Women's Lacrosse League Caps Historic Inaugural Season Ahead of First Championship

PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Women's Lacrosse League (WLL) today announced performance across its inaugural regular season, ahead of the first-ever WLL Championship fueled by Gatorade between the California Palms and Maryland Charm. The game will be played Saturday, Aug. 15 at 5 p.m. ET at Subaru Park in Philadelphia, nationally televised on ESPN and streaming on the ESPN App.

In its first full season, the league saw strong performance across the WLL including:

• Women's professional lacrosse attendance records set in Fairfield, Conn. and Boston
  
  
• 150 million impressions generated by league and team social platforms
  
  
• Fans in 49 states and two territories ordered WLL merchandise
  
  
• Jerseys are top-selling WLL product, led by Charlotte North of the Boston Guard, Ally Mastroianni of the California Palms and Izzy Scane of the New York Charging
  
  
• Most viral lacrosse play in 2026 – Erin Coykendall's Behind-the-Back Goal for New York – with 23 million views
  
  
• Highly competitive game product, with average score margin of 2.8 goals
  
  
• 24 league partners, headlined by Cash App, Nike, Maybelline, Lexus, Gatorade and U.S. Bank

"When we started the WLL, this is what we pictured," said Paul Rabil, Co-Founder and President of the PLL and WLL. "Amazing talent on the field, and a season that made people believe women's lacrosse belongs at the top of sports. We watched it happen all year. Now we get to close it out the right way, by opening the gates to thousands of families and letting them see it for themselves. That's the goal. Kids in the stands looking at these players and picturing themselves doing that one day."

Launched in November 2024, the WLL debuted in the Championship Series, with the league's four teams competing in the Olympic Sixes format set to bring women's lacrosse to the Olympics for the first time at the LA28 games. The WLL's success in the 2025 and 2026 Championship Series led the league to expand to a full season of competition in the 10-versus-10 game format successfully piloted at its 2025 WLL All-Star Game.

"Expanding to a full season was a bet on our players and our fans, and this year proved that bet was right," said Mike Rabil, Co-Founder and CEO of the PLL and WLL. "Twenty-four partners committed to this league in year one, attendance records fell across our markets, and our audience on ESPN kept growing. That's the foundation we need to keep building a sustainable, growing league for years to come."

"The 10-versus-10 format has showcased the speed, creativity and passion of the best players in the world. I can't wait to watch these athletes continue to push the boundaries and redefine what professional women's lacrosse can look like," said Rachael DeCecco, SVP of Lacrosse of the PLL and WLL. "Saturday is the stage they've long deserved. The California Palms and Maryland Charm have earned the opportunity to compete for the title of First Forever."

The California Palms and Maryland Charm will meet in the WLL Championship fueled by Gatorade after finishing atop the league standings. In their last regular season meeting, Maryland defeated California in overtime. After a go-ahead goal from Maryland's Ally Kennedy with 18 seconds left in the fourth quarter, California's Marie McCool tied the game with just 5 seconds left to force overtime. Maryland's Cassidy Spillis went on to score the game-winner just 20 seconds into overtime.

To mark the occasion, Cash App will fund the first-ever WLL Championship bonus, matching the prize awarded to the men's PLL Championship. The $80,000 bonus will be split between the California Palms and Maryland Charm, with the Championship Game MVP and members of the winning team earning the largest share. 

The WLL Championship will feature some of the best women's lacrosse players in the world, including several members of Team USA who won gold at the 2026 World Lacrosse Women's Championship in Tokyo just two weeks ago. Maryland's Ally Kennedy was named tournament MVP. She'll be joined on the Charm by fellow Team USA gold medalists Sam Apuzzo, Brigid Duffy, Caylee Waters and Sam Forrest, while the Palms roster features Team USA gold medalists Marie McCool, Anna Brandt, Ally Mastroianni, Emma LoPinto and Emma Muchnick.

The WLL is also working with state, tourism and community partners to make Saturday's game accessible to fans across the region. In partnership with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's administration, the league recently announced a community access initiative that will provide 2,500 complimentary tickets to nonprofit organizations, youth programs and community groups across Pennsylvania. The league has also made a limited allocation of $10 tickets for Pennsylvania families. The initiative is designed to expand access to the Championship Game, introduce more young people to professional women's lacrosse and help the league pursue a new attendance benchmark for the sport.

For tickets and more information, visit www.thewll.com.

About the Women's Lacrosse League

The Women's Lacrosse League (WLL) is a women's professional lacrosse league in North America, composed of four teams rostered by the best players in the world. Launched in November 2024 by the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL), the WLL represents the league's biggest investment in women's lacrosse to date. The PLL is co-founded by lacrosse superstar, philanthropist, and investor Paul Rabil and his brother, serial entrepreneur and investor, Mike Rabil. The PLL is backed by an investment group composed of Joe Tsai Sports, Ares, The Chernin Group, Arctos, Brett Jefferson Holdings, The Raine Group, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), The Kraft Group, Bolt Capital and other top investors in sports and media. The WLL and PLL are distributed through an exclusive media rights agreement with ESPN. For more on the league, visit www.premierlacrosseleague.com/womens-lacrosse-league and follow on social media: Instagram (@WLL), Twitter (@WLacrosseLeague), Facebook (@WomensLacrosseLeague), and TikTok (@WomensLacrosseLeague).

Press Contact:

Grace Hamilton
thewll.com/

SOURCE Women’s Lacrosse League