NWSL kicks off this weekend giving US women's soccer new hope

US women's soccer's third attempt at a professional league begins play this weekend and it's anybody's guess whether or not this one will last. But what seems clear is that its modest ambitions give it a better chance than the previous two failures.

One major factor that separates the National Women's Soccer League – the latest incarnation of a women's league – from the WUSA and WPS is the involvement of U.S. Soccer.

The Canadian and Mexican federations are also involved in the NWSL venture, but for the first time, U.S. Soccer sees value in having a professional league for its three-time defending Olympic gold medalist women's team. The backing of the federation has U.S. players cautiously optimistic.

"U.S. Soccer, the Mexican federation and the Canadian federation have all stepped in to fund their players and I think that that is going to make the biggest difference to cut the biggest overhead, which is the players' salaries," said U.S. forward Abby Wambach, who is three international goals short of Mia Hamm's all-time scoring record. "Hopefully the federations will do it until it is necessary."

The three federations will fund their national team players – originally 23 from the United States, 16 from Mexico and 16 from Canada before injuries and other factors depleted those numbers – and U.S. Soccer will run the front office.

What U.S. Soccer realized was necessary following its women's program's third-straight Olympic gold medal last summer was a way to develop future talent for the next World Cup (in 2015) and beyond. A league was the most sensible choice.

"You get more players an opportunity to be seen, you get players playing daily, and you get players playing in different environments, team players who have a different role on the national team and now they have to take a leadership role in a club team and develop those abilities," U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said when the league was announced in November. "So across the board and certainly the case on the men's side, the best way long-term to develop is in a league format where the challenges are every day."

Still, the question remains whether or not the finances can line up. The WUSA blew through $100 million in three seasons. WPS' losses were far less, but the model proved unsustainable.

In NWSL player salaries are modest, ranging from $6,000-$30,000. Several teams have downsized venues (the Boston Breakers traded Harvard Stadium for a smaller public facility and the Chicago Red Stars no longer play at Toyota Park). The four teams that remain from the WPS days have seen modest upticks in season ticket sales.

So there is some cause for optimism. In fact, the optimism – whether it is hope or genuine confidence remains unclear – is disproportionately strong. We've seen that before. Women's Professional Soccer was supposed to be the sustainable answer to WUSA's overspending and lofty goals. That lasted just three seasons.

But this time, the belief is that the right people are involved, and that isn't just the aforementioned U.S. Soccer. The four clubs carrying over from the WPS days bring the experience and knowledge of those past failures, while new markets like Kansas City and Portland add cities in which soccer is part of the culture. Portland Thorns FC has sold about 7,000 season tickets, about twice the average attendance WPS drew.

The reasons that players, owners and now federations continue to fight for a sustainable professional league vary. Competitively, it's about player development and ensuring the United States reclaims the World Cup, which it hasn't won since 1999.

The move is also about the world's top-ranked women's team and perennial power providing hope for a future for the young. The World Cups, the Olympics – those ambitions are a given: winning.

But for U.S. forward Alex Morgan, the National Women's Soccer League is about those thousands of girls who look up to her and her teammates – a position the 23-year-old was in not long ago.

"When I think of a lasting league, I think of the dreams that a little girl has, the dreams that I had when I was a little girl – when I was watching WUSA, when I became a part of WPS and now being a part of NWSL," Morgan said on Thursday. "I think it is so important for future generations when they come up, when they have a passion to play soccer, that they have a way to play soccer other than the women's national team."

League at a glance

Teams: Boston Breakers, Chicago Red Stars, FC Kansas City, Portland Thorns FC, Sky Blue FC (New Jersey), Seattle Reign FC, Washington Spirit, Western New York (Rochester, N.Y.)

Key Players: Abby Wambach makes her homecoming in Western New York along with Carli Lloyd, but the true star power is in Portland, where two of the world's top strikers – U.S. star Alex Morgan and Canadian Christine Sinclair – will combine up front. Seattle will start the season without goalkeeper Hope Solo (injury) and midfielder Megan Rapinoe (playing with Lyon in France), but their anticipated additions could give Reign FC a second half boost.

Schedule: The league kicks off this weekend and last through the August 31 championship game. Each team plays a 22-game schedule, with 11 home games and 11 road games. The playoffs will feature the regular season champion at home against the fourth-place team, while the second place finisher will host the third-place finisher. The highest remaining seed will host the title game.