U.S. Soccer announces Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup for women’s clubs, with prize pool above $1.5 million
The planned knockout cup would bring NWSL and Gainbridge Super League clubs into a national competition with a path to the Concacaf W Champions Cup. Its start date and wider entry rules remain unsettled.
U.S. Soccer announced the Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup on October 14, 2026, a national women’s club knockout competition that would give teams from different U.S. leagues a route to compete for one title. The federation says the prize pool will exceed $1.5 million and the cup will provide a pathway to the Concacaf W Champions Cup. It has not set a launch date.
NWSL and Gainbridge Super League teams will take part in the inaugural edition, U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone told CBS Sports. That identifies the two leagues expected to form its initial field, although the announcement does not name individual clubs or say how many teams will enter. Parlow Cone said participation by lower-division professional and amateur women’s teams is being considered for the competition’s development.
How the Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup would work
The cup is planned as a single-elimination tournament ending in a final, according to the U.S. Soccer announcement. Its prize pool of more than $1.5 million covers the competition, including the final; the announcement does not describe an exact total or how the money would be divided. U.S. Soccer also says the competition will offer a qualification pathway to the Concacaf W Champions Cup, giving the domestic title a consequence beyond its own trophy.
The federation describes the Crest Cup as a way for teams that have historically lacked a means to play one another to meet in an interconnected national competition. It compares the idea with European cup tournaments, including England’s Women’s FA Cup. Those comparisons describe the intended format and reach; the U.S. competition’s full entry rules have yet to be announced.
Parlow Cone told CBS Sports she had wanted a women’s counterpart to the men’s U.S. Open Cup. She said the idea had previously been constrained by the lack of a robust women’s amateur competition and by there being only one Division One professional league. She cited the arrival of the Gainbridge Super League and growth in the amateur game as reasons the time now appeared right for a cup spanning parts of the women’s club game.
Why the schedule remains undecided
U.S. Soccer says it will determine the launch date after consulting stakeholders. Parlow Cone told CBS Sports that it was too early to confirm match days. She expected that most games might be played in midweek, but said the federation was working with the NWSL and Gainbridge Super League on scheduling and player workload, including recovery time between matches. That leaves a central practical question for clubs and players before the first edition can be placed on a calendar.
The leagues’ existing schedules help explain that concern. CBS Sports reported that the 2026 Gainbridge Super League regular season was scheduled from August through November with 14 matches. Its report contrasted that smaller schedule with workload pressures at the top level. The cup’s format establishes that entrants would face elimination matches, but the number of games any club might play cannot be fixed without a field and calendar.
Parlow Cone told CBS Sports that U.S. Soccer intended to have the Crest Cup running by the 2031 Women’s World Cup. She emphasized that the federation was not announcing a launch date. The statement gives the project a stated aim, while leaving clubs without a confirmed first-edition season or match schedule.
What U.S. Soccer says the new cup could change
U.S. Soccer frames the competition as a platform for player development and further investment in women’s club soccer. Its chief executive, JT Batson, said the tournament would extend the reach of women’s professional soccer into new communities. Arthur M. Blank said it would expand opportunity and inspire the next generation. Those are the backers’ stated goals for a competition whose teams, dates and broader entry arrangements are still being developed.
Sources and context
- U.S. Soccer to launch Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup for womenCBS Sports
- U.S. Soccer Launches Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup to Unite Women’s Soccer in Pursuit of a Singular National ChampionUnited Soccer League
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