Fort Lauderdale is getting a division 1 pro women's team

[Guest]

“South Florida is ready for professional women’s soccer,” USL Super League president Amanda Vandervort said. “Fort Lauderdale is a great addition to an already strong contingent of Super League markets, and we’re looking forward to kicking off next fall.”

Fort Lauderdale will join founding teams in Charlotte; Dallas/Fort Worth; Lexington, Kentucky; Phoenix; Spokane, Washington; Tampa Bay; Tucson, Arizona; and Washington, D.C. for the inaugural 2024-25 season. Additional teams are expected to be announced for the league’s launch. Five other markets have also been previously announced as committed to playing in future seasons of the USL Super League pending the completion of stadium projects.

Branding for the new Fort Lauderdale team will be announced in the coming months, the team said. An online fan survey will help drive those branding decisions.

“We are thrilled to announce the launch of the first professional women’s soccer team in South Florida, marking a historic milestone for our community,” Super League Fort Lauderdale founder Tommy Smith said. “Our mission is to deliver the highest standard of play by recruiting world-class global talent while also empowering young women in South Florida. Super League Fort Lauderdale aims to create a direct pathway to Division 1 professional soccer, offering local players the opportunity to shine on the national stage and providing a platform for growth beyond the game.”

The USL Super League intends to launch as a first-division league — the same as the National Women’s Soccer League, which started in 2013 and will grow to 14 teams in 2024 — with one major difference: A season that starts in late summer and ends in late spring. The NWSL has struggled with pain points of a calendar that runs opposite of that — from early spring through late fall — which has forced tough decisions like scrapping the NWSL Challenge Cup.


Thoughts?

[Guest]

Headlines on Talking Soccer are notorious for spreading false information -

for example “Fort Lauderdale is getting a division 1 pro women's team”

Absolutely false to suggest it is Division 1 - even the article doesn’t go so far to make that salacious claim stating “The USL Super League intends to launch as a first-division league ”

Intends does not equal given status. The reason is it would have to be approved by the US Soccer Federation as having Division One status - which it currently has not.

Tampa Bay United published the same misinformation campaign about the USL Super League Team for Tampa before quickly removing the article because it is false.

The reimagined NASL tried to get Division 1 status - just like MLS. They were denied. The men’s USL Championship also applied for Division 1 status - they were denied.

Just like the NASL and USL Championship applied, so has the women’s USL Super League. But applying doesn’t equate to being division one.

Know what you are talking about before you get misinformed.

[Guest]

Seems like the league has big ambitions. Great for the South Florida area

[Guest]

This league will be bankrupt. If not then it just a money laundering op. No one is paying to watch marginal college and even club girls play soccer.

[Guest]

https://prosoccerwire.usatoday.com/2...sanction-nwsl/

[Guest]

Looks like they are building a stadium at NSU https://news.nova.edu/news-releases/...l-soccer-team/

[Guest]

It appears to be connected to prime fc.

[Guest]

It appears to be connected to prime fc.

Big difference between pro league team and a youth club that promotes local team by carrying its name.

The youth team will promote the hell out of it to get the”hope” that someone thinks there is a real correlation for purposes of grabbing more kids and more $.

[Guest]

Not according to the FC Prime coaching staff. The team owner’s daughter also plays for Prime. That same owner/ parent also got FC Prime their fields at NSU.

[Guest]

Looks like Weston also endorsed them, possible connection there too

[Guest]

Come watch second rate Sunday league soccer and we will pay the players $4000 a season… until it all collapses in a few months.

[Guest]

Nobody is going to support this team. You’ll be lucky if 500 people show up. If it’s prime then they’ll use their club members to support it so they might draw 2K-3K

[Guest]

They can't pay players $4,000 a season if they are trying to be serious, league min will have to be close to the NWSL or even at least what they pay the men in the USL Championship. No way USL is doing all this just to have a PR nightmare about salaries. Clearly there is a market for players that don't get drafted or drafted and never play, there are more girls going to play in random countries around the world than staying in the US after college.

If it doesn't work it doesn't work but you have to respect the attempt not only from the league but whoever is bringing the franchise to Fort Lauderdale. Jobs on and off the field, new stadium, takes some guts to pull this off.

[Guest]

They can't pay players $4,000 a season if they are trying to be serious, league min will have to be close to the NWSL or even at least what they pay the men in the USL Championship. No way USL is doing all this just to have a PR nightmare about salaries. Clearly there is a market for players that don't get drafted or drafted and never play, there are more girls going to play in random countries around the world than staying in the US after college.

If it doesn't work it doesn't work but you have to respect the attempt not only from the league but whoever is bringing the franchise to Fort Lauderdale. Jobs on and off the field, new stadium, takes some guts to pull this off.

There has to be a youth club affiliation or this thing has a slim chance to work. The question is which club is it? Would make sense if someone made this USL team the top of their youth player pyramid. A stand alone pro team who has no actual south Florida roots or local feeder makes absolutely no sense and is a recipe for disaster. ECNL makes the most sense so let’s see what the plan is.

[Guest]

There has to be a youth club affiliation or this thing has a slim chance to work. The question is which club is it? Would make sense if someone made this USL team the top of their youth player pyramid. A stand alone pro team who has no actual south Florida roots or local feeder makes absolutely no sense and is a recipe for disaster. ECNL makes the most sense so let’s see what the plan is.

This is where the original intent of the OP comes into the picture by falsely claiming USL Super League is Division 1 - which it is not. The teams will be division 2 - like the El Paso Locomotives or Tampa Bay Rowdies are for the USL Championship.

There is not enough market of youth girl players that want the academy experience to play pro as there is on the boys side.

Let’s come out of La La land and back to reality. The only person this benefits is a club director that wants $ on false hope their club would have the possibility of an academy team for a Division 2 professional team.

#ComeBackToReality