The National Women’s Soccer League is enjoying a healthy bump in interest, thanks to the U.S. national team’s rock-star popularity and World Cup glory.
It is a small sample size: The tournament in France ended three weeks ago and the 23 triumphant players returned to league play last weekend.
But consider: The Portland Thorns, the league's runaway attendance leaders in each of seven seasons, set a club record with 22,329, achieved on a weeknight. The Chicago Red Stars opened additional sections to accommodate 17,388, four times their 2018 average.
The Utah Royals counted almost 16,000 last weekend and more than 10,500 this weekend.