Indy Eleven to add team to new pro women’s league
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Indy Eleven Professional Soccer said Tuesday it has committed to fielding a team in the new USL Super League, a professional women’s soccer league set to launch in 2024.
The Eleven aims to be part of an initial group of 10-12 markets as “pioneering members” of the first division league.
Thus far, eight markets have been confirmed for the inaugural season. Indianapolis is one of five markets approved for subsequent seasons, pending the completion of a stadium.
Ersal Ozdemir, majority owner and chairman of the Indy Eleven, announced plans last year for a $1 billion redevelopment of the Diamond Chain manufacturing site in downtown Indy, which will include a 20,000-seat soccer stadium.
Construction is slated to begin later this year and be complete in 2025.
“Our focus and commitment to women’s soccer was part of our vision and mission from day one,” Ozdemir said in a news release. “To create opportunities for girls and women in soccer is so important and we have been driven to, not only, provide those opportunities but to do so at the highest level.”
The Indy Eleven currently fields a team in the pre-professional USL W League, which earned a 10-0-2 record in its inaugural regular season.
Indy Eleven CEO Greg Stremlaw said joining the USL Super League is all about timing.
“The USL Super League launching on the doorstep of Eleven Park has all the stars aligning.” said Stremlaw. “The premiere of an elite level, top tier women’s pro league launching at the same time we are breaking ground on an elite level top tier stadium is more than fate and coincidence. It’s what happens when great ideas and hard work hit the calendar at the same time.”
The USL Super League will be governed by U.S. Soccer’s Division One sanctioning process and launch as a first division league. The Eleven said the league aims to address “the opportunity gap between men’s and women’s professional soccer in the United States.”
The initial markets approved for the inaugural 2024 season are:
- Charlotte, N.C.
- Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
- Lexington, Ky.
- Phoenix, Ariz.
- Spokane, Wash.
- Tampa Bay, Fla.
- Tucson, Ariz.
- Washington, D.C.
The initial markets for subsequent seasons, pending completion of a stadium project, are:\
- Chattanooga, Tenn.
- Indianapolis, Ind.
- Jacksonville, Fla.
- Madison, Wis.
- Oakland, Calif.