Full steam ahead for McDermott

Finding an apartment in Chicago is easier said than done.

Marcia McDermott has spent the better part of the last few days looking for a new place, but is still, um … looking.

If only she could find something that suits her as well as her new job.

McDermott, who once coached the women's soccer team at Northwestern before leaving to pursue other opportunities, is back in the Windy City. And she's got soccer on her mind again.

Only this time, McDermott will be involved with women's soccer at the professional level.

On Tuesday, she was named the general manager of Chicago's first professional women's soccer team.

Although the team doesn't yet have a name -- and neither does the brand new seven-team league, for that matter -- plans are moving full steam ahead for a launch date of April 2009.

The team will play in Bridgeview at Toyota Park, home of the Chicago Fire. (And by the way, the Fire will be very much involved. Peter Wilt, the founding general manager and longtime president of the Fire, is the president and CEO of the women's team.)

"When I heard there was going to be a new league, I put in some calls," McDermott said. "I knew I wanted to be involved."

It only makes sense. McDermott was involved the last time around, too -- as in, the last time there was professional women's soccer in this country.

McDermott started the women's soccer program at Northwestern in 1994 and took the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in 1996 and 1998, but she left Evanston in 2000 to become the head coach and assistant general manager of the Carolina Courage.

The Courage, which won a championship under McDermott in 2002, was part of the WUSA, a women's professional soccer league that enjoyed a dedicated following but folded in 2003 due to financial problems.

McDermott has since done some sales consulting work and was most recently the associate head women's soccer coach at Illinois. She had held that position for the last two years.

"I think a pro league is so important for our sport," said McDermott, who was a star player in the mid-1980s, leading powerhouse North Carolina to three NCAA titles and being named an All-American in 1986. "I thought the same thing back then (when working for the Courage) and I still think it now."

McDermott says a pro league ups the ante for everyone who plays the game, even those at the grassroots level.

"Sure, it's important for the women who will play in the league to further their careers, or do even more things with soccer, like play on the national team," McDermott said. "But it's also really important for college players and for the really young players who want something to aspire to.

"I believe that the beginning of something like this is very important, so I wanted to be a part of it from the start."

For the next year, McDermott will do all the necessary tasks to set up shop, such as hiring staff and coaches, scouting the college ranks for players and making inroads with fans and potential sponsors.

"We are very fortunate to have Marcia join our organization," Wilt said. "She is knowledgeable, dedicated and passionate about this opportunity. Marcia is a proven champion, and I look forward to working with her to make Chicago the champions of the new professional women's league."

The league, which announced its creation in September and will play from April to August, will include teams in Boston, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis and Washington.

Which players it will include is anyone's guess.

Kristine Lilly, the captain of the U.S. women's national team for the last three years, announced Monday that she is expecting her first child in July with firefighter husband David Heavey.

That means she won't compete in the Olympics this summer. She says that she isn't closing the door on returning to play in the new league, but with a new baby, who knows?

Other famous players from Lilly's era, such as Mia Hamm and Brandi Chastain, are retired and unlikely to make a return to play in the league.

"There will still be players in the league with name recognition -- like Abby Wambach and Hope Solo and some top international players -- but there will also be a new wave of great players coming into this league," McDermott said. "What the WUSA did well was put a great product on the field. The quality of soccer was outstanding because the top players from all over the world came. That will happen again this time.

"But this time, one of the things that is impressive to me is the level of engagement from the owners. There are also really good relationships being built with the MLS and there have already been some good grassroots efforts, too. There are a lot of pieces this time that put us in a really good position."