Los Angeles Sol of WPS to fold

Sol-Long. We hardly knew ya. After attending most of the home games at the Home Depot Center, and watching some great soccer, it is with huge sadness we learn that the Los Angeles Sol folded today.   The notice comes after one season, despite the star power of FIFA world player of the year Marta and a successful campaign that ended in the championship game.

Women’s Professional Soccer  announced the termination of the franchise  and the dispersal of the team’s 19 players via a draft Thursday to other teams. This is going to have have a big impact in the league, as top players such as  Marta, Aya Miyama, Shannon Boxx and Karina LeBlanc will be scattered throughout the league.  The team participated in the recent WPS draft – picking up Casey Nogueira and Nikke Washington – and was lining up some European stars to play for the franchise, although national team veteran Aly Wagner recently announced her retirement.

The dispersal draft will have expansion franchises Atlanta and Philadelphia holding the first two selections. Both teams will begin play in April, giving the league eight teams and a balanced schedule.

The league operated the Sol for the last couple of months after one of its two original ownership groups pulled out in mid-year, leaving Galaxy owners Anschutz Entertainment Group in charge  until the end of last season when they, too, pulled out. The Sol lost as much as $2 million last year, despite leading the league in attendance, WPS officials said.

The Sol had suspended season ticket sales while it was operated by the league.

Coach Abner Rogers was fired via e-mail two days before Christmas and General Manager Charlie Naimo took over in that post.

Apparently, the league had attempted to sell the team, but those negotiations  fell through.

“We’ve been in several weeks of negotiations with an ownership group and unfortunately it fell through at the last minute,” league commissioner Tonya Antonucci told The Associated Press. “In terms of the viability of Los Angeles as a WPS market, we don’t think that’s in question. Suspending operations doesn’t mean we won’t be trying to find new ownership for 2011.”

The Sol drew a crowd of 14,832 to their opener last season, and ended up averaging more than 6,200 fans for home games at Home Depot Center. They finished the regular season 12-3-5, the best record in the league, before losing 1-0 to Sky Blue FC in the championship game.

What does this mean for the WPS?  Does the Sol’s demise mean the end of the league? Do we hear echos of the now defunct WUSA?

Though the profitability of one team shouldn’t affect the profitability of any other, it’s never good to have a team shut down.  Apparently every team in the league lost money last season, some more than others. Everyone knew that  starting a league in the midst of a major economic downturn was going to be tough. The upcoming season will be pivotal for the league.

League officials note that this season will see two new expansion teams (the Philadelphia Independence and Atlanta Beat), a longer regular season with more home games for each team, increased sponsorship and a reformatted All-Star Game that will take place in mid-season rather than at the end of it.

Still, the end of a franchise in one of the nation’s two largest markets is a bummer – especially since it was my home team.  Were there things the Sol could have done better out of the gate?  For sure. But they consistently delivered great soccer to appreciative fans and their base was growing. It’s too bad the corporate powers gave up on the them before they really had a chance to prove themselves.

Condolences to LA fans. Let’s hope there are some exhibition games that will be played in LA this year and a chance to see more of  our fave players.

2009 Salute to Women in Sports

Other WomenTalkSports posts of “Best of ‘09″:

• From Because I Played Sports, Best of ‘09: Forming a community, WomenTalkSports.com

• From One Sport Voice, The “Best” of 2009 and the State of Girls & Women in Sports

• From WakeGirls.com, Best of ‘09 – A Year for Women in Wake

Marta named World Player of Year

Brazil’s Marta captured soccer’s World Player of the Year award for the fourth year in a row. The 23-year-old playmaker beat teammate Cristiane, Kelly Smith of England, and Germans Birgit Prinz and Inka Grings.

“I’m really surprised,” Marta said of winning the award again. Tearful but happy she described the accolade as “a landmark in my career and in my life”.

She was honored at the FIFA World Player Gala, during which former and current soccer stars and celebrities made appearances and Italian pop star Laura Pausini performed.

When asked how it felt to hear her name called once again, the 23-year-old replied, “It’s incredible. You can never prepare what you’re going to say and I just came out with the first words that came into my head.”

The prestigious FIFA award is voted for by the coaches and captains of each national side. With this year’s win, Marta becomes the record winner of the honor awarded by football’s world ruling body.

The dynamic striker, widely regarded as the best female to play the game, was a favorite last season in the revamped U.S Women’s Professional Soccer League, where she won the Golden Boot and was elected league MVP with the Los Angeles Sol.

American Mia Hamm won the inaugural women’s award in 2001, winning again in 2002.

Germany’s Birgit Prinz then picked up the award three years in a row from 2003-2005.

The men’s award when to Lionel Messi who added FIFA’s World Player of the Year award to his growing list of accolades, completing a nearly perfect campaign in which his club won an unprecedented trio of Spanish and European titles.

WPS Championship Game Photo Journal

Sky Blue FC wins first WPS crown after stormy season

We were at the first game of the WPS season as well as the last (and many inbetween). And what a season’ it’s been.

Sky Blue FC completed its storybook rise from bottomfeeder to league champion with a dramatic, 1-0 victory over a valiant, 10-woman Los Angeles Sol side, whose remarkable season ended in bitter disappointment at their home park.

Heather O’Relly earned MVP honors by scoring the match’s only goal in the 16th minute and later contributing a dazzling slide tackle to dispossess Aya Miyama during a dangerous sequence early in the second half of the inaugural WPS Championship Match.

“It’s a special team we have here with Sky Blue,” said Christie Rampone, who began the season as team captain and ended it as the interim player/coach. “It was a great run for us just battling back to get into the playoffs.”

In ideal conditions at The Home Depot Center, the match began evenly with neither side producing much in the way of dangerous possession through the first quarter hour. Sky Blue FC earned a deep throw-in in the 17th minute and Keeley Dowling began the season’s most important series of passes by floating a well-meant cross into the box aimed at Natasha Kai. Back in the starting lineup after coming off the bench for playoff victories in Washington and St. Louis, Kai flicked the ball to the back post where Heather O’Reilly had shed Sol right back Manya Makoski and the U.S. National Team star did not miss her mark, beating Karina LeBlanc to put the underdog visitors on top.

For LeBlanc, who had posted a dozen clean sheets in 19 starts, the goal against was the product of a rare miscue from her backline which lost track of O’Reilly.

“It came pretty quickly,” LeBlanc said. “I was just trying to get something on it. The coaching staff said that it was pretty point blank. It came pretty hard.”

The Sol then set their sites on the equalizer, and nearly had a chance in the 24th minute but Jen Buczkowski, who has started throughout the playoffs for the Euro-bound Anita Asante, swooped in to tackle the ball away from Shannon Boxx.

Three minutes later, controversy ensued when Natasha Kai made a long run on the ball and was fouled from behind by Allison Falk. Referee Kari Seitz reached for her pocket and pulled out a red card on the basis that Falk was the last defender back to deny Kai an opportunity to score.

“I didn’t feel it was a red card. I thought it was a poor decision,” Sol coach Abner Rogers said. “Stephanie Cox was a recovering player so (Falk) wasn’t the last defender. And it wasn’t a blatant tackle.”

The loss of manpower was rarely evident. The Sol spent almost the entire second half assaulting the Sky Blue FC goal, but continued to fall just short of finding the equalizer. O’Reilly’s moment of defensive magic came in the 51st minute when Marta held the ball and laid it off for Aya Miyama on the right side of the penalty area. O’Reilly charged in to win enough of the ball to force a corner kick. The crowd—7,218 strong—gasped in anticipation of the equalizing red card, but there was no such call.

“I did get the ball, but that’s a scary play especially with what happened early in the game,” O’Reilly said. “She’s a sneaky player and she slipped right behind me. I know that as an outside midfielder, that’s my mark.”

Moments later, Marta ran on to a ball in space and Buczkowski, Dowling, and Meghan Schnur all made outstanding defensive plays over the next two minutes to keep the Sol at bay.

“They did a great job,” Rampone said of her defense, of which she is the fourth member. “They did a good job of being mindful of where (Marta) was and dropping when they needed to and stepping when we needed to. Just trying to play that game with her instead of man marking her, basically trying to frustrate her.”

The Sol never let up. They had two great chances in the 61st minute, the first a backheel by Han Duan that did not have enough on it, and the second a twisting ball by Miyama that Jenni Branam went up high to corral.

Shannon Boxx ripped off a shot in the 72nd minute that Branam spilled for a corner kick, but the corner went to Cox who sent a chip harmlessly over everyone.

The last dangerous moments of the season for the Sol commenced six minutes from time when Branam had to make a tough touch on a Marta cross intended for Miyama. The ensuing corner kick went to Boxx who slipped a pass in to substitute Lyndsey Patterson near the top of the six-yard box. Branam fell on it at the last moment.

“Amazing,” Rampone said of Branam, who has battled injuries and illness and thrived with a frenetic, high-risk style that has given Sky Blue FC fans many anxious moments during the season. “Jenni was a huge part of our success. She allows the backline to hold a higher line at times because she comes off her line. She basically won a lot of these games for us. She does get hit and she goes down, but I know nothing is going to keep her off the field.”

Sol players remained on the field after the match while Sky Blue FC celebrated, and LeBlanc addressed the fans, who helped the Sol lead not only the standings but the attendance table. Still it was a tough pill to swallow for a team that raced to the head of the pack in April and never looked back.

“When the season started, we had a lot of goals. And we accomplished all of them but one,” said Boxx, the team captain. “I’m not disappointed in our whole season. I think we played very well all year. Does this one hurt? Yeah, it hurts a lot.”

“I thought it showed a lot of character to play the way the second half that we played with ten players,” Rogers said.

The inaugural WPS season concludes on Sunday, Aug. 30 with the WPS All-Star Game presented by the Coast Guard. The match will pit the WPS All-Stars against Swedish Champions Umeå IK and will be played at The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park, Saint Louis Athletica’s home field, in Fenton, Mo.

Marta throws out first pitch at Dodgers game

Los Angeles Sol striker Marta plays with the baseball as if it were a soccer ball before throwing out a ceremonial first pitch in Dodger Stadium at the MLB National League baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, California, August 17, 2009.

WPS Championship Game Live Blog – Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 1:00pm Pacific

It’s Playoff Time!

The WPS Championship Game will take place this Saturday, August 22, at 1pm Pacific at the Home Depot Center. The Los Angeles Sol will host the  Sky Blue FC (Watch on Fox Soccer Channel at 7pm EST).

Women Talk Sports’ Ann Gaffigan will be there to see the action in person and get updates to those of you without Fox Soccer Channel (or those of you who have it and would like to join the conversation!). Go to this link on Saturday at 1pm Pacific and she’ll be there letting you know what’s happening. We’re excited to see the final game for the league’s inaugural season.

Come back and join the conversation on Saturday! Would love to have you!

LIVE BLOG

2009 WPS All-Star voting begins online

With the WNBA All-Star team picked, it’s now time to vote for your fave soccer players.

Voting for the 2009 WPS All-Star Team begins today on the Women’s Professional Soccer website: http://www.womensprosoccer.com/AllStars.

The 2009 WPS All-Star Game will feature the WPS All-Stars against Swedish league champions Umea IK  (Marta’s former team).   Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park in Fenton, MO,  home of the Athletica,  will host the match on Sunday, August 30th with kick-off scheduled for 4:30pm CT.

The game will be televised live nationally on Fox Soccer Channel and regionally on select Fox Sports Net affiliates (check local listings) with a half-hour pre-game show prior to kick-off.

A total of 18 WPS players will take part in the WPS All-Star Game with the Starting XI players selected through voting and the other seven chosen by the WPS Commissioner and the All-Star Game Head Coach. Players voted on to the Starting XI who are not available to play in the WPS All-Star Game will be replaced by the next-highest vote-getters at that position.

In order to be on the All-Star Game Ballot, players need to have played at least 50% of their team’s total minutes this season through June 22. Write-in votes are also accepted.

In a unique twist for the first year of the WPS All-Star Game, the head coach will be voted on collectively by the players.

If you’re voting for the All-Star players, you can select up to one goalkeeper, three defenders, five midfielders and two forwards. By voting you are also automatically entered to win one of three Puma match balls autographed by all 18 players who represent WPS at the WPS All-Star Game in St. Louis.

Voting ends at 8pm ET on July 31 and the WPS All-Star team will be announced the week of August 3rd.

So who will be checked on your ballot?

Saint Louis Athletica downs Los Angeles Sol 1-0

Today was one of the few home games I didn’t attend at the Home Depot Center, and the No. 1 ranked LA Sol suffered a loss at the hands of the Saint Louis Athletica. Would the outcome have been different had I been there? Probably not but I still feel a bit guilty.

Despite the loss, the Sol remain in first place the WPS standings at 11-2-4 (37 points), while the Athletica tighten their grasp on second with a 23 points and 7-5-2 record.

According the league’s game report:

Saint Louis took the lead just 11 minutes into the match when midfielder Amanda Cinalli slotted home a pass from Eniola Aluko past a helpless Karina LeBlanc in the Sol net. The Sol nearly equalized in the 20th minute – Marta hit a low, first-time shot towards the goal that the Athletica’s Hope Solo dove to her left to smother.

Chinese forward Han Duan almost drew the Sol even in the 31st minute after collecting a pass from Marta and eluding a couple of defenders in the penalty area, but Solo knocked her low shot out of danger. Neither team threatened for the remainder of the first half and the visitors clung to the slimmest of margins at the interval.

In the opening minutes of the second half, the Sol threatened a couple of times in rapid succession, but were unable to break through the Athletica defense and the visitors remained in the lead.

Marta nearly equalized for the Sol in the 58th minute, but Solo parried her curling corner kick out of danger. Defender Brittany Bock got her head to a corner five minutes later, but Solo reacted quickly, covered the near post well and punched the ball off the line.

Miyama collected a pass from Marta in the box in the 67th minute, but she hesitated before taking a low shot and Solo cut off the angle and again made the save to preserve the victory.

This was the last home game of the 2009 season for the Los Angeles Sol.  Their next match will be on Thursday, July 23, when they take on FC Gold Pride at Buck Shaw Stadium at 7pm PT / 10pm ET in Santa Clara, Calif.

I am looking forward to a play-off  game back at HDC.  And I’ll be sure to be in attendance and cheering for the home team.

Puma and WPS make a great team

After another weekend of play, the Los Angeles Sol (7-1-3) remain atop the WPS standings. Camille Abily and PUMA spokeswoman Marta lead the team with six and four goals respectively.

Just prior to the start of the Women’s Professional Soccer season, brand PUMA and WPS announced an exclusive partnership making PUMA an official founding partner of the new league and an official sponsor of all WPS franchises.

The multi-year partnership makes PUMA the official sport and lifestyle apparel, footwear and equipment supplier of WPS, including the official WPS Match Ball. In addition to on-field performance wear, PUMA will outfit the athletes and teams at all WPS-related events, activities and WPS appearances in sportlifestyle apparel. This partnership kicked off last month and will see PUMA collaborating with WPS to enhance the game of women’s soccer and will act as the foundation in the PUMA Women’s category.

That’s just the start for PUMA, which will have its name and logo on the league’s balls, uniforms, goalkeeper equipment, even sports bras. “Women’s soccer is on a tremendous growth pattern in the U.S.,” says Jochen Zeitz, chief executive of PUMA. “This is a huge opportunity for us.”

PUMA’s decision to join forces with WPS is part of an effort to target its marketing to young women. The company already has a footwear deal with Brazilian star Marta Vieira da Silva who is widely recognized as the best female soccer player in the world and currently playing for the Los Angeles Sol. PUMA also has a deal with U.S. national team player Leslie Osborne, who will be playing for FC Gold Pride.

Given PUMA’s name recognition and reach in soccer, the deal is a milestone for the new women’s league, especially amid a global recession.  Kudos PUMA. And Kudos Abily and Marta for bringing such energy and excitment to the game.

Learn more…

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