On Friday, the National Women’s Soccer League’s application to launch a Division II league in 2026 became public.
In a letter to U.S. Soccer CEO JT Batson, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman formally outlined the league’s proposal. CBS Sports was first to report the application, and The Athletic corroborated the document’s existence. In the letter, Berman said establishing a second division was “essential for the development and sustainability” of the NWSL.
The proposal included an outline of eight founding teams affiliated with eight existing NWSL clubs — the North Carolina Courage, Kansas City Current, Racing Louisville, NJ/NY Gotham FC, Orlando Pride, Bay FC, Seattle Reign and Washington Spirit.
However, not all of the teams listed in the proposal were on board before the information was submitted, according to sources with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity due to its ongoing nature. Some of the pushback centered on the price of operating a second team.
NWSL’s proposal states that the second division would use infrastructure and share ownership as a way to qualify for U.S. Soccer’s Professional League Standards, which includes having at least six teams in year one and eight by year three, with half based in metro areas of 500,000-plus and…
