Sports Then and Now

WPS has unveiled their uniforms for 2010.

2010 is THE year for soccer. Last night in Philadelphia, PUMA and Women’s Professional Soccer unveiled the new 2010 WPS Home and Away Uniforms, including the official kit debut of the newest franchises, the Atlanta Beat and Philadelphia Independence.

Fusing fashion with sport, PUMA launched the newly-designed uniforms from the Power collection, keeping both style and performance in mind and giving players the courage to be awesome on and off the field.  The launch event, which took place hours after the 2010 WPS Draft, highlighted veteran players from the league’s nine teams and nine newly-drafted professional players who proudly wore their team colors for the first time.

Created as the ultimate PUMA & WPS Fan experience, hundreds of soccer fans joined the sportlifestyle brand to kick off the second WPS season – preseason pep-rally style – hosted by Los Angeles Sol goalkeeper and WPS All-Star Karina LeBlanc.

Women representing the teams included:
• Atlanta Beat:  Leigh Ann Robinson, Defender and Tobin Heath, Midfielder
• Boston Breakers:  Leslie Osborne, Midfielder and Lauren Cheney, Forward
• Chicago Red Stars:  Ella Masar, Forward  and Whitney Engen, Defender
• FC Gold Pride:  Tiffeny Milbrett, Forward and Kelley O’Hara, Forward
• Los Angeles Sol:  Manya Makoski, Defender and Casey Nogueira, Forward
• Philadelphia Independence:  Amy Rodriguez, Forward and Caroline Seger, Midfielder
• Sky Blue FC:  Yael Averbuch, Midfielder and Brittany Taylor, Defender
• St Louis Athletica:  Kendall Fletcher, Defender and Angie Kerr, Midfielder
• Washington Freedom:  Cat Whitehill, Defender and Nikki Marshall, Defender

Fusing performance with fashion, the new 2010 PUMA WPS uniforms take inspiration from our primal instinct of Fight. Designed to give the players the courage to be awesome and bold, PUMA’s new offerings, from the Power collection, provide both technological features, benefits and fashion sense, keeping the women stylish, bright and ready to do battle during the 2010 season.

Each uniform was engineered with a feminine body fit to allow for maximum performance and speed.  The overall cut of each piece contours a woman’s shape and also features a star-shaped neckline as a unique design feature.  The “Power” theme comes to life with the cut lines within the uniform to accentuate the strength and power of a player.

Each uniform is made with 100% polyester microfiber and includes the PUMA Ultimate Sport Performance (USP) technical treatment making uniforms moisture wicking, breathable and made of authentic performance fabric to ensure players are dry and comfortable during play.  Each franchise collaborated with PUMA to design a look that spoke to the individual personalities and aesthetics of their team.

The launch of the new uniforms also coincides with the launch of the new PWR-C 2.10 FG women’s boot.  The new boot was designed specifically for women with enhanced comfort and a glove-like fit in the heel and lining.  It features a new PowerLast that allows for a stable and flexible outsole and protection on the pitch and is made with soft full grain leather.

About PUMA and WPS
PUMA became an official founding partner of WPS and an official sponsor of all WPS franchises in December 2008. The multi-year partnership makes PUMA the official sport and lifestyle apparel, footwear and equipment supplier of WPS, including the official WPS Match Ball.  In addition to on-field performance wear, PUMA will outfit the athletes and teams at all WPS-related events, activities and WPS appearances in sportlifestyle apparel and is the official supplier of PUMA WPS Fanwear. This partnership will allow PUMA and WPS to enhance the game of women’s soccer together and will act as the foundation in the PUMA Women’s category.

PUMA is a global leader in the game of soccer with an International portfolio of five European National Teams, including current FIFA World Cup™ holders Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria and Czech Republic and 11 African soccer Federations including the current CAF African Cup of Nations™ holders, Egypt, Algeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, Tunisia, Namibia, Morocco, Angola, Senegal, and Togo.  PUMA is a sponsor to seven of the qualifying teams of this year’s 2010 FIFA World Cup.  PUMA also represents LA Sol superstar and the four-time FIFA World Player of the Year, Marta and is partners with top international women’s club, Umea IK.

The previous story is a press release from the Media Department of the WPS and is not the original work of STN writer, Todd Civin.