For the first time since its founding in 2020, Athletes Unlimited (AU) is organizing a traditional team-based league meant to be “Major League Baseball for softball,” in the words of former Miami Marlins general manager Kim Ng, the senior advisor of the inaugural Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL).
AU has annually hosted weeks-long competitions for pro women’s sports, including softball, basketball, volleyball and lacrosse, with no coaches or GMs involved. A player, as opposed to a team, would win the so-called championship for a given season based on an unorthodox points system, with all games held at one location. Softball is the first sport for which AU is implementing a team format.
The AUSL, scheduled to start in June 2025, is set to facilitate a 30-game slate for each of its four teams. The sites of said games will vary across to-be-determined touring locations, meant to help inform the league’s leadership on which cities might be most receptive to supporting a professional softball team in the long term. Starting in 2026, the AUSL plans to station up to six teams in different cities.
At least 30 AUSL games will be exclusively broadcasted on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU.
Softball icon Jennie Finch, an Olympic gold medalist, is one of four supporting advisors to Ng,…
 will start play in June 2025 with four teams and a 30-game schedule.){kind=link}