Also in today’s roundup, the Chicago Red Stars unveil 2018 primary kit and VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyonnais get Champions League quarter-final wins.

(photo courtesy Manchester United)
Manchester United announced on Wednesday evening that they have submitted an application to create a women’s professional team in the Women’s Super League’s second tier, one tier below the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea.
“We are pleased to announce that the club intends to establish its first ever professional women’s team and has submitted an application to enter WSL 2,” Manchester United Executive Vice-Chairman Ed Woodward said in the team’s official announcement.
“The Manchester United women’s team must be built in the same image and with the same principles as the men’s first team and offer academy players a clear route to top-level football within the club.”
The club would be based at Manchester United’s historic training center at The Cliff.
Chicago Red Stars unveil new X jersey
The X Kit. pic.twitter.com/xBY7p7qUsj
— Chicago Red Stars (@chiredstarsPR) March 22, 2018
Just days before their 2018 season opener, the Chicago Red Stars unveiled their primary kit, which the team is calling their X Kit.
The name pays homage to the Red Stars 10th season of existence, dating back to the team’s Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) league origins.
The jersey is solid black with the exception of a Chicago blue collar. The red stars that have emblazoned the chest of jerseys past now adorn both shoulders. The Chicago Red Stars crest, redesigned to have a more modern look ahead of the 2017 season, sits proudly over the heart of the jersey.
The team released their 2018 secondary kit on Tuesday.
Lyon, Wolfsburg get Champion’s League quarter-final wins

(graphic courtesy UEFA)
Olympique Lyonnais remained undefeated in 2017/2018 competition, narrowly defeating FC Barcelona, 2-1, in Thursday’s first-leg Champions League quarterfinal tie.
Dzsenifer Marozsán and Ada Hegerberg scored for the reigning UWCL champions, bookending Patri Guijarro’s goal for Barcelona. Guijarro is the first player to score a goal in Champions League play against Lyon since Carli Lloyd’s goal for Manchester City in last year’s semi-finals.
Hegerberg’s goal was her 14th goal scored during the UWCL season, tying three other players—Conny Pohlers, Margrét Lára Vidarsdóttir, and Célia Šašić—for the UWCL single-season goal record. With four games left this Champions League season, Hegerberg is one pace to claim the record for herself.
Her teammate Camille Abily also set the record for most UWCL matches played when she subbed into Thursday’s match for her 78th UWCL appearance.
The game was played before a crowd of 15,104 fans, the largest crowd of the UWCL season.
Earlier in the day, VfL Wolfsburg defeated Slavia Prava with a commanding 5-0 victory in their UWCL quarterfinal match. Pernille Harder finished with a brace, while Caroline Graham Hansen, Sarah Björk, and second-half sub Ewa Pajor added singles to round out scoring for the club.
The second leg of both quarter-final ties will be played next Wednesday, March 28.
