US women´s league to use playground format for all-stars

Women’s Professional Soccer will use a playground-style pick-up style format to decide lineups for its June all-star game in suburban Atlanta, the US women’s football league announced on Monday.

The second-year league moved the June 30 match-up to mid-season, with 22 players to be chosen by votes from teams, media, players and fans and 14 others to be named by coaches and commissioners.

The top vote-getters among US and non-US players will be named team captains and together with coaches will choose their sides from among the remaining players in an alternating pick format days before practices and the game.

“We thought this would be a great way to celebrate the roots of the sport: the camaraderie, the inclusiveness and that intrinsic pick-up nature of soccer on a playground field,” WPS commissioner Tonya Antonucci said.

“We think it?s a fun format.”