Five Stripe Final's NWSL Era Begins

We've got a lot to learn, but we're built for it

On Sunday night, The Athletic’s Asli Pelit reported that Atlanta will be the home of the National Women’s Soccer League’s 17th franchise. We’re still waiting on the official announcement, but it’s very likely that will come at an event in Midtown on Tuesday evening. We’ll be there to cover that event and any other events related to the launch of the new team going forward.

Frankly, I’m a bit surprised we’re here. An NWSL team always seemed like a logical addition to Arthur Blank’s collection, but I eventually got tired of asking about it. The standard answer became, “Maybe one day, but it’s not the right time.” Well, I guess with Atlanta adding the U.S. Soccer Headquarters and expansion fees for NWSL teams rising quickly, now is the right time.

It’s not clear yet when the team will actually begin play—or what the league calendar will even look like, more on that soon—but it seems like 2027 is the optimistic start date and 2028 is the bearish start date. Lord willing, if we’re still around, we’ll be covering the NWSL side in the same way we’ve been covering Atlanta United since that team announcement a decade ago.

That means we’ve got some learning to do. I’m admittedly an extremely casual NWSL watcher. I can pick out a few stars, I can tell you that Orlando won the title last year, I know it’s the strongest league in the world, and I am absolutely positive that Croix Bethune rules and is the best UGA player in the history of the sport. I cannot tell you whether or not you need a roster rules helmet for NWSL, I can’t tell you how each team plays, and I’m not sure yet how the expansion process works.

But, together—me and you, bud—are gonna figure it out. Look, if there’s anything learning MLS roster rules has taught me, it’s the meaning of the word “amortized” and that we can learn anything if we put our minds to it. So, as we prepare for Atlanta’s newest team to arrive, Five Stripe Final will be talking to experts, putting together primers on the league rules, teams and lore, and just generally beginning to immerse ourselves in a brand new league.

We can be collaborative about this along the way. If there’s anything you want or need to know, give us a shout. We’ll be around to talk to smarter people and then relay what they say back to you.

I’ll go ahead and speak for Rob and Joe and say that we’re ecstatic about this new era of soccer in Atlanta. I’m looking forward to learning. And, hopefully, you’ll be along for the ride with us.