Perhaps the most cliche phrase of the last 6 months has been: What a weird time to be alive. Professional sports, although one of the first industries to figure out alternative methods of existence during COVID, were not exempt from that phrase.
Something I think it is important to explain right from the start is that our league, the NWSL, is very much a collective effort, and our team a family within that collective. This united effort is what made the Challenge Cup possible. The goal was not to pressure anyone to rashly hop on board, it was about creating a quasi-season that worked for every single person involved, and I think that’s what we accomplished.