WPS Season Can Move Forward, As Teams Agree To USSF Provisions

The five remaining Women’s Professional Soccer teams agreed to USSF’s conditions for Division 1 sanctioning on Tuesday, meaning the 2012 season can move forward. The governing body of U.S. soccer had agreed to provisionally sanction the fledgling league, but only if the teams agreed to terms which included expanding to six teams by the 2013 season and to eight teams by 2014.

Under USSF guidelines, a Division 1 league must have at least eight teams, something the WPS lacked last season when they played with six. But one of those teams, MagicJack, was disbanded and that left the league in serious jeopardy of losing its sanctioning, something that allows it to attract some of the best players in the world. USSF also had some undisclosed financial provisions that WPS agreed to.

Women’s Professional Soccer appears to have lived to fight another day. The fledgling league, which is currently down to just five teams, had its Division 1 sanctioning conditionally approved by USSF on Monday, according to ESPN. Assuming the league agrees to the undisclosed terms, that would mean the league should be able to move forward and attract top-level players such as Brazil’s Marta and United States stars like Abby Wamback and Ashley Morgan.

WPS’s sanctioning was very much in doubt as USSF has set guidelines that a Division 1 league is to have at least eight teams. Last year, the league was allowed to play with six. That number was diminished by one after MagicJack was disbanded. The league’s remaining teams are the Atlanta Beat, Boston Breakers, Philadelphia Independence, Sky Blue FC and Western New York Flash. All of those teams are located along the Eastern seaboard with only the Beat being outside of New England