The probability that Scotland is going to win the 2019 Women’s World Cup isn’t very high. But it is a possibility. Scotland will play in the Women’s World Cup for the first time when they take the field for their opening match. And that game will open up a possibility […]
A Sociological View on Selling Women’s Soccer: A Conversation with Dr. Rachel Allison
Most of the media that cover women’s sports have made themselves experts in the field – and often times using expert feels a bit dicy – through years of following the teams and players. We get there by writing about the on-the-field play and the off-the-field drama of whatever is […]
Predicting The Pride: Head Coach Edition
It is the lot in life for most head coaches to be let go of the team they are leading. This came to be true for Tom Sermanni, as the Orlando Pride wilted down the stretch losing the final four matches of the season, and were winless in the last […]
The High Price of CONCACAF’s Low Investment in Women’s Soccer
The 2018 CONCACAF Women’s Championship has been strange. Both Jamaica and Panama have made the semifinals while Costa Rico and Mexico–two teams that were expected to make the cut–are now out of the tournament. The only really expected result that has held is both Canada and the US making the […]
Three Questions Before the NWSL Final
We have finally made it to the very last day of the 2018 NWSL season. We have weathered the summer thunderstorms, the midday heat, the head scratching trades, the coaching kerfuffles and all the other furtastic things that come with your typical season. And we’re right back to the same […]
Listen To The Women
Last weekend, Serena Williams faced Naomi Osaka in the U.S. Open Women’s Final, a match where the quality of play was overshadowed by the umpire. Williams was penalized for breaking a racket, receiving hand signals from her coach, and defending those violations to the umpire. Williams received a point penalty […]
The NWSL Weather Woes: Playoff Edition
The National Women’s Soccer League 2018 season will be remembered for the extremes of the standings with the dominance of the North Carolina Courage and the woes in New Jersey both on and off the field with Sky Blue FC. Among the lesser stories which will be nothing more than […]
Problems With the Pride: Don’t Put It All On Tom Sermanni
When the Orlando Pride were announced in the team’s introductory press conference by the fountain of Lake Eola which is the basis for the team logo, Tom Sermanni was named the first head coach in team history. Since being appointed as gaffer he’s gone on to a 25-26-14 overall record. […]
Who Are the NWSL Team MVPs?
Every year there is a conversation on who the NWSL MVP should be. We here at Backline Soccer decided to offer 9 nominations, one from each NWSL team. Chicago Red Stars: Sam Kerr ~Charles Onley Sam Kerr, who else? It’s not that Chicago doesn’t have other potential options. Julie Ertz […]
The NWSL International Player Power Rankings
The NWSL has some truly outstanding international soccer talent rostered on the nine current teams in the league. We are all incredibly lucky to be able to watch some of the best in the world, week in and week out in this league. You have five time FIFA Women’s Player […]
Forecast for the Orlando Pride: Gray Skies Ahead
The Orlando Pride started its three-match homestand with a frustrating draw with the Seattle Reign. Both teams were missing key players this match due to national team duty: Alex Morgan and Ashlyn Harris for Orlando, and Megan Rapinoe and Allie Long for Seattle. The hosts may rue this performance which saw […]
It’s Time for Sky Blue to Start Making Concrete Promises
The last two offseasons have seen considerable movement among NWSL franchises, with Western New York relocating to North Carolina, FC Kansas City being replaced by the Utah Royals, and the Boston Breakers folding suddenly in early 2018. All this movement has generated some persistent chatter about the status of other […]
Hot or Not: NWSL Power Rankings
Warning: This power ranking is not reactionary. This power ranking takes outside factors like weather and injuries into account. It has bias—yours when you read it and mine when I wrote it. Enjoy it. It will soon change.
NWSL Week 13: A Tweetstorm Review
Hey guys welcome to our second Tweetstorm Review. We’ve had a lot of games, a lot of goals, and a few milestone so lets get started. Houston 1, Portland 3 It was a hot game in Houston as Sinclair made her 100th NWSL appearance and fans were eager to get […]
Are the North Carolina Courage Bad for Women’s Soccer?
No, they aren’t. The North Carolina Courage are not “killing the NWSL” nor are they “turning the NWSL into the French women’s league”. For some reason people ask because when they see a women’s team doing better than anyone else in their league or conference or sport, it’s the first […]
NWSL Week 12: A Tweetstorm Review
An NWSL Gameday means quality games and quality tweets. Whether they’re updates, gifs, hot takes, or highlights the NWSL and its fans have you covered. Each week we’ll be taking some of the best tweets to review the game, so make sure you’re tweeting you might just find yourself in […]
Hot or Not: NWSL Power Rankings Week 12
Warning: This power ranking is not reactionary. This power ranking takes outside factors like weather and injuries into account. It has bias—yours when you read it and mine when I wrote it. Enjoy it. It will soon change. It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? But the rankings are back!
Backline Chat: USWNT Friendlies, the Men’s World Cup, and Back to the NWSL
Charles Olney (@olneyce): Alright, welcome to our slack chat for this week. Today we’re going to start with the US national team, who just finished up a pair of friendlies against China. How do people think it went? For what it’s worth, my general takeaway is: the US still isn’t playing […]
Meet the NWSL Dogs of Social Media
Instagram is a great place for dogs. Honestly, who doesn’t love logging onto their Instagram account and seeing adorable pups? The NWSL is full of dogs— in fact, I think Allie Long said last night on Alex Morgan’s Instagram Stories that she wants two more, bringing her total to four. […]
Backline Chat: USWNT Roster, Lyon, and Where Will Press Go?
Welcome to a new feature here at Backline: our weekly soccer chat. This week, we discussed the new USWNT roster, Lyon’s victory in the Champions League, and the continuing saga of Christen Press’s club situation. The transcript below has been lightly edited. Charles Olney (@olneyce) : Welcome everyone, to our […]