RICHMOND, VA – (Wednesday, January 16, 2008) – The Richmond Kickers Destiny of the USL W-League will open the 2008 campaign on Sunday, May 18th at First Market Stadium on the campus of the University of Richmond.  The Destiny’s 2008 season will open and close with the Carolina RailHawks, hosting the expansion W-League franchise for the season home opener, kicking off at 6:00 pm, and concluding the 2008 regular season on the road on July 20th.  

The W-League will feature 41 teams in 2008 with the addition of 10 clubs, divided into three conferences: Central, Eastern and Western.  Under the guidance of third-year Head Coach Jesse Myers, the Richmond Kickers Destiny will play a 14-game schedule, May through July, alongside Atlantic Division opponents Atlanta Silverbacks, Bradenton Athletics, Carolina Dynamo, Carolina RailHawks, Charlotte Lady Eagles, Hampton Roads Piranhas, Tampa Bay Hellenic and West Virginia Illusion. 

“We are looking forward to a challenging season in 2008,” comments Myers.  “With the addition of several new franchises joining a group of veteran clubs, this conference will be very competitive.”

This season, the Destiny will take home field advantage at one of three venues including Sports Backers Stadium (VCU), First Market Stadium (UR) and the University of Richmond Stadium (just off the Downtown Expressway).  The Destiny will be featured as the first leg of doubleheaders with the Richmond Kickers pro side twice during the season, Saturday, May 24th and Saturday, July 19th.  The majority of the remainder of the fixtures will serve as the second leg of doubleheaders with the Richmond Kickers Future of the Premier Development League.   

Playoffs
The W-League Eastern Conference playoffs open with a Divisional Round between the second and third-place teams in the Northeast Conference hosted by the higher seed.  The winner of the Divisional Round will advance to the conference tournament, to be held July 25th-27th, with the regular season Northern Division champion and the top two teams from the Atlantic Division.  The top seeds will play the lower seeds from the opposite division in the conference semifinals.  The conference champion will advance to the W-League Championship Tournament, to be held August 1st-3rd.  The regular season conference champion will have the first right to host the conference tournament if they met the pre-established hosting requirements.  The W-League Championship host is determined via a bid process with the host team receiving a bye to the W-League Semifinals on August 1st. 

About the W-League
Fifteen years ago, 18 teams took the field for exhibitions and a pilot tournament to test the waters for a women’s elite soccer league. That tournament led to the debut in 1995 of what is now a thriving 41-team strong W-League across North America that has helped produce more American and Canadian internationals than any other league and been home to some of the world’s greatest international stars.  The USL W-League provides the most complete women’s player pool in the world and is recognized as North America’s best women’s developmental organization, giving the nation’s best college players the opportunity to play alongside established international players while maintaining their collegiate eligibility.

Tryouts
The Richmond Kickers Destiny will offer the opportunity of the W-League to local Richmond players: both current and former collegiate soccer standouts and to outstanding high school seniors.  For tryouts information, please contact head coach Jesse Myers at jmyers@richmondkickers.com.  For ticket information, please call (804) 644-KICK x 304 or visit www.RichmondKickers.com.

2008 RICHMOND KICKERS DESTINY SCHEDULE

Day	Date	Opponent	Time	Stadium
Sunday	May 18	CAROLINA RAILHAWKS	6:00 pm	First Market
Saturday	May 24	CHARLOTTE LADY EAGLES^	4:00 pm	UR Stadium
Monday	May 26	ATLANTA SILVERBACKS	6:00 pm	First Market
Saturday	May 31	@ Tampa Bay Hellenic	8:00 pm	Ed Radice Complex
Sunday	June 1	@ Bradenton Athletics	5:30 pm	IMG Academies
Thursday	June 5	HAMPTON ROADS PIRANHAS	7:00 pm	Sports Backers
Saturday	June 14	@ Charlotte Lady Eagles	5:30 pm	EE Waddell Stadium
Friday	June 20	@ Atlanta Silverbacks	7:55 pm	ReMax Stadium
Saturday	June 28	WEST VIRGINIA ILLUSION	7:00 pm	Sports Backers
Thursday	July 3	@ Hampton Roads Piranhas	7:00 pm
Friday	July 11	@ West Virginia Illusion	7:30 pm	Pony Lewis Stadium
Sunday	July 13	CAROLINA DYNAMO	6:00 pm	Sports Backers
Saturday	July 19	BRADENTON ATHLETICS^	4:00 pm	UR Stadium
Sunday	July 20	@ Carolina RailHawks	6:00 pm	SAS Soccer Park

HOME GAMES IN BOLD; ^Denotes doubleheader with Richmond Kickers Pro Team

Click HERE to view the entire 2008 W-League schedule.