For the past two years, the Utah Royals FC has had aspirations of making the playoffs in the National Women’s Soccer League. Even in the club’s inaugural season, which started only a few months after owner Dell Loy Hansen decided to bring a women’s soccer team to Salt Lake City, there was a sense that it had enough talent to compete at a high level.
Now, after two consecutive seasons of missing the playoffs, there’s a sense of deep frustration around the Royals.
“It’s really, really hard for me not to look at it as a failure and be disappointed,” Royals general manager Stephanie Lee said.