Women’s Professional Soccer issued a public release on Monday evening stating, “League staff has been restructured…while league marketing resources have been shifted to the team level in order to focus locally on attendance and ticket sales.”

           This restructuring has brought upon the elimination of several league front office jobs. The positions cut include New Media Manager, League Office Manager/Assistant to the Commissioner, in addition to jobs in marketing. The release also points to consolidation within operations and shifting some of those duties to the team level.

             Although the move was publicly announced on Monday, it can be exclusively revealed that the final day of employment with WPS for said individuals was Friday of last week. According to a source close to the situation, the decision was reached “several weeks ago”.

                Per the press release and with confirmation from sources, this course of action was determined upon by the Board of Governors; a sitting committee that is composed of both team owners and league officials. Sources have also disclosed that league officials have been supportive in the employment search for those who have been laid off.

                WPS spokesman Robert Penner commented, “With two months left in the 2010 season, it was important for the Board and the Commissioner to look ahead to 2011 and provide the best structure for continued growth of the teams with an emphasis on attendance increases and franchise development. That has led to the decentralization of a few functions outlined by the Board to the teams.”

                 Among the positions eliminated is New Media Manager, previously held by Amanda Vandervort. Vandervort was a key figure in making Women’s Professional Soccer more accessible to social media users. Under her guidance, WPS has nearly 250,000 followers on Twitter while the number of Facebook fans has grown 156% since last year, according to the league’s press release. Vandervort is a familiar face in the women’s soccer community, as she was previously a college coach and serves as Women’s Committee Chair in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.

                 The move comes as a result of a shift in marketing strategy. It has been widely reported that ticket sales this season are down 15% from last year. Last weekend’s Washington Freedom home game against FC Gold Pride was attended by 4,809 people. The figure was likely helped by the presence of Mia Hamm who was in town for a charitable event. It was the highest gate total since 5,645 attendees were on hand for the Chicago Red Stars/Philadelphia Independence game on May 15.

View Original Post at womentalksports.com