The Women’s Lacrosse League is coming.
The Premier Lacrosse League is launching WLL, a pro women’s lacrosse league utilizing the Olympic Sixes format. It will begin at the 2025 PLL Championship Series.
“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 news release. “We can't wait to welcome fans to the first WLL games at the 2025 Championship Series, where we'll provide these exceptional athletes with a world-class experience alongside the best in the PLL.”
Whirlpool has signed on as a founding partner of WLL.
WLL builds on PLL’s Unleashed platform, which has hosted pro exhibitions and camps with stars like Charlotte North.
Players and host cities will be announced at a later date, though North is quoted in the PLL release.
“We are filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude toward Paul Rabil, Mike Rabil, Rachael DeCecco and the entire PLL organization for their endless hard work, dedication and investment in the sport of professional lacrosse. 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,” North said. “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. We are determined to work tirelessly to grow the game and inspire the next generation of young girls, while ultimately competing for championships each season. It’s our time.”
The WLL joins a pro women’s landscape that has recently seen the United Women’s Lacrosse League (UWLX) from 2015-17, then the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League (WPLL) from 2018-20. Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse, which is part of a larger organization dedicated to women’s sports, has carried the baton for pro women’s lacrosse since and has a partnership with multiple TV networks.
The announcement also builds on a wave of momentum for women's sports — and women's professional sports — over the last few years, highlighted by record viewership for the WNBA and women's college basketball, as well as proliferation of women's professional soccer, hockey and others.
PLL is hosting an event in New York City on Wednesday as part of the announcement.
Full news release from PLL:
NEW YORK –The Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) powered by Ticketmaster today launched the Women’s Lacrosse League (WLL), a new professional women’s lacrosse property set to debut at the 2025 PLL Championship Series, featuring the best lacrosse players in the world.
The WLL will feature four teams, playing in the Olympic Sixes format, competing for the inaugural WLL Championship Series trophy. The four teams’ home cities and players will be announced at a later date.
“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,” said Paul Rabil, co-founder and president of the Premier Lacrosse League. “We can't wait to welcome fans to the first WLL games at the 2025 Championship Series, where we'll provide these exceptional athletes with a world-class experience alongside the best in the PLL.”
“We are filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude towards Paul Rabil, Mike Rabil, Rachael DeCecco, and the entire PLL organization for their endless hard work, dedication, and investment in the sport of professional lacrosse. 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 Charlotte North, gold medalist, NCAA Champion, and WLL Ambassador. “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. We are determined to work tirelessly to grow the game and inspire the next generation of young girls, while ultimately competing for championships each season. It’s our time.”
Building off an impactful inaugural season as a league partner, Whirlpool brand will expand their partnership with the PLL to become the first founding partner of the WLL.
“The Women’s Lacrosse League will inspire the next generation of women’s lacrosse players and we’re thrilled to grow our PLL partnership by way of the WLL,” said Shannon Blakely, CMO North America Region at Whirlpool. “The opportunity to expand the impact and support for the lacrosse fan base from our work with the PLL partnership with the WLL is one we believe in, as we continue to work to foster opportunities for more families and future generations.”
The WLL is the PLL’s largest investment in women’s lacrosse to date. In 2020, the PLL created Unleashed, a women’s lacrosse content and training platform designed to support the growth and visibility of girls and women’s lacrosse. Unleashed has helped over 1,000 girls lacrosse players access world class coaching from the most iconic pros of this generation: Charlotte North, Taylor Cummings, Lizzie Colson, Dempsey Arsenault, and Alex Aust Holman.
In 2024, the PLL hosted its first professional women’s lacrosse exhibition in the US – the Unleashed All-Star Game – after international exhibitions in Japan over the last three years. At the 2024 PLL All-Star Skills Competition, fans watched Charlotte North shoot a record 92 miles per hour in the Fastest Shot Competition, as well as Izzy Scane, Alex Aust Holman and Dana Dobbie compete in the lacrosse derby.
To learn more about the WLL and sign up for updates on tickets, teams and more, visit www.premierlacrosseleague.com/womens-lacrosse-league.