10/14/2026 09:02:00
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10/14 09:00 CDT US Soccer plans new national women's club competition
US Soccer plans new national women's club competition
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Soccer Writer
CHESTER, Pa. (AP) --- The U.S. Soccer federation announced Wednesday it plans a
new national women's club competition that will include teams from the National
Women's Soccer League and the Gainbridge Super League.
There is no launch date yet for the Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup, which will have
a prize pool of $1.5 million. The single-elimination competition will serve as
a national championship and a pathway to qualification for the CONCACAF W
Champions Cup.
"We're working very closely with both the NWSL and the Gainbridge Super League
to figure out what is the optimal time to do this," U.S. Soccer president Cindy
Parlow Cone said. "Obviously, we want to put it into play as soon as possible,
but we also want to be respectful of each league's calendar and how do we best
go forth and do this. And I've got to say, I've been very impressed with both
leagues and how much they're leaning in and collaborating and cooperating to
make this happen."
Parlow Cone said the competition could be open to other clubs, including
amateur teams, much like the men's U.S. Open Cup.
"We're looking at the option for lower division professional teams being able
to join, as well as amateur women's teams being able to join, and what that
could and should look like, but we're also not of the thought that the
tournament can't evolve. So maybe we start with the NWSL and GSL, and then
evolve and engage the other teams," she said. "We're announcing this in real
time as we are still trying to put all the pieces together."
The growth of women's soccer has spurred club competitions in recent years.
Internationally, the women's Champions Cup is in its second year, and the FIFA
Women's Club World Cup is set to start in 2028.
The aim of Crest Cup is to capitalize on the popularity of the game, which is
expected to grow with the World Cup next summer in Brazil. The United States,
Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica have a joint bid for the 2031 tournament.
The tournament also aims to give high-level, meaningful competition for club
teams, while spurring player development.
"As we gear up for the World Cup in 2031, I think this is a great timing in
order to create another competition, because most of the the players and the
coaches and the teams in our ecosystem, they only get that international
exposure if they make their national teams, or if they're lucky, one or two
teams to be able to play in the CONCACAF tournament. But this is another way to
get more players interleague competition that could then lead to international
competition in really meaningful games," Parlow Cone said.
Blank has long been a supporter of U.S. Soccer. The federation recently opened
the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Lafayette, Georgia.
Blank owns Major League Soccer's Atlanta United and and an expansion NWSL team,
Atlanta City FC, set to start play in 2028.
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