The MLS Is Back Tournament kicks off this week, starting with Orlando City vs. Inter Miami on Wednesday. Major League Soccer’s odd little tournament will follow the NWSL as the second major professional team sports league in the U.S. to return since the novel coronavirus pandemic, with an MLS quarantine set up in Orlando, Florida. But is it safe to be playing sports in this country right now? Is it worth it?
A rematch of the 2019 NWSL Championship again finished in favor of the North Carolina Courage on Sunday thanks to an 81st minute header from captain Abby Erceg. The final scoreline was kinder to the Chicago Red Stars this time thanks to some inspirational play from Julie Ertz at the back, but the club is still stuck on one point from its opening three matches at the Challenge Cup.
The Washington NFL team announced it would undergo a review of the team’s racist name on Friday. Some sources have said it is likely the team will change its name from the racist “Redskins” moniker it has used for decades. This got us thinking, are there racist soccer team names worse than the Washington team’s mascot?
Professional team sports returned to the U.S. on Saturday with the start of the NWSL Challenge Cup. America was watching, if the latest NWSL viewership numbers are anything to go by.
The NWSL Challenge Cup started with a bang on multiple fronts. Along with the amazing soccer played, the teams made an impressive stance in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
The U.S. National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) has said players can choose to remain in the locker room or express their individual views on the pitch while the national anthem is being played at the Challenge Cup.
The NWSL said the decision to provide additional flexibility by revising pregame ceremonies followed discussions with players, club officials and other stakeholders.
Lauren Holiday, a retired Olympic and World Cup soccer star for the USWNT and the wife of New Orleans Pelicans basketball player Jrue Holiday, broke her silence regarding her husband’s experiences being racially profiled. Her open letter to The Player’s Tribune discussed how her white privilege allowed her to live a less complicated life than her husband. Throughout her experiences and comments about being an inter-racial couple, she always chose not to make her life public and remained silent about encounters both her and her husband had faced.
The NWSL Challenge Cup started off on a high note and definitely has everyone talking.
The National Women’s Soccer League is back, and they’re taking a stand — by taking a knee.
The excitement is real for the 23 games, eight NWSL teams and the first U.S. professional league to begin play. The NWSL will return and many key players will be participating, but the real talk is the new faces who will get their opportunities at a professional debut. Some fan favorites will be competing with their respective teams such as, Crystal Dunn, Sam Mewis, Julie Ertz, Debinha, Christine Sinclair and many more. Not only are we excited to see familiar faces, but it is the recent 2020 top college draft picks that will really keep us on our toes.