Just over one month before the preseason started, former Ottawa Women Fury MVP Danielle Johnson was looking forward to kicking off her first season with the Atlanta Beat, one of the five teams in the Women’s Professional Soccer league.
But 10 days after she signed a contract with Atlanta, the WPS decided to suspend its season, leaving Johnson and dozens of other players without a league to play in.
“I was shocked,” says the 24-year-old defender. “I came home on Friday from playing soccer in Australia and was excited to start playing again. And then on Monday I found out that that wouldn’t be happening.”
The WPS announced on Jan. 31 that it would be suspending its upcoming season due to the ongoing legal disputes with former team owner, Dan Borislow.
In 2011, the WPS voted to terminate Borislow’s magicJack team. The owner immediately pursued legal action and has kept the league in court ever since.
Because the court proceedings are using up much of the league’s financial resources, the WPS board of governors was forced to suspend the season until the legal issues with Borislow were resolved.
The Ottawa Women Fury are part of the W-League, a second-tier national soccer league one level below the WPS. Fury coach Dominic Oliveri says he expects an influx of WPS players to come play in the W-League for this season.
But because of the timing of the suspension and how far along the Fury already are in their recruiting process, the WPS suspension will only be able to make a minor impact on the team’s roster.
“It’s disappointing,” says the coach.
“Not only because some of the best female players from around the world don’t have a league to play in when the Olympics are around the corner, but because we are so far along in terms of recruiting.”
Upon learning of the suspension, many players were quick to turn to European professional leagues, including former Fury star and Team Canada player Christina Julien, who signed with Swedish team Jitex.
However, because the transfer deadline for the European leagues coincided with the date of the suspension announcement, many players will be left without a team.
Oliveri says the Fury organization has been in contact with several players in the WPS and hopes to sign players to the limited number of spots currently available on their roster.
The W-League requires all teams to have their rosters set by July 1, but Oliveri is hoping to have the team finalized well before May, when the preseason kicks off.
Despite having the opportunity to recruit higher-calibre, professional players to his team, Fury owner John Pugh says the suspension of the WPS season is a devastating blow for women’s soccer.
“A professional league is needed in order to keep other leagues viable.”
But it’s not a completely disappointing time for the women’s soccer leagues – especially for the Ottawa Fury.
On Feb. 3, it was announced that the Fury will host this year’s W-League championship here in Ottawa.
Last year, the team had a perfect season and finished as silver medalists in the championship game.
This year, the Fury hopes to have an equally strong season. Given that it hasn’t lost at home in 25 games, hosting the championship in Ottawa could give the team a significant advantage if they make the finals again.
While the suspension of the WPS season was clearly a setback for women’s soccer, players, fans and all those involved with women’s soccer are hopeful for a return for the 2013 season.
“We truly need a professional league to keep up the development and strength of women’s soccer,” says Pugh.