Restarting sports may be key to reopening
Dr. Neal Elattrache, Sports Medicine Director at Cedars-Sinai, joins Laura Ingraham to discuss how restarting sports may be the key to reopening the country.
The National Women’s Soccer League could be the first U.S. professional team sport to start playing since the coronavirus pandemic shut sports down across the spectrum in North America and around the world.
The league’s nine clubs will participate in the Challenge Cup starting June 27 – a 25-game tournament with each team playing four games in the preliminary rounds to determine their seeds. The top eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals in which the tournament then becomes a single-elimination tournament. The cup will play its final match on July 26.
NWSL HAD MOMENTUM HEADING INTO NOW SUSPENDED SEASON
All matches will be streamed on CBS and CBS All Access.
“As our country begins to safely reopen and adjust to our collective new reality, and with the enthusiastic support of our players, owners, as well as our new and current commercial partners, the NWSL is thrilled to bring professional soccer back to the United States,” NWSL Commissioner Lisa Bird said in a news release Wednesday. “This exciting month-long tournament will showcase our league’s talented players and provide our fans the type of world-class entertainment they’ve come to expect from the NWSL.”
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The tournament will begin at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman, Utah. There will be no fans in attendance.
The league released protocols developed by the league’s medical task force to combat any problems players and coaches might have in regard to contracting the coronavirus.
The league’s players’ union supported the league’s plan.
“The NWSLPA, working closely alongside NWSL, is excited to provide players the opportunity to return to sport, while also securing compensation and other necessities to make sure players’ concerns, feedback, and safety are at the forefront of all conversations,” union executive directors Yael Averbuch and Brooke Elby said in a joint statement. “As the plans for the tournament unfolded, it was our priority as the NWSLPA to protect our players, and we feel that NWSL shares those values.”
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The last NWSL game played was the 2019 championship game in which the North Carolina Courage defeated the Chicago Red Stars.