The Women's League Soccer (WLS) was a regional
semi-professional
Semi-professional sports are sports in which athletes are not participating on a full-time basis, but still receive some payment. Semi-professionals are not amateur because they receive regular payment from their team, but generally at a consid ...
women's soccer
Women's association football, more commonly known simply as women's football or women's soccer, is a team sport of association football when played by women only. It is played at the women's professional sports, professional level in multiple c ...
league in the United States that was created in 2010 and began its first season 2011. After the 2012 season, the league transitioned to
indoor soccer
Indoor soccer or arena soccer (known internationally as indoor football, fast football, or showball) is five-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arena. Indoor socc ...
under the name "Women's Arena Soccer League".
Contrasting significantly from other soccer leagues in the U.S., WLS intended to be an open entry,
promotion and relegation
In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...
competition. The league observes all
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
standards, rules, player transfer windows and international calendar. The league consisted of six teams and the seasons lasted from May to the end of July. The league was largely the idea of
Shek Borkowski
Shek Borkowski (born 30 January 1963) is a Polish women's association football manager who is currently the head coach of Puerto Rico Sol. He last managed the Puerto Rico women's national football team from 2017 to 2018. He was also the manager of ...
. It was initially planned to be named "Women's Major League Soccer", but was changed prior to the start of the first season.
Women's Major League Soccer to debut in 2011
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Format
WLS Elite Division consists of six teams. It is intended that future entrants will join the league's Division 2 and require promotion to the top level, while the club finishing last is replaced with the winner of Division 2. An Elite Division season will consist of 10 games combined. Each club will play a home-and-home set against each other. The season started in May and ended in June.
WLS Division 2 currently consists of five teams and plays six games per season.
The team in first place after the last day of play is the champion, gaining the title of ''WLS Champion''.
Standings are determined by points a club has gained during a season. A win is worth 3 points, a draw 1, and a loss 0. The tiebreakers are in descending order goal difference, goals for, and head-to-head results. If the tie cannot be broken a tiebreaking game is held.
Current clubs
Elite Division
* Chicago Breeze
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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* Cincinnati Saints*
* Cleveland FC
* FC Indiana 1923
* Fort Wayne SC
* Indiana Invaders FC
Division 2
* Evansville*
* Kalamazoo
* Lansing
* Michigan City
* Westfield
*To switch leagues for 2012 season
History
* 2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
* 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
* 2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
References
External links
Official website
{{Major women's sport leagues in North America
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
Professional soccer leagues in the United States
2011 establishments in the United States
Sports leagues established in 2011