United Soccer Leagues announced today the regular season schedule for the 2008 W-League season, which will kick off with the Opening Night on Saturday, May 10 with eight games and conclude on Sunday, July 20. The Northern Virginia Majestics begin their 2008 campaign May 17th on the road against the powerhouse Boston Renegades.
The Majestics open their home season on June 7th against W-League newcomers Connecticut FC. Northern Virginia then returns to home action the following night, facing off against the Renegades to complete the 2008 Boston series on Sunday June 8th.
Northern Virginia is slated to face a full summer of top opponents in the difficult Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference. Division rivals this summer also include W-League champion Washington Freedom, nearby Fredericksburg Gunners, New York Magic, Jersey Sky Blue, New Jersey Wildcats, and Long Island Rough Riders.
Match times and stadium location will be announced in the next several weeks, following the release of the Northern Virginia Royals 2008 schedule dates.
Fifteen years ago, 18 teams took the field for exhibitions and a pilot tournament to test the waters for a women’s elite soccer league. That tournament led to the debut in 1995 of what is now a thriving 41-team strong W-League across North America that has helped produce more American and Canadian internationals than any other league and been home to some of the world’s greatest international stars. A prime example is the presence of 33 W-League alumni in the Four Nations tournament that opens today in China and the 54 that were on Women’s World Cup rosters last fall.
North America’s top women’s league will open its 14th official season of competition Saturday with eight games marking the start of the 280-game May 10. Opening Night will feature the debut of six expansion sides as the West Virginia Illusion host the Charlotte Lady Eagles, the Carolina RailHawks visit the Carolina Dynamo, the Tampa Bay Hellenic host the Bradenton Athletics and Connecticut visits the New York Magic. The Ventura County Fusion will play host to fellow newcomer Pali Blues in the debut of W-League soccer in Los Angeles. Opening Night is rounded out with the Hampton Roads Piranhas, one of the inaugural W-League teams in 1995, visiting the 2007 finalist Atlanta Silverbacks, the Long Island Rough Riders playing host to the defending champion Washington Freedom and the Boston Renegades hosting Jersey Sky Blue.
The playoffs will begin almost immediately after the July 20th regular season finales with a midweek divisional playoff round. The three Conference Championship tournaments will be held July 25-27. The W-League Championship Tournament will be held August 1 and 3. The W-League Championship host is determined via a bid process with the host team receiving a bye to the W-League Semifinals August 1.
Eastern Conference Playoffs: The playoffs open with a Divisional Round between the second and third-place teams in the Northeast Division hosted by the higher seed. The winner of the Divisional Round will advance to the conference tournament with the regular season Northeast Division champion and the top two teams from the Atlantic Division. The top seeds will play the lower seeds from the opposite division in the conference semifinals. The conference champion will advance to the W-League Championship Tournament. The regular season conference champion has the first right to host the conference tournament if they meet the pre-established hosting requirements.
2008 Northern Virginia Majestics Schedule [+]
