disorganization in the WPSL and of the folding of the original USL W-League . The league began play in May 2016 with eleven teams in two conferences. The first league currently has 39 teams in 3 conferences and second league currently has 18 teams in 2 conferences. In the summer of 2015, disorganization and the inability to field teams led to many last-minute changes in
110-800: A team for the 2017 season. This announcement came nearly two months after the organization, who had won the 2016 NWSL Championship , sold its NWSL franchise rights and roster which formed the North Carolina Courage . In April, the rebranded Rochester Lancers team joined the Flash in Western New York with a UWS side, the Rochester Lady Lancers . They effectively replaced the Flash, which moved team operations to their original home of Buffalo, in Rochester. While UWS would see continued stability in
132-594: A team for the 2019 season, each conference also lost two teams - including UWS founding member Real Salt Lake Women who rebranded as the Utah Royals Reserves in a return to WPSL - bringing the total number of teams west of the Mississippi to nine. Ahead of the 2020 season, four more UWS teams - Houston Aces, Colorado Pride, LAG OC, and the El Paso Surf - also left for WPSL, bringing the total back down to five. In
154-938: The Detroit Sun FC ) were announced a month later, with the desire to add more mentioned. Further expansion ahead of the 2017 season included the Michigan Legends FC in Brighton , Indy Premier SC in Noblesville , the Syracuse Development Academy , the So Cal Crush FC in Montrose , and the Calgary Foothills WFC . On March 3, 2017, the Western New York Flash announced that they would establish
176-606: The New England Mutiny (a former member of the short-lived WPSL Elite ), UWS's first five teams were leaked on December 15 ahead of the league's official announcement the next day; UWS hopes to provide a true second division beneath the NWSL . Negotiations to create the league since the beginning of the WPSL/W-League offseason, with plans that the league will be a national league of two conferences. The eight founding teams, all in
198-411: The WPSL playoffs . This, combined with a general lack of competitiveness due to rapid expansion, led to frustration from many long-time WPSL teams. The 2014 WPSL final four hosts ASA Chesapeake Charge elected to skip the 2015 WPSL playoffs altogether as did the entire Sunshine division, Fire & Ice SC was a no-show, and the New England Mutiny published a threatening response to how WPSL as
220-413: The 1998 season when the W-League became a two tier league. The top tier/division was called W-1 and lower division, W-2. This division was in effect through the 2001 season – the first year of the new US Women's first division league WUSA . The W-League returned to a single tier format in the 2002 season. The W-League grew to a maximum of 41 teams for the 2008 season, but then began contracting rapidly. By
242-629: The 2020 off-season, UWS continued to add more clubs to the league and expanding their reach, including the creation of the Southeast Conference. On February 6, 2020, UWS announced the creation of UWS League Two , a 2nd division focused on the U20-U23 age group. League Two will consist of a mix of UWS reserve teams and clubs that will be seeking to join UWS in the future. It will feature a promotion and relegation relationship with UWS starting in 2021, though
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#1732845215532264-687: The East and Midwest conferences, attempts to establish teams in the west would prove less successful. From 2017 to 2018, UWS grew from having just five teams west of the Mississippi River to having eleven, with the return of the Colorado Pride, joining of LA Galaxy OC academy, and four new teams in Texas, causing the West conference to split into a West and a Southwest conference. However, despite each conference adding
286-472: The W-League was divided into two divisions: W-1 (the top division) W-2 (the lower division). The numbers in parentheses indicate the number of titles a club has won if they have won multiple titles. Click on year for W-League season summaries. United Women%27s Soccer United Women's Soccer ( UWS ) is a national pro-am women's soccer league in the United States. The league was founded in 2015 as
308-419: The W-League. Although at its inception some of the league's franchises were barely above amateur level, it provided a professional outlet for many of the top female soccer players in the country. With professionals driving the level of play, the league made a very strong debut performance. From 1995 through the 1997 season the W-League was a single tier format (all teams at the same division). This changed before
330-631: The beginning of the inaugural season, hints of the desired second Western conference came to light in late January and was made official on February 5, with the first five revealed teams being Real Salt Lake Women and Houston Aces (both previously of WPSL), and the Santa Clarita Blue Heat , the Colorado Storm , and the Colorado Pride (all previously of the W-League). On March 9, 2016, it
352-543: The league will cease operation ahead of 2016 season. After the popularity of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup , though, USL began considerations for a new professional women's league; this effort eventually returned to the re-establishing of the league as the USL W League . The W-League's inaugural season was in 1995. Originally called the United States Interregional Women's League, it later changed its name to
374-400: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=W-League&oldid=1146861295 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages USL W-League (1995%E2%80%932015) The USL W-League
396-452: The northeastern US and eastern Canada, were the Mutiny, fellow WPSL breakaway Lancaster Inferno FC , the W-League teams Laval Comets , Long Island Rough Riders , New York Magic , North Jersey Valkyries , and Quebec Dynamo ARSQ looking for a new league, and the expansion team New Jersey Copa FC . UWS will be sanctioned through USASA , as the W-League and WPSL were. Between founding and
418-445: The original iteration of the W-League. Instead, many were associate with USL League One organizations. 127 unique teams participated in the W-League over the course of its history. Fifteen still existed (at varying levels of activity) as of 2019. W-League member (alt.name/merger†) WUSA / WPS / NWSL WPSL -WLS -UWS inactive / exhibition / other (*) indicates championship For 1998 through 2001
440-426: The time the league suspended operations in 2015, there were three, six-team conferences. Of those 18 teams, eight went on to found United Women's Soccer (though the two Canadian teams were denied entry) and another seven joined the WPSL . The revival of the W-League as the USL W League was announced on June 8, 2021, with eight founding teams due to begin play in 2022, none of which were revivals of teams from
462-590: Was a North American amateur women's soccer developmental organization. The league was a semi-professional , open league, giving college players the opportunity to play alongside established international players while maintaining their collegiate eligibility. The league was administered by the United Soccer Leagues system (the USL), which also oversees the men's United Soccer League and Premier Development League . The W-League announced on November 6, 2015 that
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#1732845215532484-544: Was announced that the Canadian Soccer Association would not sanction teams in Laval & Quebec for play in UWS, leaving the league with only 11 teams for its inaugural season. On November 1, 2016, Grand Rapids FC announced they would add a women's team , which would begin play in 2017 in a new Midwest division of United Women's Soccer. Three more Midwest teams ( FC Indiana , Fort Wayne United Soccer Club , and
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