Photo Copyright Geoff Burke for USA TODAY Sports
The 2023 National Women’s Soccer League season kicks off on Saturday, and with it comes an amalgamation of excitement and question marks.
To get you ready for the year ahead — as the NWSL officially turns 10 years old on the field — we break down 11 big talking points to watch.
VAR: Video Assistant Referees join the fold
Saturday’s season kickoff will feature the debut of VAR (Video Assisted Referee) which will help further bring the NWSL into the modern era. What will this mean? At its best, it will mean awarding penalties for obvious handballs the referee misses, and the end of penalties called for phantom handballs (hello Becky Sauerbrunn on 2018 opening weekend). And at some point, a call that would have been incorrect that truly changes a game or season will be made right.
At worst, VAR will mean some lengthy delays, subdued celebrations, and some goals called back for offside based on the narrowest of margins. And at some point, there will be a VAR call that…
