Basketball tips off. Soccer Kicks off. Plus Champions League Final anyone???
Row row row your boat into a weekend of women's sports.
SMILE… it’s the weekend! Here’s what we’re watching. 👉
WNBA Season Openers
The WNBA will tip off its 25th season on Friday with teams returning to their home arenas following a season in the bubble in Bradenton, Florida.
All 12 teams will be in action on opening weekend, with two games featuring matchups between former MVPs.
Leading off the season in the first game on Friday will be New York Liberty and No 1 overall draft pick in 2020, Sabrina Ionescu, as they host the Indiana Fever in Brooklyn. Other games on Friday feature the Connecticut Sun at Atlanta Dream, Phoenix Mercury at Minnesota Lynx and the Dallas Wings at the Los Angeles Sparks.
Action on Saturday includes a meeting between the Chicago Sky and Washington Mystics, featuring former MVPs Candace Parker and Elena Delle Donne. After that game, former MVP Breanna Stewart and the Seattle Storm will host reigning MVP A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces.
The opening weekend will conclude on Sunday when the Mercury visit the Sun and the Liberty travel to face the Fever.
ALSO, three Canadians will begin the season on rosters: Kia Nurse with the Mercury and Natalie Achonwa and Bridget Carleton with the Lynx. Centre Kayla Alexander, who spent last season with the Lynx, remains a free agent.
Check out the 2021 WNBA season opener games this Friday, Saturday and Sunday on ESPN or with the WNBA League Pass!
UEFA Women’s Champions League Finals
Final contenders Barcelona and Chelsea are set to meet in Gothenburg this weekend. And one of these sides will win the trophy for the first time.
Lyon have won the past five tournaments but their exit opened the door for some new blood in the final, and that’s what we’ll get when Barcelona and Chelsea face off Sunday. ALSO, Canada’s very own Jessie Fleming will be playing on the Chelsea side in this coming final!
Barca will be returning to the championship match after losing to Lyon in the 2018-19 final and Chelsea will become the second English team to play for the trophy.
Both finalists are coming off league titles in their domestic circuits, so a Champions League victory would be the cherry on top of an already successful run.
Check out the 2021 UEFA Women’s Champions League Finals on Sunday at 3pm ET on Barca TV, DAZN and UEFA.tv!
PWHPA Dream Gap Tour
The PWHPA is partnering with the St. Louis Blues for their third and final US Secret Dream Gap Tour showcase this weekend.
Team Adidas (Minnesota) will be taking on Team Women’s Sports Foundation (New Hampshire) in a battle to be named the first-ever US Secret Cup Champions. Based on the PWHPA scoring system, Team Adidas currently leads the standings 8-2 after the first two showcase weekends.
The Blues’ commitment to the PWHPA comes off the heels of the 2020 NHL All-Star game which included a Canada vs. US women’s 3-on-3 all-star game and PWHPA player appearances in the skills competition.
Check out Team Adidas vs. Women’s Sports Foundation on Sunday at 1pm ET on the CBC Sports!
2021 NWSL Season Begins
The NWSL’s ninth season kicks off tomorrow night! Just one week after Portland Thorns FC took the Challenge Cup title, teams are gearing up for the start of a new season. Each of the league's 10 clubs will play a total of 24 season games, 12 home and 12 away.
A few matches will highlight opening day on Saturday. The league’s newest clubs, Kansas City NWSL and Racing Louiseville FC, kicking off the season at Lynn Family Stadium. While newly branded NJ/NY Gotham FC and Houston Dash square off at Red Bull Arena. ALSO, OL Reign is set to matchup against North Carolina Courage at Cheney Stadium.
And of course, I’m always looking out for the Canadian players! As we know, the Portland Thorns are led by Canadian legend, Christine Sinclair. Houston Dash have FOUR Canadians on the roster - Allysha Chapman, Maegan Rosa, Nichelle Prince and superstar Sophie Schmidt. Quinn, OL Reign midfielder, is not only the sole Canadian on the team but they’re also the first trans and non-binary player to compete in the league. And on Gotham FC, rising star Evelyne Viens and Kailen Sheridan are the two Canadian’s on the roster.
Check out the start of a new NWSL season Saturday and Sunday on Twitch!
2021 World Rowing Final Olympic Qualification Regatta
Rise and shine! The 2021 World Rowing Final Olympic Qualification Regatta is bright and early on Saturday morning but it’ll be worth the early wake up.
The excitement is growing as teams head to Lucerne, Switzerland for the final opportunity to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games. With just two spots available in every boat class - except the lightweight women’s double scull with three spots - tension is building and the racing will be intense!
The women’s events include:
Women’s pair (W2-)
Women’s Double Sculls (W2x)
Women’s Four (W4-)
Women’s Single Sculls (W1x)
Lightweight Women’s Double Sculls (LW2x)
Women’s Quadruple Sculls (W4x)
Women’s Eight (W8+)
You might be wondering if there are any Canadian women to look out for. WELL, the women’s pair, women’s single, women’s double, women’s four, women’s lightweight double and women’s eight boats have already qualified for the Tokyo Olympics so they will not be competing in this Regatta.
However, the top teams to look out for are the Abraham sisters - Melita and Anotnia - from Chile and the Denmark crew in the women’s pair event, Great Britain’s Holly Nixon and Saskia Budgett in the women’s double sculls, the Ireland and China crews in the women’s four race, Belarusian Tatsiana Klimovic in the women’s singles sculls, Switzerland and South Africa in the lightweight women’s double sculls and Romania, Netherlands and Germany in the women’s eight event.
Check out the 2021 World Rowing Final Regatta on Saturday at 3:55am ET on CBC Sports!
Women’s Sports on TV Guide
Why The 4%?
Only 4% of national airtime is devoted to women’s sports. At The 4% our objective is to promote what, when, and where to watch women’s sports to help raise awareness and grow the audience for women’s sports on TV.
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