Sarah Kallassy, Donald Wine II, Matt Haney, and Annie Elliott all contributed to this interview.

All images courtesy of Ari Anderson, DC Power Football Club.

During D.C. Power FC’s inaugural homecoming match, Annie, Donald, Matt, and Sarah of The District Press had a special opportunity to connect with USL Super League Commissioner Amanda Vandervort.

Check out what she had to say about developing the women’s game and building a new league.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

Why D.C. and what you were hoping for the future of women’s soccer by bringing a team to this area?

We’re excited about D.C., about Audi field, about the ownership group here. You know, D.C. is a great community, a huge area. You know, the entire DMV, I think this, they’ve been great supporters of women’s soccer, and I think having the USL Super League and D.C. Power offers a different option for women’s soccer fans to come experience the highest level of women’s soccer. And we’re proud of all of soccer that’s brought us to this point and really excited to be celebrating the game here tonight at Audi Field, with the USL Super League for the first time.

I know that you recently announced the deal with ESPN International for all the international games. Would you talk a little bit about that partnership and how you’re hoping to expand the game beyond these borders?

I mean, part of our core philosophy is to be a global leader in women’s soccer and really showcase women’s soccer at the highest level possible, both here in the United States and abroad. So this ESPN International partnership in Central and South America gives us visibility, I think, to a whole new audience of people who are soccer-mad and excited about the future of women’s soccer and the growth of the game. If you look in those regions, actually, the investment and the growth of women’s soccer is exploding. And I think to put the USL Super League right in the heart of that is a really, really exciting proposition and partnership for us with ESPN International.

Is the hope to kind of create pathways for players and pipelines for players, especially if you’re thinking about the Caribbean, a lot of players have come played in other leagues from there and Central America. Is that the idea that kind of visibility, then the pipeline is kind of created through that?

Well, visibility lets people know that it’s possible, right? When you see women playing at this level, you can see that it is, you know, professional women’s soccer is not only a career, it’s a great business. So, I think pathways, creating those pathways, is part of the DNA of the USL. And, you know, we have an academy program. We have to develop top talent for our pro leagues. We also have the W League, which coincides with the collegiate season. So those women play in the summer, then all of this creates a pathway for athletes to ultimately become pros. So, that’s part of what we’re building. That’s part of what we think about it, and it is developing the future of professional women’s soccer.

Well, that leads to my question, I think, in terms of growth, how do you see the league developing over the next few years, starting with expansion in coverage and expansion in cities?

Expansion in coverage and expansion in cities. You’re leading me to water on that one. Well, I wish that I had expansion news for you today. I don’t, but what I can say is we’re actively thinking about growth of the league. Expansion for us, being in more cities, creates more opportunity for more women than ever before, and it’s certain our path to growth will be substantial over the coming years, and I am excited to share news with you in the coming months

Well, it’s going to be the annoying question is, you know, we’ve got the first half of the schedule. Do you have any idea when the spring schedule will come out?

No, it’s not an annoying question. It’s a great question because we’re working on it actively, and you should have it soon. In the next couple of weeks, we’ll have it out. So, yeah, it’s been a great process.

I imagine you’ve traveled to a lot of these home games. How is the atmosphere here, comparing with with some of the other ones you’ve seen?

It’s been an absolute treat to be here tonight, and to be at all the USL Super League home openers. Now, I think this is the sixth, or fifth, but I also went to another Tampa game, so maybe six or seven in our very short season so far. I’m at a lot of soccer right now, and it’s absolutely incredible, honestly, to see the fans coming out and cheering. I mean, there’s already cheers for some of the players, and the goal celebrations have been amazing. You saw our opening weekend with 10,000 people in Charlotte, North Carolina. I’d like to say I’m surprised, but I’m not, because I know that interest is there. So it’s been great to see that kind of proof of concept coming to life and creating this amazing experience for fans, for players, for everyone, for you guys. Hopefully, you guys are enjoying the night!

You know, every runner when they’re running a race, they run their race, but you can’t help but look in the lane next to you to see where your competition is. I know it’s early on your end, but how often as a league do you plan on peeking in those lanes to kind of see what other competition is out there, and comparing what you’re doing and the trajectory you have against some of your competition?

We’re really focused on what we’re building. You know, the USL Super League, when we even first started concepting the league, to be on the international calendar was something that was core to us, not having a draft, something that was core to us, making sure that players could negotiate their rights directly with the club and the city that they wanted to be in. All those elements were foundational to building the USL Super League, and now we’ve just kicked off, and we’re working on building our communities, building our fan bases, getting these players so they’re playing, so they know where their teammates gonna run to when they play the ball forward, right? There’s a lot of growth that we’ve got right now, and that’s really what our focus is. And we couldn’t be more proud of the product we have out there on the pitch.