The Women's Professional Soccer Player Allocation distributed 21 players from the United States women's national soccer team player pool to seven teams in the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) for the league's inaugural season.
The allocation followed a process in which the players and teams submitted their preferences to the league. A committee then reviewed the lists to provide its recommendations. The WPS Board of Governors met on September 14–15, 2008 to consult with the players, teams and league to determine the best possible dispersal for all parties with the following allocation results. [1] [2]
Amy Elizabeth LePeilbet is an American women's soccer associate coach for the Salt Lake Bruins, and a retired professional and international player.
Christie Patricia Pearce is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defender. She is the former captain of the United States national team. Pearce is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, and also a two-time world champion in FIFA Women's World Cup.
Natasha Kanani Janine Kai is an American professional soccer forward and Olympic gold medalist. She previously played for Sky Blue FC and the Philadelphia Independence of Women's Professional Soccer and National Women's Soccer League as well as the United States women's national soccer team. In 2011, Kai was also part of the first US women's rugby union sevens team to play in the IRB Women's Sevens Challenge Cup held in Dubai.
Nicole Renee Barnhart is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Washington Spirit in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She previously played for FC Gold Pride and Philadelphia Independence in Women's Professional Soccer, and for the United States national team where she was a two-time Olympic gold medalist. She competed in qualifying matches for 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, 2011 Four Nations Tournament and 2011 Algarve Cup.
Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) was the top-level professional women's soccer league in the United States. It began play on March 29, 2009. The league was composed of seven teams for its first two seasons and fielded six teams for the 2011 season, with continued plans for future expansion. The WPS was the highest level in the United States soccer pyramid for the women's game.
Ashlyn Michelle Harris is an American former soccer player.
Amy Joy Rodriguez Shilling is an American retired professional soccer player who is the head coach of Utah Royals of the National Women's Soccer League. During a career that spanned 13 seasons, she played as a forward for the North Carolina Courage, Utah Royals FC, FC Kansas City, and the Boston Breakers, as well as Philadelphia Independence of the WPS. A former member of the United States women's national soccer team, Rodriguez was a world champion in 2015.
Lauren Cheney Holiday is an American former professional soccer player who played as a midfielder and forward for the United States women's national soccer team from 2007 to 2015. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA Women's World Cup champion. Holiday played professionally for FC Kansas City in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the Boston Breakers in the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS). She played collegiate soccer for the UCLA Bruins.
Rachel Marie Buehler Van Hollebeke is an American former soccer player who last played as a defender for the Portland Thorns FC and the United States women's national soccer team. In 2015, Van Hollebeke retired from playing professional soccer, and soon after began attending medical school at UC San Diego School of Medicine.
FC Gold Pride was an American professional women's soccer club based in the San Francisco Bay Area, which participated in Women's Professional Soccer. The club replaced the San Jose CyberRays of the defunct Women's United Soccer Association as the top-level women's soccer team in the San Francisco Bay Area. FC Gold Pride moved to its final home of Pioneer Stadium on the campus of CSU East Bay in June 2010 after opening their 2010 home schedule at the Castro Valley High School Athletic Stadium. The club ceased operations in November 2010 after struggling financially and being unable to find new investors.
Alexandra Lowe Riley is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Angel City of the American National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Born in the United States, she represents the New Zealand national team. She captains both her club and national teams. As a collegiate athlete, she captained the Stanford soccer team to two NCAA semi-finals and one final.
Keelin Winters Pattillo is an American retired soccer defensive midfielder who last played for the Seattle Reign FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), a team she captained to two consecutive NWSL Shield wins. She previously played for 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam in the Frauen-Bundesliga, Boston Breakers in Women's Professional Soccer, the Seattle Sounders of the American USL W-League, and Western Sydney Wanderers in the Australian W-League With Turbine Potsdam, she competed in three games of the 2012–13 UEFA Women's Champions League helping lift the team to the Round of 16. She played collegiate soccer for the University of Portland and was named West Coast Conference (WCC) Player of the Year in 2010.
Yael Averbuch West is an American former professional soccer player. She was formerly the executive director of the National Women's Soccer League Players Association and is the current general manager of NJ/NY Gotham FC. A retired professional soccer player, she last played as a defender for Seattle Reign FC in the National Women's Soccer League.
The Boston Breakers were an American professional women's soccer club based in the Boston neighborhood of Allston. The team competed in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defunct Women's United Soccer Association, as the Boston area's professional women's soccer team. Boston would eventually get a new expansion team in 2023 that would begin play in 2026.
Lori Ann Lindsey is a retired American soccer midfielder who last played for Canberra United in the Australian W-League and was also a member of the United States women's national soccer team player pool. She played one match in the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup in Germany and was named an alternate for the 2012 Olympics in London.
Alexandra Linsley Long is an American soccer player who plays as a midfielder. She played for Portland Thorns FC, Seattle Reign FC, and NJ/NY Gotham FC in the National Women's Soccer League, and represented the United States national team. She made her debut for the national team on May 8, 2014, in a friendly against Canada. She has since made 45 total appearances for the team.
magicJack was an American professional soccer club based in Boca Raton, Florida. The team competed in Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) for one season until legal challenges caused the team's owner, Dan Borislow, to be banned from the WPS, which folded in 2012.
Women's soccer in the United States has developed quite differently from men's soccer. Until the 1970s, organized women's soccer matches in the U.S. existed only on a limited basis. The U.S. is now regarded as one of the top countries in the world for women's soccer, and FIFA ranked its national team #1 in the world after its back-to-back Women's World Cup victory in 2015 and 2019.
The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league at the top of the United States league system. Headquartered in New York City, it is owned by the teams and, until 2020, was under a management contract with the United States Soccer Federation.
The 2009 season is Washington Freedom's first season competing in the Women's Professional Soccer league, the top division of women's soccer in the United States, and seventh competitive season. The team was coached by Jim Gabarra who has led the team since its founding in 2001.
