Racing set to compete in 2023 USL W League’s Valley Division

Racing Louisville FC will return to the USL W League — the nation’s premier pre-professional women’s soccer circuit — for the 2023 season kicking off in May, the club announced on Tuesday. 

Racing last year became the first W League member to complete its developmental pyramid topped by a franchise from the NWSL, widely regarded as the world’s top pro women’s soccer league.

For 2023, the W League has divided into 10 divisions, with Racing being placed in the Valley Division along with St. Charles FC (St. Peters, Missouri), Kings Hammer FC (Cincinnati), Lexington SC (Lexington, Kentucky) and Indy Eleven (Indianapolis). 

New this season, the league has established four regional conferences – Central, Eastern, Southern and Western – which will alter the 2023 playoff structure. Racing and the Valley Division will compete in the Central Conference.

Each team will play 10 to 12 matches against divisional opponents over the course of the regular season. Upon the start of playoffs, conferences will be used to regionalize matchups with player welfare in mind. More information of the W League playoffs will be released later, and fans can get the latest updates by bookmarking RacingLouFC.com/WLeague.

Racing’s home W League games will again be open to the public and free to attend at the Lynn Family Sports Vision & Training Center, 801 Edith Road. Select away games may be streamed live via ElevenSports.com.

Racing will announce its W League staff and schedule in the coming weeks. Those interested in playing on Racing’s W League team can register to attend the team’s April 30 open tryouts. Contact assistant coach Libby Stout (lstout@loucity.com) with any questions.

Racing finished the 2022 season with a 6-3-3 (21 points) record, just missing out on the playoffs. Louisville’s W League roster – comprised mainly of college players and academy standouts – saw three members of that squad selected in the most recent NWSL Draft, led by defender Emily Madril at No. 3 overall.

The W League has a goal to form the next generation of women’s soccer talent both on and off the field, enhancing the player pipeline between college and the pro ranks. It also strives to use women’s soccer as a force for societal good by creating a national platform to increase opportunity, gender equity and career development.

Racing Louisville is operated by the same group, Soccer Holdings, LLC, as two-time USL Championship title winner Louisville City FC. The fast-growing organization hosts senior team games at 15,304 capacity Lynn Family Stadium and plans to play W League competitions at its nearby state-of-the-art practice facility.

Both Racing and LouCity formally launched their youth academies in the fall of 2020. Similar to the USL Academy League on the boys side, the W League rounds out the path to pro for the girls system, which begins for those as young as age 4, by providing an elite platform for pre-professional players to showcase themselves.

Central Conference

Eastern Conference

Southern Conference

Western Conference