Speech

Slide One- (Intro) Hello, my name is Erin Barcal, and today I will be enlightening you on the
National Womens Soccer League in their entirety.
Slide Two- (Stats) Ten teams. Four Olympic Gold Medals. Three World Cup Titles. Two previous
leagues. One national team. And One Dream.
Slide Three- (Begin History) These statistical figures highlight a few of the United States
womens soccer achievements in the past twenty five years. The familiarity of these images in
the publics eye is a spectacle for the generations to come.
Slide Four-(WUSA) Despite the success the U.S. Womens National team has experienced, it has
not always been so glamorous. The National Womens Soccer League is the third of its kind
since 2001. The history of the league began with the Womens United Soccer Association
(WUSA) as the worlds first womens soccer league in which all of the players were paid
professionals. It originated in 2000 with its first season germinating in April 2001 (King, 2009).
There were eight professional teams in the United States providing a seemingly viable
foundation as a result of the sparkplug of the 1999 FIFA Womens World Cup. With momentum
of the U.S. Womens National Team victory, twenty national team members sought out investors,
sponsors, and players necessary for this aspired operable market.
Slide Five- (WUSA cont) This market came to a shattering and abrupt foreclosure at the end of
the third season in 2003 after the $40 million budget that was intended to last five years, was
squandered by the end of the first season. Consequently, players took a thirty percent salary cut
by the third season with national team members taking the largest cuts in order to preserve the
league. These members also constituted the equity in the league, but when television ratings on
TNT, ESPN2, CNNSI, and PAX TV, or attendance to games did not meet forecasts, suspending
operations became the only plausible and financially feasible answer. Aspirations to relaunch the
league were set in place by preserving all rights to team names, logos, and similar properties, as
well as efforts to line up new sources of capital and operating expenses (King, 2009).
Slide Six- These aspirations came to light in 2009 when the Womens Professional League
launched with various alterations and precautions to establish a profitable league. With a
committee led by Womens Soccer Initiative Inc. (WSII), whose stated goal was, promoting and
supporting all aspects of womens soccer in the United States, they announced the launch of the
league to be March 29, 2009 after 2007 FIFA Womens World Cup and the 2008 Olympic Games
(Women's Soccer, 2008). Player allocations began immediately after the Olympics with the
dispersing of the twenty one national team members dividing three into each team amongst the
seven teams. An international draft was opened up before a general draft and local tryouts took
place to round out the rosters.

Slide Seven-As teams were entrenched, the league hit its peak in 2011 after the success of the
U.S. Womens National Team during the FIFA Womens World Cup, providing an upsurge in
attendance, sponsors, and enthusiasm. This short lived success came to an end on January 30,
2012 after a long, ongoing legal battle with former franchise owner Dan Borislow, and a lack of
resources properly invested in the league. With these several internal organization struggles, the
league announced suspension after the 2012 season (Admin, 2010).
Slide Eight- In conjunction to the suspension, the National Womens Soccer League began
operations in 2012, as a successor to the former league with a debut in 2013 with eight teams.
They have already expanded to ten teams, after inheriting four teams from the WPS. The NWSL
is headed by the United States Soccer Federation who continues to add more teams with the help
of Major League Soccers assistance (Whiteside, 2012). The teams include: The Boston
Breakers, Chicago Red Stars, Houston Dash, FC Kansas City, Orlando Pride, Portland Thorns
FC, Seattle Reign FC, Sky Blue FC, Washington Spirit, and Western New York Flash.
Slide Nine- The major question now, is if the league will succeed, or fail like the two previous
attempts. Julie Foudy, a former U.S. National Team captain and Olympic medalist writes a
compelling article to ESPN W explaining the differences in the league this time around. After
some opening remarks, Foudy argues, While Title IX has greatly increased the opportunities for
girls to play sports, it does not apply to professional sports (because professional sports are not
subsidized by the federal government) (Foudy, 2013). She continues with the simple principle
of, what the market is able to bear on an economic, social, and financial level, rather than a
deserved opportunity based on previous success. Furthermore, Foudy complies that, Women's
sports leagues would be much better served if supporters stopped giving the "cause argument"
("Support us because you should. Sponsor us because you should. Spend money on us because
you should") and started giving the "because argument" ("Support us because we have the best
players in the world. Support us because you like what you see. Support us because there is a
business plan that will work) (Foudy, 2013). This business plan provides a foundation for the
revenues and expenses proportion to produce a profit to be an overall positive economic
investment.
Slide Ten- The previous two leagues have folded based on the revenue-expense balance: In 2001,
when the Womens United Soccer Association began, they buried themselves in a financial abyss
lasting a mere three seasons and spending $50-100 million in that short time frame while riding
on the success of the 1999 FIFA Womens World Cup Championship, and the passionate players
who were determined not to let it fail. Then, when the Womens Professional League started in
2009, the corporation intended to keep expenses more palatable, but failed to close the off cap
salaries and benefits, creating a major loophole. Hence, there are two major changes for the
current National Womens Soccer League: The U.S. Soccer Federation has implemented fully
funding the front office (executive director, legal matters, offices, referees, finance, PR and
operations, etc) as well as American, Mexican, and Canadian federations taking the most
expensive players off of the leagues balance sheet. These federations now pay for their
respective national team members making up approximately seven players per team (one-third of
the team on the twenty player roster maxes). Now that all players are not under the leagues
expense, they have a further mandate of salary caps per team of approximately $200,000 for the
remaining thirteen non-national team members, annually. This leaves approximately $6,000-

$30,000 per player for their yearly salary for playing professional soccer. This begs the question;
can the bulk of these professional teams survive off of such low salaries?
Slide Eleven- The short term answer is yes. Health benefits are included for the professional
team members and many of the young players live with host teams and/or families and
supplement their salaries with additional jobs. Then, endorsements and advertisements can
further complement their salaries with additional benefits, gear, and exposure.
Slide Twelve- An example of how teams have cut costs can be seen from the Chicago Red Stars
owner, Arnim Whisler, who was the owner for the previous WPS league and current NWSL. The
difference is: Budgets in WPS ended up, whether they were intended or not, at or around a $3
million annual spend. Our budgets in NWSL are less than one-third of the WPS," Whisler said.
"Everyone, I believe, is set at about a million. It has been scaled down dramatically. While scaled
down, we want women's soccer to succeed, but the reality is, revenues in WPS were about a
million a year, some closer to $2 million. If you're going to build a sustainable league, you have
to size your business to sustainable revenue (Foudy, 2013).
Slide Thirteen- These sustainable revenues and realistic perceptions of the league and expenses
allow for overall success. The balance sheet symbolizing the assets equaling liabilities in
addition to stockholders equity, and the income statement lists the expenses in conjunction with
the revenue, are the financial operations necessary to continue with a profitable league.
Slide Fourteen- This profitable league has many strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats.
When organized into a SWOT Analysis, the operations are as follows:
A primary strength for the league is the U.S. Womens National Team and all of the positive
publicity that they bring to the table. The World Cup exposure and Olympic recognition excites
national pride and awareness of the program. Young female players can identify and idol players
of their own gender through direct relation, promoting an immense market for womens soccer.
Slide Fifteen- Youth soccer levels have greatly increased from 103,432 players in 1974 to well
over 3 million in 2015. The gender break down of the percentage registered youth is 52% males
and 48% female. These staggering numbers make up seven percent of the youth sport total of
approximately 21.5 million children in the United States. With just under half being females, the
womens soccer market can continue to be a booming industry for young female athletes
constituting approximately 3.5% of children registered in youth athletics. I know for me
personally, my major role models growing up were Brandi Chastain, Mia Hamm, and Abby
Wambach. All of which are female athletes. Meanwhile, I did recognize and appreciate the talent
of icons such as David Beckham, Landon Donovan, and went to several Major League Soccer
games of the Chicago Fire. But the overall direct relation to the female athlete was significant in
my style of play and support of U.S. soccer.
Slide Sixteen- Another Strength is the level of play and competition. Since Title IX was put into
effect in 1972 stating, No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded
from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any

education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance (Title IX Enacted). This
legislature is immensely active in the sports realm of intercollegiate activities as well as in
secondary education programs. Before Title IX, female athletics and especially athletic
scholarships were virtually nonexistent. But as stated above, professional leagues are not
subsidized by the federal government, and therefore do not directly fall under Title IX. With this
disclaimer stated, Title IX has still provided a foundation for collegiate athletics to boost depth in
skills and abilities for professional prospects to aspire to continue their careers at the next level.
But an example of the lack of Title IX in womens professional sports can even been observable
in the 2015 FIFA World Cup, when the women were coerced into playing on inferior pitches and
in menial facilities. They were required to play on artificial turf despite petitions and protests of
primary team leaders because of the direct correlation between artificial turf and injury. Also, the
pay for the U.S Mens National Team in their 2014 FIFA World Cup was significantly higher for
not even making it to the final. There is a lot of media buzz about this topic currently suggesting
the sexism in pay for the World Cup athletes.
Slide Seventeen- Pay discrepancy is a primary weakness in the league. Five primary members of
the USWNT have filed a complaint to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (a
government agency) accusing U.S. Soccer of wage discrimination in relation to the
money the federation pays to the U.S. Mens National Team. In a press release announced
Thursday morning, lawyers for the five U.S. playersCarli Lloyd, Alex Morgan, Hope
Solo, Megan Rapinoe and Becky Sauerbrunnargue that the USWNT is paid almost four
times less than the USMNT, despite producing nearly $20 million in revenues for U.S.
Soccer Federation in 2015.
The players are being represented by Jeffery Kessler, one of the nations most prominent
sports lawyers. In the press release, Kessler notes that the U.S. womens players want
equal pay for equal work, while Morgan adds that the team wants treatment equal to the
U.S. men on playing surfaces and travel accommodations. The U.S. players say their goal
is for the EEOC to conduct an independent investigation, issue its findings and seek relief
on behalf of the players on the U.S. team.
One topic at issue is whether the U.S. women could initiate a work stoppage before the
Olympics in August, which would give them much more leverage in negotiations for a
new CBA but may hurt them in their quest for the gold at the Olympics. But they are
willing to go to more drastic measures if necessary. Recently retired Abby Wambach
admits her disappointment and frustration with US Soccer because she reports, We are
making them money as a nonprofit organization so it is their job to continue to push the
envelope as world leaders in womens soccer. The pay scale does not reflect the
popularity of the team In her interview she complains that, It is in their power to get
even better coverage, contracts, and even a 401K. I need to do this stuff because I never
got a 401K. With the $20 million surplus just from last year, four Olympic Gold Medals

and Three World Cup Championships, it is preposterous that I do not have a 401K. Then I
get frustrated seeing male players, never needing to work a day in their life after
retirement from soccer, and I have played professionally for the past fifteen years and am
constantly budgeting and looking for other opportunities to make money to support my
family and I. She jokes that that principle alone is an underlying reason to do these
interviews in order to supplement her income.
Similarly to the NWSL, some players make $6,000 as their overall salary for the year averaging
to a gross sum of $500 a month. On the flip side, male Major League Soccer players have a team
salary cap of $3.49 million dollars which is seventeen times the amount the women have.
Following the sexism complaint, many female athletes get coerced and encouraged to do
Sports Illustrated and bathing suit editions to gain attention and popularity. These
editions help supplement their low income and improperly direct viewers attention at
things other than the actual talent and athletic ability of the female athlete. *

Slide Eighteen- Another weakness is the lack of revenue for marketing. All of the revenue that is
generated goes directly to the individual team that produced it, leaving no profit for the actual
league itself. Therefore, individual teams can market on their own, but there are scarce resources
to do so. The US Soccer Federation funds limited marketing expenditures to ensure that the
league does not exceed the balance sheet operations.
Slide Nineteen- Building off the momentum from the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, the
National Women's Soccer League shattered attendance records this season. The league posted
an average attendance of 5,046 fans per game over the season, nearly a 22 percent increase
from 2014 when the NWSL averaged 4,139 fans per game. "We're certainly encouraged and
pleased," NWSL Commissioner Jeff Plush said. "I think a lot of hard work went into
the early part of the season to have an opportunity to take advantage of the World Cup. We
always knew the World Cup would give us the opportunity for a nice bump. Clearly, what the
U.S. women were able to accomplish gave us an even stronger and better springboard for that
success." The NWSL struggled in 2015 with Television ratings, especially during the
semifinal matches. Both NWSL semifinal matches on Fox Sports 1 registered 0.0 TV ratings
among viewers 18-49. The late match Seattle Reign FC vs. Washington Spirit, at 9:30 p.m.
ET drew 48,000 viewers, which is not good. In context, however, the MLS match which
preceded it Orlando City SC vs. Sporting Kansas City also drew a 0.0 rating and
averaged 91,000 viewers on FS1, which is below average (59,000 also watched on Fox Sports
Deportes). That night was the U.S. Open mens final, but even that couldnt compete with

opening Sunday in the NFL. Unfortunately for the NWSL, the Reign-Spirit game was the
better TV rating amongst the semifinal matches. The Chicago Red Stars vs. FC Kansas City
semifinal drew an abysmal 28,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1, which is a numerical
representation of saying hardly anybody watched the match. The game kicked off at 1:30 p.m.
ET, thirty minutes after the NFLs Sunday slate got underway. And things were not any better
in the stands. Chicago Red Stars moved to Toyota Park, where the MLS team, Chicago Fire
typically plays. But empty seats were plentiful and it reported only 3,031 fans in the 20,000
seat stadium. Also the NWSL cannot be too disappointed or blamed because their match
began an hour and a half after the Chicago Bears NFL game against longtime rival, the Green
Bay Packers, with their stadium being just down the road. The conclusive evidence that this
brings about, is that nothing can compete with the NFL, especially on opening Sunday. Hence
scheduling for game times and especially the final will be more organized in the future. The
league needs to pick its battles as these semifinal viewing numbers were bad, but
proportionate. Overall, television is just one aspect in the digital age, where having every
game live on YouTube is actually a significant step forward for this year. It was only four
years ago when fans and journalists were following WPS matches by refreshing the stats feed
and Twitter.
Therefore, because of lack of exposure and recognition, there is a lack of commercials,
sponsors, and advertisements from various franchises for the fear of the league folding or
becoming a financial burden. *Fix PPT first bullet*
Slide Twenty- As stated before, young female athletes can identify with professional female
athletes more directly than males. Common phrases of, You play ball like a girl, or
stereotypical comments of males being superior athletes can deter girls from pursuing their
dreams until they can identify with the female professionals and know that with passion, hard
work, and dedication they can excel too.
Slide Twenty One- For endorsements and sponsors, in 2016, they have upgraded to four
official sponsors after acquiring Coppertone. They began with their founder, US Soccer
Federation before Nike quickly partnered with them to support their endeavors and provide a
reliable apparel line for the players.
Mango.org began promotions in 2015 with their slogan being,
Mangos+Soccer=Mangoooooal. The National Mango Board (NMB) is proud to announce that
mangos are the official superfruit of the National Womens Soccer League (NWSL). All season
long the NMB is partnering with premier teams and athletes to showcase this nutritious and

delicious fruit; scoring big with soccer fans at sampling events with player appearances,
giveaways, social media engagement and much more!
Then, Jeff Plush, the commissioner of the league states, We are very excited to partner with
Coppertone, whose leadership in the suncare industry and track record for high performance
sunscreens is a natural fit with the NWSL. We boast some of the hardest working elite athletes in
the world and are backed by passionate fans who desire a dedicated brand that can support them
every step of the way both on the field and in the stands."
Slide Twenty Two- The camps and clinics are primarily conducted by league icons and
individual team members rather than the organization itself. For instance, Alex Morgan would
promote and conduct a camp for the Orlando Pride with youth soccer players. Several teammates
on the Pride would help her throughout the camp. Then, as players make direct relationships with
the campers, the campers in turn come and support the Pride and watch their new role models
play. So while National Team members use their publicity to lure campers in, the entire team,
and organization benefits from them performing this clinic.
Slide Twenty Three- Television contract advancements have been a long desired spectacle for
this league. Fox Sports has a contract with the NWSL to air seven regular season games, both
semifinal matches, and the championship. They established the contract back in 2013, and
continue to add more games every year. Similarly to television airings, the NWSL has
established a contract with YouTube for them to stream all of their matches live by simply typing
in NWSL in the search bar before clicking the GoLive button. This has greatly expanded the
view capacity and has reached the target market on a broader spectrum.
Slide Twenty Four- The threats to the NWSL are composed of the following: First, foreign
markets can attempt to draft National Team players with the appeal of more money, benefits, and
fame for the individual for their foreign professional league. Then, the fear of the league folding
is also a concern and threat due to the lack of revenue circulating to support the nonprofit league
itself despite the gained popularity. Finally, differed sponsorships generating more revenue in
other leagues or franchises will hurt the league from their lack of support.
Slide Twenty Five- In conjunction with the Threats, Porters Five Forces constitutes an overall
low threat level to most components. The Competitive Rivalry point is the only one that could
be considered as an intermediate threat. Because soccer is such a broad market, they have
competition in the sense of the European Professional League, USMNT, the MLS, college, and
high school soccer to get involved in and watch. But if the consumer is directly interested in

professional womens soccer, this market is the only one available to become interested in. They
could become invested in the USWNT for short bursts during the World Cup or Olympics, but a
prolonged interest in professional womens soccer would be in this league only.
Because the USWNT is the best in the world right now, players are most likely to stay in this
league rather than contracting out to foreign markets to play despite increased wages and benefits
because they are playing against the best competition in the world and challenging themselves.
Therefore, the threat of new entry is low because it has been difficult enough to make one
profitable league after its two predecessors have both failed and folded.
The threat of substitution is low as there are limited options in each region. High school, college,
and MLS all have their own perks, but if a consumer aspires to see a quality womens soccer
game on a professional pitch, the NWSL would be the cheapest and easiest way to go. It is
typically $15-20 per ticket for a single game depending on the day. Therefore, at such an
affordable price, fans and bystanders can see a quality match for a minimal expense.
Accordingly, the buyer power is low considering that they are the only one of their kind. Hence,
consumers do not have any other local options to see another womens professional league. They
cannot compare prices of other leagues because there is nothing to compare them to. Then,
supplier power is also low due to the lack of negotiation because they are the only league so
there is limited salary and benefits discernment.
Overall, Porters Five Forces and threat isnt a plausible option right now. Maybe eventually
there can be several leagues, but for now, players are concerned with the building of womens
soccer as a sport in association with womens equality rather than the stress of sustaining
multiple leagues and profits. But the aspiration of the league over individual fortune or fame is
the general goal.
Slide Twenty Six- The implementations I would recommend for the league to continue to thrive
in the future would be beneficial to implement as soon as possible. First, I would ensure that the
infrastructure of each home pitch and/or stadium is safe and beneficial to the players and fans.
Because women are eight times more likely to tear their ACLs than men and all athletes are 88%
more likely to tear their ACLs on artificial turf rather than real grass, this risk provides a legality
for the leagues top players. This is because of the increased traction it conducts in conjunction to
it buckling and how it gives way under ones weight. Just like when many team leaders from all
of the international teams participating in the World Cup threatened to sue FIFA over the issue of
equality that they were restricted to only turf fields in Canada, the provisional safety requirement

of a grass field for the NWSL would be my first move to assure the players of safety and security
during both training and matches.
Then, with the games being streamed live on YouTube, I would ensure that the airing of the
game was clear and precise without grainy splotches causing for ambiguous viewing of a poorly
broadcasted game. The level of quality in play should be matched by the quality of the broadcast
in order to give the viewers ultimate satisfaction.
Finally, to get fans in the door, I would offer promotional incentives to guests attending the
games. The marketing I would choose would be through iconic figures such as USWNT
members on their social media, the NWSLs social media, and marketing at youth soccer events.
With these four implementations, I firmly believe the league would survive and prosper. The
personal mark I would be interested in carrying out would be working for the US Soccer
Federation in Chicago with one of my friends, Vickie Rich, who currently works for them. But I
would also choose to continue to promote the game by coaching and helping develop prospective
professional athletes at the collegiate level. I have always loved the sport and hope to continue to
see it grow throughout the years
Slide- Here is a video of my role model, Abby Wambach in her Farewell
promotional video for Gatorade that aired minutes before her last official game in
a U.S. Womens National Team jersey.
Last Slide- Altogether, Thats soccernothing is given, everything is earned. This quote

by Christie Rampone, a legendary member of the United States Womens National Team, is a
doppelganger for their success as a national team, and for putting together a national womens
soccer professional league. As with many professional sports, leagues go through trends
experiencing various highs and lows. But when depicting the league as an organization, key
national icons have promoted this league for several decades. Iconic figures such as Mia Hamm,
Brandi Chastain, and modern day Abby Wambach have put everything on the line to endorse this
league. In relation to Wambachs Gatorade commercial with her message being, I want to leave
a legacy where the ball keeps rolling forward, where the next generation accomplishes things
so great that I am no longer remembered. (FADE) So forget me, because the day I'm forgotten
is the day we will succeed. This message for the betterment of the league over the individual
player is the mindset of most league players looking to promote the game of womens soccer
nationally. The National Womens Soccer League has been a roller coaster since its beginningsexperiencing trends, folds, promotional campaigns, management changes, and name changes.
This history enriched league provides a foundation for womens soccer to continue to be a
booming industry for U.S. sports and womens equality as a whole with a few fundamental
changes to rejuvenate the league. I hope I can have a sliver in the success of the league as I

aspire to be employed under US Soccer Federation, or collegiately coach to prepare players to

play at this next level. Thank you.