← Previous Post
Next Post →

The Lowdown: Breaking down the NWSL schedule

Dan Lauletta February 13, 2013 29

Sixty days before the opening match of the NWSL the league released its 88-game schedule. As reported by The Equalizer earlier in the day, FC Kansas City will have the honor of hosting the debut match against Portland Thorns FC on Saturday, April 13. The other six teams will open their schedules a day later. As expected, all eight clubs will play 22 matches, the last of which is Sunday, August 18. Two weeks of playoffs will follow concluding with a championship match August 31. The higher seeded team will serve as the home team in each semifinal and the final.

The expectation was that teams would see each other three times with one extra match against the closest rival to fill out the 22. They settled on a slightly different model that essentially splits the league between the teams on the eastern seaboard and the teams farther west. Teams in the East will play each other four times each and they will play two Western clubs twice and two others thrice. The reverse is in play for the West.

The format will raise the ire of those who staunchly support competitive integrity, but it will serve to save on travel costs and give regional rivalries extra chances to blossom.

Here are some of the highs, lows, and general observations of the freshly released schedule:

-Thorns-Kansas City is a stout opener. We won’t know for sure for some time, but the general consensus is that these are the two top teams on paper and neither are expected to have any significant absences at the start of the season. However it turns out it will make good fodder for the over analyzers like ourselves.

-All six non-Cascadia teams will make a multi-day trip to the Pacific Northwest where they will play the Thorns and Reign without having to return home. On the flipside the Reign have two multi-game trips east and the Thorns have one.

-Of the 88 matches, 64 of them are scheduled for weekends with three more on Friday nights and three more Wednesday, July 3.

-No team will leave its time zone on the final weekend of the regular season. That will make for well-rested playoff teams but could make the final round of the anticipated Thorns-Reign series a dud if there are no playoff implications.

-The Spirit play the fewest games, 11, through the end of June. That roughly coincides with when the European based players are eligible to return. They include Spirit GK Ashlyn Harris. Reign FC, hardest hit by the Euro option, have 13 games through June.

-Week 2 features the first Cascadia matchup, in Portland, plus Abby Wambach’s first trip to Washington as a visiting player when the Spirit host the Flash.

-The other Cascadia showdowns are: May 25 in Seattle; June 16 in Portland; and August 17 in Seattle

-Abby and Alex – Wambach and Morgan, of course. They lifted each other to new heights as U.S. teammates last summer. The two Abby vs. Alex matchups in NWSL are July 14 in Portland and August 10 in Western New York. Morgan played the 2011 WPS season in Western New York, winning a title with the Flash.

-The only time all eight teams play on the same day is Saturday, August 10.

-The Red Stars may have gotten the short end of the stick with home dates on Mother’s Day (May 12 vs. Thorns) and July 4 (vs. Flash.) If WPS is a guide both of those dates are attendance challenges.

-Using the Monday-Sunday week, the only team without a full week off is the Thorns. Their longest gap between matches is 10 days from June 6-16. Meanwhile the Spirit have two full weeks off when they go from May 25 until June 15 without a game.

-FC Kansas City might have the toughest stretch of the season when they play nine matches in 32 days between June 6 and July 7.

-FC Kansas City also opens with three home matches in 14 days. That is another challenging scenario when it comes to attracting fans.

-I would have stayed away from having the Thorns open against the Reign. It should be a match that sells itself as should opening day regardless of the opponent.

Full List of Home Openers

Boston Breakers: April 14 vs Washington Spirit
Chicago Red Stars: April 14 vs Seattle Reign FC
FC Kansas City: April 13 vs Portland Thorns FC
Portland Thorns FC: April 21 vs Seattle Reign FC
Seattle Reign FC: May 4 vs FC Kansas City
Sky Blue FC: April 14 vs Western New York Flash
Washington Spirit: April 20 vs Western New York Flash
Western New York Flash: April 27 vs Boston Breakers

Free Kicks

-Thorns FC midfielder Allie Long has not attended a Timbers match, but she said, “Everytime I watch on TV I just think what a sick atmosphere. I would love to play in that kind of atmosphere.”

-Thorns FC conducted open tryouts and attracted more than 80 players, some as old as 50. Coach Cindy Parlow Cone will decide which ones to invite to pre-season and believes there is a real shot for one or more to make the final roster.

-Of the three newly capped national team players, the lone NWSL-er is Kristie Mewis of FC Kansas City. The others are Christen Press (Tyresö, Sweden) and Julie Johnson (Santa Clara).

-Mewis was also in the news at the U-23 level as one of six NWSL players called in ahead of a three-match swing in La Manga, Spain. The others are Lindsi Lisonbee (Sky Blue FC), Casey Short (Boston Breakers), Zakiya Bywaters (Chicago Red Stars), Tiffany McCarty (Washington Spirit), and Stephanie Ochs (Washington Spirit).

-Kika Toulouse is a graduate of the U-23 squad and she was picked up by the Spirit on Tuesday. The defender played at Ragsveds IF in Sweden last year.

-Thorns FC have JELD-WEN Field listed for all 11 home matches following speculation they would play some at Merlo Field at the University of Portland. The truth is that ticket sales seem to be going well enough that they’re just about sized out of Merlo.

TAGS »
POSTED IN » Analysis, News, NWSL, Sky Blue FC
About the author: Dan Lauletta View all posts by Dan Lauletta

Related »

FC Kansas City hand Boston Breakers first loss

FC Kansas City hand Boston Breakers first loss

NWSL Week 6 hits the weekend

NWSL Week 6 hits the weekend

Jorden watches Spirit win from afar

Jorden watches Spirit win from afar

Lytle blast vaults Sky Blue past Portland, 1-0

Lytle blast vaults Sky Blue past Portland, 1-0

  • http://www.phasedma.com Anthony

    WNY and Seattle are involved in 3 home openers. Two away and one of their own each.

    Chicago and Sky Blue only get their own home opener.

    Everyone else gets 2 home openers.

    I would say you could read quite a bit into that.

    • Steglitz49

      I am confused. By definition, half of the matches will be home openers, won’t they?

      In Europe, where most countries have a challenge cup as well as a league, the season’s opener consists of the winner of the league playing the winner of the cup, the gate going to charity. In England it is called the Community or Charity Shield and is usually played at Wembley.

      • Gerson22

        No, that’s not the definition of “home opener.” The “home opener” is a team’s first match of the league season at its home stadium. If there are eight teams in the league, there are eight and only eight home openers. Just like there are eight home finales. These are usually seen as slightly more important games, as the former comes when optimism abounds and history can be made (in this case, each of these eight matches is also each team’s inaugural as well as home opener) and the latter offers one last chance to see the team before the long off-season.

        • http://www.phasedma.com Anthony

          Sorry. Wrong. Imagine if a NFL team was put in the opening game in 3 cities. It won’t happen, but if it did you can be sure it would be the Patriots. the defending Super Bowl winners, the Cowboys or the Redskins. What it wouldn’t be is the Bills, Jaguars, or Browns.

  • Ashley

    Portland vs. Kansas City. I’ll see that any time. Melissa Henderson is so talented and underrated. Her and Morgan are my favorites. Maybe Press can join next year – if there is a next year, of course.

    • Steglitz49

      Bezirk! The glass is half full, not half empty. Of course, there will be a second season and a third. If everyone takes a friend along to each game, the crowds will grow exponentially and the league secured.

      With the talent that the NWSL has amassed, this will be a cracking league. The eighth wonder of the soccer world.

      • Gerson22

        Wow, you really don’t learn from history, do you?

        • Steglitz49

          History is bunk, said Henry Ford.
          You can have any NWSL you like as long as it is successful, he might have quipped.

          • Gerson22

            He might have. But it’s going to be a struggle, not unicorns and rainbows, fanboy. This is a slog, and it may not have a happy resolution. But, hey, two leagues folding in a decade, that’s bunk, right? God, you’re insufferable.

          • Steglitz49

            Of course it will be a hard slog. That goes without saying. Provided each person who goes along takes a friend with him/her and then that friend brings another, the stadia will be full. This is in the hands of the people.

            As regards funding, the reason the NWSL exists is to make a good USA team for 2015 (and 2016) with make benefit to Mexico and Canada incidentally who is putting up a bit of the cash. If the US ladies’ do not win in 2015, this league will be cut lose and be on its own.

  • Cath

    Dan, the Spirit’s GK is Harris not Mcleod ;-)

  • JB

    FYI Erin McLeod is the keeper for the Chicago Red Stars

  • vert2013

    Shouldn’t the European players be heading back the beginning of June, not the end? I know in the case of Heath and Rapinoe their last games are the last week in May.

    • Steglitz49

      The Nordic countries, the British isles and Russia play summer seasons essentially April to late October/early November.

      The French Cup final is in early/mid June. On current form Lyon and PSG could meet in the final. The French ladies’ cup is very elegant, by the way.

      • vert2013

        Thanks for the info. My lack of French makes in nearly impossible to find out anything about the D1 postseason, but yeah if PSG and Lyon don’t meet in the final I’ll be really surprised.

        • Steglitz49

          The semi-finals are expected to contain those two plus Juvisy and Montpellier. I do not know if the French draw each round, like the FA do, in which case PSG and Lyon could meet in one SF — this is one of the charms of the FA cup. However, I think the French teams may be seeded at this stage.

          Where is the “Commander” when we need her/him? Come in, Commander. Explain the mysteries of the French cup for us, please. Do they sing hymns before kick-off like the nutty English do?

  • Terry Lash

    Isn’t Erin McLeod with Red Stars, not Spirit?

    Kika Toulouse to Spirit, not Freedom?

  • ToSeek

    My original thought was that the inaugural match should be a guaranteed sellout, like Western New York (with Abby) playing at Portland. But I think this approach is a good one: give the inaugural match to a new market that needs a good kick-off. Portland and some of the other teams don’t need any help selling tickets.

    Toulouse is actually returning to the Soccerplex as she played for several years on the Washington Freedom’s elite amateur team.

    • Steglitz49

      KC playing Portland at home is just the ticket. It should be a cracking game.

  • Steglitz49

    Tonight’s friendly between France and Germany finished 3-3. France gave up a winning 3-1 position to a couple of late goals for Germany. Le plus ca change, les plus c’est la même chose — or something like that. At least this time les Bleues drew.

    • http://twitter.com/hercircumstance hercircumstance

      It could very easily have been a loss for France. Germany had a terrific shot in the last minute that would have been very demoralizing. As it is France is true to form. Can’t seem to keep a lead. Germany started playing a little more physical in the second half. They were also not playing their top keeper.

      • Steglitz49

        Apparently more than 15 000 were at the match in spite of the cold (and rival sporting events on the box).

        The video-clip I saw was pretty impressive. Also, and it may have been because they were wearing a warm layer underneath, but the ladies’ outfits seemed form-hugging, at least the French’s. A new step in marketing the ladies’ game?

        Judging by this and given the quality in the NWSL, the matches in USA this summer should be stunning.

  • http://twitter.com/hercircumstance hercircumstance

    Seattle has no home games in April? Ouch. A chunk of the preseason is going to be in Japan too so not a lot of opportunities at home until the home opener.

    • Steglitz49

      Seattle in April? Too much fog and rain? Won’t see the goal so can’t score. A bit like biathlon at Oberhof.

  • Steglitz49

    Kobe Leonessa will play a friendly against Seattle Reign this March. (It is unclear whether it is March 16 or 17 which probably has to do with the date-line. During competitions in Japan one sometimes get a sort of feeling of “tomorrow´s race that was run yesterday”.). The match will be played in Okinawa. A couple of more matches against Japanese club-teams are in the pipeline.

  • Gerson22

    “They settled on a slightly different model that essentially splits the league between the teams on the eastern seaboard and the teams further west.”

    Farther, not further. Farther is distance.

    • Steglitz49

      This is pedantry up with which we will not put.

      Of course you are right — but who cares?

      • Gerson22

        English speakers care. If people fancy themselves as journalists, they should care. Fanboys who think the sky’s the limit in women’s pro soccer probably don’t. But the whole Citizen Journalists Brigade needs to get with the program and use the language correctly. It’s not pedantry. It’s the frigging language.

        • http://twitter.com/JeffKassouf Jeff Kassouf

          This is fixed, and was a mistake that slipped through edits. There aren’t any “fanboys” here. Take a look around the web and you’ll find plenty. And as for citizen journalists…the editors here are all professional journalists who have/still work at major media outlets. That doesn’t make us perfect, but professional is and always will be how we operate.