NWSL Returns To CBS, CBS All Access For Fall Season Starting In September

(CBS Local)- The National Women's Soccer League wrapped up its successful Challenge Cup tournament in Utah at the end of July with the crowning of the Houston Dash as champions. Now, the league is looking to keep up its momentum with a fall series of games announced on Tuesday. The season is set to resume on September 5.

The series will see 18 matches played over the course of a seven week period. The nine teams in the league have been broken down into three "pods" which will allow teams to play each other while minimizing the amount of travel. The pods are as follows.

West
OL Reign
Portland Thorns FC
Utah Royals FC

Northeast
Chicago Red Stars
Sky Blue FC
Washington Spirit

South
North Carolina Courage
Orlando Pride
Houston Dash

"Building on the success of this summer's Challenge Cup, I am so excited to smartly and safely take this next step on the NWSL's journey," said NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird in a statement. "The women of the NWSL want to compete and we've certainly heard from our fans all over the world looking for more action this year. I'd like to thank the NWSL Player's Association for their constant collaboration, as well as CBS for continuing to invest in our league's growth and this unprecedented opportunity to showcase the NWSL to a world-wide audience, week-in, week-out."

The series will see the league return to the CBS family of properties. An NWSL Game Of The Week will air each Saturday on CBS Television Network in September before moving to CBS Sports Network for three Saturdays in October. CBS All Access will also have an exclusive stream of four matches outside of the Game Of The Week in September. The full schedule and format of the series will be released at a later date.