We’re a year away from the start of the highly anticipated Women’s Professional Soccer League, the successor to the failed Women’s United Soccer Association. In April 2009, the new league will kick off and relaunch nationwide worldwide interest on women’s soccer.

(That’s Mia Hamm’s silhouette on the WPS logo. How cool is that?)

The first women’s U.S. soccer league, the WUSA, folded prematurely in 2003 after a lack of sponsorships and audience. Now, the WPS has to learn from the mistakes of its predecessor, and league Commissioner Tonya Antonucci guarantees that it will. “In order to ensure long-term success, WPS has developed a brand-new business model, focused on shared infrastructure, cost containment and realistic expectations that will maintain profitability for the league and team owners,” she wrote on her blog.

In 1999, after the U.S. won the World Cup title before 90,000 fans at the sold-out Rose Bowl (when Brandi Chastain became famous for taking off her shirt — and was I glad she did), there was just as much potential for a great league as there is now.

The difference, however, is in planning. Today, with assistance from the men’s league (MLS) and investors such as NBA star Steve Nash and former Yahoo! president Jeff Mallett, the WPS will be stronger and steadier, in a pursuit to become "the premier women's soccer league in the world." … continue reading

Hi, my name is Siege, and I'm a sports addict. I'll admit it. If I didn't, my better half would surely scold me. I don't like when she scolds me. I love watching sports of almost any kind. Baseball, football, golf, tennis and of course hockey. Basketball is the only one I don't tend to get all excited about. I think my dislike stems from my inability to do anything remotely coordinated on a basketball court.

I used to feel the same way about soccer. I didn't understand it. I couldn't get my limbs to do what I wanted them to do while trying to play it. That all changed in the summer of 1999. In fact, I remember the exact moments that made me fall in love with soccer, particularly women's World Cup soccer.

Moment number one: Michelle Akers leaves it all on the field.

I remember watching Akers literally collapse in exhaustion on the field. I remember hearing of her suffering from chronic fatigue. And I remember her triumphantly returning to the field for the celebration, having basically defied team doctors to be with her teammates. Who says women aren't tough?

Moment number two: Briana Scurry makes the save. … continue reading

Riding the wave of excitement following their reclaiming of the Algarve Cup in Portugal last March, and with the FIFA Women's World Cup in China a scant two months off, the USA Women's National Soccer Team has been busy honing its skills with a series of friendly (exhibition) matches in preparation for the upcoming tough international competition. With victories over Denmark, Mexico, Canada, China, Brazil and the ever-challenging Norway, the team has its sights set on its next opponent, Japan. The match is slated for 7:00 p.m. on July 28 at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, CA. It will be broadcast live on ussoccer.com's MatchACCESS.

With a very young, but not raw, squad, these athletes are tasked with carrying on the proud tradition of winning that was set forth by the likes of Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Michelle Akers and a boatload of others.

I was in Florida visiting the Kennedy Space Center in '99 when our women took their second World Cup. Gosh, I don't know which was more thrilling: witnessing some of the space station being built or following the nonstop soccer coverage. Maybe I'm just being nostalgic, but it seemed like the team became overnight darlings of the media. There were front sports page articles extolling the players' tenacity, ability and winning ways. I think that the winning part was what initially won over the presses. Everybody loves a winner!

One of the young players to keep an eye on is Carli Lloyd, Algarve Cup MVP. Lloyd's come a long way since the disappointment of not making the 2004 Olympic team. She debuted the following year in '05 in a match against Ukraine. Her four-goal-in-four-game performance at the Algarve Cup, including one in the 2-0 championship match against Denmark, highlighted a stellar week for the up-and-coming midfielder. … continue reading

Opening this weekend amidst the Shrek and Pirates sequels is a little movie called Gracie, about a New Jersey girl in 1978 who fights to be allowed to play on her high school's boys soccer team after her brother dies (this was only a few years after Title IX passed, and the school doesn't have a girl's team).

First, how much do you love this poster?

Nobody puts Gracie in a corner! Unless it's for a corner kick ... (couldn't resist at least one soccer joke!)

Interestingly, the movie — produced by Andrew Shue (Melrose Place) and directed by Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth) — is loosely based on the experiences of actress Elisabeth Shue (Adventures in Babysitting, Leaving Las Vegas), who grew up playing soccer with her brothers. … continue reading

This year is a World Cup year in women’s soccer. You know what that means: We get to see Brandi Chastain take her shirt off. I'm sure you remember those photos of her with her ripped abs and her Nike sports bra.

I really would like to go off on a tangent about how freaking stupid all the media coverage was, but I won’t. Let’s talk soccer instead.

The World Cup itself happens in September, but starting in June, the U.S. women play a six-game series leading up to the World Cup. A new video on the U.S. Soccer website offers an introduction to the current women’s team. The video opens with Abby Wambach, wearing a tight hooded sweatshirt and a pair of dog tags. Later we see Briana Scurry talking about her major talent: She's "good with her hands."

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Unfortunately, the video doesn't really include any substantial information about the women, either as soccer players or as people.

The WUSA (Women's United Soccer Association) is coming back in April of 2008. The famous trio that stole the spotlight during the 1999 World Cup — Julie Foudy, Mia Hamm and Brandi Chastain — have all retired, so it will be interesting to see who will emerge to carrry the teams and draw the crowds.

There will be teams in Boston, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., St. Louis, Dallas, Chicago, the New York/New Jersey area and one yet-to-be-named city. The big question is this: Where will Abby Wambach end up?

… continue reading