One club, one crest. “That’s what we believe we’re building here,” said Michelle Rayner, the women’s sporting director for Lexington Sporting Club. The rollout for LSC’s new professional women’s soccer team has been ongoing for the last six months with a focus on building community before the team debuts in the new USL Super League.
Announced in September 2021, the USL Super League is a professional women’s soccer league that’s been sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation as a Division I league, which places it on the same level as the already-established National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). The USL Super League begins later this month, with Lexington Sporting Club set to be one of eight teams the first season. “What we’re really looking to do is ensure that the community feels that this is their club, which is vitally important to us and our growth,” Rayner said.
“I think our players are doing amazing stuff, doing an amazing job at being at these events and really being that face so people have an understanding of who we are.” Rayner has been with LSC since the club’s creation. She was promoted to her current role in late 2022 and said LSC aims to replicate models found in European soccer.
This includes establishing a foundation and youth level, while providing players with a clear pathway to the men’s and women’s professional side. “It’s very rare that you find that in the United States of America,” Rayner said. What is .