NEW YORK -- The Premier Lacrosse League is starting a new women's professional lacrosse league that is set to begin competition in the United States in 2025, three years ahead of the return of lacrosse as an Olympic sport for the first time in eight decades.
The Women's Lacrosse League will debut at the PLL's 2025 championship series in February. The league will initially feature four teams in cities that have yet to be announced. The WLL will play in the sixes format, the same style of play that will be featured at the Olympics.
The league is an expansion of PLL's investment in professional women's lacrosse. The league hosted its first women's lacrosse exhibition, the Unleashed All-Star Game, in February.
"We are honored to be a part of the WLL, and we couldn't be more excited to bring this game to the fans in new ways than ever before," said lacrosse star Charlotte North, a former NCAA champion with Boston College who has committed to playing in the new league.
In addition to North, players including Izzy Scane, who holds the NCAA women's career goals record, Lizzie Colson, Alex Aust and Ally Mastroianni have already committed to playing in the new league. Full rosters will be announced later this year.
"We firmly believe that this is the beginning of what will be a monumental movement in the game of professional women's lacrosse and for female athletes around the globe," North said. "We are determined to work tirelessly to grow the game ... while ultimately competing for championships each season. It's our time."
Men's lacrosse was last played at the 1948 Summer Games, but as a demonstration sport only. Women's and men's lacrosse will return to the Olympics in 2028.
"We're proud to announce the launch of the Women's Lacrosse League, a groundbreaking step forward for the sport, giving elite women athletes a premier stage to compete, inspire, and make their mark as we move toward lacrosse's reemergence at the Olympics in 2028," Paul Rabil, co-founder and president of the Premier Lacrosse League, said in a statement.
The WLL is not the first professional lacrosse league for women. It joins Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse, founded in 2020. WLL organizers said the leagues' seasons will not conflict.
Women's sports viewership and interest has accelerated over the past few years. A Nielsen survey showed interest in the WNBA grew nearly 30% from 2023 to 2024, while interest in the National Women's Soccer League saw a 17% increase in interest for the same period. The Professional Women's Hockey League posted attendance records for the sport in its inaugural season in 2024.