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I'm Meg Linnehan. Thanks for joining me for another episode of our women's soccer podcast at The Athletic, full-time with Megalinahan. Again, that's me. Today, I'm joined by NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird, who is at home. She got her one day off after the success of the NWSL Challenge

Cup and is very much back to work. There's a ton to talk about with her from the tournament

itself to expansion to what comes next for the NWSL on a number of fronts, not just the

potential for more games in 2021.

So we're recording this episode on Tuesday, August 4th, because I'm actually on vacation for the rest of the week.

The Sacramento B reports that conversations are still underway between the NWSL and the investors behind Sacramento Republic FC.

Last fall, the Sacramento Ownership Group got close to

NWSL expansion with all reports back then indicating that they might have even opted for a

quick turnaround to start play in 2020. Instead, they fell off their radar as Louisville and Los Angeles

opted for 2021 and 2022, respectively. I'll have even more for you on this front later, though not quite this specific

in the episode with Lisa. OL Rainford, Jody Taylor, is heading to France via a transfer to Leone,

with her contract running through December 31st, 2020. The rain will continue to hold her NWSL rights,

but this is a transfer and not alone. Now, not necessarily a news item here, but I do want to let

you know that NWSL Analytica is running a beginner's workshop on August 13th to help introduce fans

to stats, including things like heat map, soccer roles, and so on. If you're looking to increase your

knowledge of the game, this might be a great place to start. So we recorded with NWSL Commissioner Lisa

Baird on Monday.

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