The Boston Breakers were an American professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

club based in the

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

neighborhood of

Allston Allston is an officially recognized neighborhood within the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was named after the American painter and poet Washington Allston. It comprises the land covered by the zip code 02134. For the most pa ...

. The team competed in the

National Women's Soccer League The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league at the top of the United States league system. It is owned by the teams and, until 2020, was under a management contract with the United States Soccer Federati ...

(NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defunct

Women's United Soccer Association The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the Un ...

, as the Boston area's professional women's soccer team. The Breakers played their home games at

Jordan Field Jordan Field (formerly called Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium) is a multi-purpose stadium on the campus of Harvard University in the Allston neighborhood of Boston. (Although the core of the Harvard campus is in Cambridge, the athletic complex lie ...

in Boston and were managed in their final season by

Matt Beard Matthew Beard (born 9 January 1978) is an English professional football manager, who is currently head coach of FA Women's Super League club Liverpool FC Women. He has managed the side previously, as well as the women's teams of Bristol City ...

History

Original franchise

The original Boston Breakers played in the WUSA from 2001 to 2003. In the final season in the WUSA, the Breakers had their best record (10–4–7) and placed first in the regular season before losing to the

Washington Freedom Washington Freedom was an American professional soccer club based in the Washington, D.C., suburb of Germantown, Maryland, that participated in Women's Professional Soccer. The Freedom was founded in 2001 as a member of the defunct Women's Unite ...

in the semifinals.

Women's Professional Soccer

Re-establishment (2007–2009)

The formation of

Women's Professional Soccer Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) was the top-level professional women's soccer league in the United States. It began play on March 29, 2009. The league was composed of seven teams for its first two seasons and fielded six teams for the 2011 sea ...

was announced on September 4, 2007, during which time it was also announced that a franchise had been awarded to Boston. The Boston Breakers franchise was officially unveiled on October 26, 2008. At the time it was the only professional women's sports team in Massachusetts. Joe Cummings was named the President and General Manager and he had previously worked for the Breakers franchise in the WUSA. In September 2007,

Tony DiCicco Anthony D. DiCicco Jr. (August 5, 1948 – June 19, 2017) was an American soccer player and coach and TV commentator. He is best known as the coach of the United States women's national soccer team from 1994 to 1999, during which time the team won ...

was appointed as the club's first head coach. During the WPS national team player allocation on September 16, 2008 the Breakers acquired

Heather Mitts Heather Mitts Feeley (born Heather Blaine Mitts; June 9, 1978) is an American former professional soccer defender. Mitts played college soccer for the University of Florida, and thereafter, she played professionally in the Women's Profession ...

and former Breakers players,

Kristine Lilly Kristine Marie Lilly Heavey (; born July 22, 1971) is an American retired soccer player. She was a member of the United States women's national team for 23 years and is the most-capped football player in the history of the sport (men's or wome ...

and Angela Hucles. The club acquired

Amy Rodriguez Amy Joy Rodriguez Shilling (; born February 17, 1987) is an American retired professional soccer player who last played as a forward for North Carolina Courage in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She previously played for NWSL teams U ...

as the first overall pick in the 2009 WPS Soccer Draft in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

on January 30, 2009.

2009 season

The Breakers played their debut match in the inaugural season of

against

FC Gold Pride FC Gold Pride was an American professional soccer club based in the San Francisco Bay Area, which participated in Women's Professional Soccer. The club replaced the San Jose CyberRays of the defunct Women's United Soccer Association as the top-le ...

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...

losing 2–1. Its first home match was against

St. Louis Athletica Saint Louis Athletica was an American professional soccer club that was based in the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri that participated in Women's Professional Soccer. Athletica started the 2009 season playing its home games at Ralph Korte S ...

on April 11, 2009, in which the Breakers lost 2–0. The Breakers finished the season in fifth place with a 7–9–4 record.

2010 season

2011 season

2012 league suspension

On January 16, 2012, the Breakers announced that they signed United States U-23 national team defender,

Bianca D'Agostino Bianca Elisa Bogosian (; born January 11, 1989) is an American former soccer player. She most recently played for the Boston Breakers in the National Women's Soccer League and was formerly a member of the United States U-23 women's national soc ...

. Australian national team forward, Kyah Simon, was acquired by the Breakers in anticipation of the 2012 season as well. Simon scored two goals against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

in the 2011 World Cup, which advanced

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

to the quarter-finals. Her goals made her the first ever Aboriginal to score a goal in a World Cup tournament. The league announced on January 30, 2012 that the 2012 Women's Professional Soccer season was suspended. On February 9, 2012 the club announced it would compete in the newly formed WPSL Elite for the 2012 season, with the expectation that it would rejoin the WPS for the 2013 season. The semi-pro league has no restrictions on the types of players, whether they be professional or amateur. After the WPS suspension, goalkeeper

Alyssa Naeher Alyssa Michele Naeher (born April 20, 1988) is an American soccer goalkeeper for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the United States national team. She was on the 23-player roster for the United States at t ...

returned to her former club, Turbine Potsdam, after playing for the Breakers during the 2010 and 2011 seasons.

Women's Premier Soccer League Elite

In 2012, the Boston Breakers joined the

Women's Premier Soccer League Elite The Women's Premier Soccer League Elite (WPSL Elite) was a women's semi-professional soccer league created by the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) to support the sport in the United States, both from continued interest by WPSL teams in profess ...

. The team finished in first place clinching the regular season title with an 11–3–0 record, the best season in the franchise history. They lost 3–1 against the

Chicago Red Stars The Chicago Red Stars are a professional women's soccer club based in Bridgeview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. A founding member of the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league, they have played in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) sin ...

in the WPSL Elite semifinals.

National Women's Soccer League

In November 2012, it was announced that the Breakers would be one of eight teams in a new women's professional soccer league sponsored by the

United States Soccer Federation The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, the federation is ...

, the

Canadian Soccer Association The Canadian Soccer Association (Canada Soccer) is the governing body of soccer in Canada. It is a national organization that oversees the Canadian men's and women's national teams for international play, as well as the respective junior sides ...

and the

Mexican Football Federation The Mexican Football Federation (; abbreviated as Femexfut or FMF) is the governing body of association football in Mexico. It adm the Mexico national team, the Liga MX and all affiliated amateur sectors, and controls promoting, organizing, dire ...

. On January 11, 2013, the league held its player allocation for the national team players, with Boston receiving seven players, including two returning former Breakers

Heather O'Reilly Heather Ann O'Reilly (born January 2, 1985) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Irish club Shelbourne of the Women's National League. She played for the United States women's national soccer team (USWNT), w ...

and

. The other players assigned to the Breakers were Anisa Guajardo,

Adriana Leon Adriana Kristina Leon (born October 2, 1992) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a winger for English Women's Super League club Manchester United and the Canadian national team. She previously played college soccer for NCAA ...

Sydney Leroux Sydney Rae Leroux (; born May 7, 1990) is a professional soccer player and Olympic gold medalist who currently plays as a forward for Angel City FC in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Born in Canada to a Canadian mother and an Americ ...

, Cecilia Santiago, and Rhian Wilkinson.

2013 season

The 2013 Boston Breakers season was the club's eighth overall year of existence, fourth consecutive year, and first year as a member of the National Women's Soccer League. They played 22 games, finishing with 8 wins, 6 draws, and 8 losses. They did not qualify for the post-season playoffs, and finished the season at fifth place in an eight team league.

2014 season

The 2014 Boston Breakers season was the club's ninth overall year of existence, fifth consecutive year, and second year as a member of the National Women's Soccer League. They played 24 games, finishing with 6 wins, 2 draws, and 16 losses. They did not qualify for the post-season playoffs, and finished the season at eighth place in a nine team league.

2015 season

The 2015 Boston Breakers season, was the club's tenth overall year of existence, sixth consecutive year, and third year as a member of the National Women's Soccer League. They played 20 games, finishing with 4 wins, 3 draws, and 13 losses. They did not qualify for the post-season playoffs, and finished the season at ninth place in a nine team league.

2016 season

The 2016 Boston Breakers season was the club's eleventh overall year of existence, seventh consecutive year, and fourth year as a member of the National Women's Soccer League. They played 20 games, finishing with 3 wins, 2 draws, and 15 losses. They did not qualify for the post-season playoffs, and finished the season at tenth place in a ten team league.

2017 season

The 2017 Boston Breakers season was the club's twelfth overall year of existence, eighth consecutive year, and fifth year as a member of the National Women's Soccer League. They played 24 games, finishing with 4 wins, 7 draws, and 13 losses. They did not qualify for the post-season playoffs, and finished the season in ninth place of a ten team league.

2018 season

After failed last-minute attempts to sell the club to the owners of the

New England Revolution The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compe ...

and to local commercial real estate developers, the Boston Breakers officially folded on January 25, 2018 and did not participate in the NWSL in 2018. Reports generally blamed lack of marketing and resultant limited fanbase for the club's demise.

Stadium

Jordan Field (2014–2017)

The Boston Breakers played their home games for their final four seasons at

, a 4,100 seat, multi-purpose facility located on the campus of

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

Allston, Massachusetts Allston is an officially recognized neighborhood within the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was named after the American painter and poet Washington Allston. It comprises the land covered by the zip code 02134. For the most part ...

. Jordan Field was formerly known as

Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium Jordan Field (formerly called Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium) is a multi-purpose stadium on the campus of Harvard University in the Allston neighborhood of Boston. (Although the core of the Harvard campus is in Cambridge, the athletic complex li ...

Dilboy Stadium (2012–2013)

The Breakers played at

Dilboy Stadium George Dilboy Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose public sports stadium in the city of Somerville, Massachusetts. It is the home of the Somerville Rampage semi-pro men's football team, the Boston Renegades semi-pro women's football team, as well a ...

in the Boston suburb of

Somerville, Massachusetts Somerville ( ) is a city located directly to the northwest of Boston, and north of Cambridge, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a total population of 81,045 people. With an area ...

for their 2012 and 2013 seasons, the move from Harvard to Dilboy concurrent with their league move to the WPSL Elite.

Harvard Stadium (2009–2011)

Boston used

Harvard Stadium Harvard Stadium is a U-shaped college football stadium in the northeast United States, located in the Allston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The stadium is owned and operated by Harvard University and is home to the Harvard Crimson footb ...

, the 30,323 seat home football stadium of the

Harvard Crimson The Harvard Crimson are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Harvard College. The school's teams compete in NCAA Division I. As of 2013, there were 42 Division I intercollegiate varsity sports teams for women and men at Harvard, more than a ...

, from 2009 through 2011. In 2012, shortly after joining the newly created

, the Breakers moved their home field to

Broadcasting

As of 2017, Boston Breakers games were streamed exclusively by

Go90 go90 was an American Internet television service and mobile app owned and operated by Verizon Communications. The service was positioned as a mobile-oriented "social entertainment platform" targeted primarily towards millennials, featuring a m ...

for American audiences and via the NWSL website for international viewers. As part of a three-year agreement with

A&E Networks A&E Networks (stylized as A+E NETWORKS) is an American multinational broadcasting company that is a 50–50 joint venture between Hearst Communications and The Walt Disney Company through its General Entertainment Content division. The company ...

, Lifetime broadcasts one ''NWSL Game of the Week'' on Saturday afternoons. The Breakers were featured in the nationally televised Game of the Week on September 2, 2017. Previous seasons' games were broadcast on YouTube, MediaBoss Television,

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

, and

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...

Supporters

The team had an official supporters group called the Boston Armada as well as an independent supporters group called the Riptide, who cheered from a standing section known as "The Dock".

Players and coaches

Final roster

Head coaches

(2016–2017) * Tom Durkin (2014–2015) *

Cat Whitehill Catherine Reddick Whitehill (born Catherine Anne Reddick; February 10, 1982) is an American retired professional soccer defender, who was also an assistant coach of the Boston Breakers in the NWSL. Whitehill last played for the Boston Breakers ...

(2013) (interim) *

Lisa Cole Lisa Cole (born May 14, 1973) is an American soccer coach and former player, who is currently the head coach of the Antigua and Barbuda women's national football team and the Head of Women's Football Development at the Antigua and Barbuda Footb ...

(2012–2013) *

(2009–2011)

Ownership and team management

Michael Stoller was the managing partner of Boston Women's Soccer, LLC, the ownership group overseeing the Breakers.

Records and statistics

Honors

Individual Player Awards

Amy LePeilbet Amy Elizabeth LePeilbet (born March 12, 1982) is an American soccer coach and former player who was most recently the interim head coach of defunct team Utah Royals FC, formerly of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). As a player, LePeilbe ...

, WPS 2009, 2010 Defender of the Year

Player of the Week

Player of the Month

Pillars of Excellence

In summer 2009, the Breakers began a tradition of honoring legends from the past with commemorative banners at

. The award's Pillars of Excellence name was influenced by the stadium's iconic colonnade. Players from both

Boston Breakers (WUSA) The Boston Breakers was a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Nickerson Field on the campus of Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts. History The Boston Breakers began play i ...

and the WPS/WPSL Elite/NWSL entry are considered.

Maren Meinert Maren Meinert (born 5 August 1973) is a German football coach and former player who played as a midfielder and striker. She was most recently the head coach of Germany women's national under-20 football team. As a player, Meinert played for ...

became the first inductee during a halftime ceremony on May 17, 2009 when the Breakers hosted the

. During her final season in 2003 Meinert was named the WUSA's Most Valuable Player for the regular season and MVP of the WUSA All-Star Game. Angela Hucles was inducted on May 1, 2010 during a home game against the

was inducted during halftime of a match against the

Philadelphia Independence The Philadelphia Independence was an American professional soccer club that was based in the Philadelphia suburb of Chester, Pennsylvania. The team joined Women's Professional Soccer as an expansion team in 2010 and played its home games at West ...

May 23, 2011.

Leslie Osborne Leslie Marie Osborne (born May 27, 1983) is a retired American soccer defensive midfielder who last played for the Chicago Red Stars in the NWSL in 2013. She is a former member of the United States women's national soccer team and previously pl ...

was inducted during halftime of a home game against

Sky Blue FC NJ/NY Gotham FC is a professional women's soccer team based in Harrison, New Jersey. Founded in 2006 as Jersey Sky Blue, the team was known as Sky Blue FC from 2008 until 2020. A founding member of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in 2013 ...

Supporters Award

In 2017 the official supporters group of the Boston Breakers, The Boston Armada, began a tradition of awarding one player at each home game with a supporters award. Officially dubbed, "The Chunk Award", it recognizes a player's individual contribution to the team during the match. The trophy for 2017 is representative of the unofficial mascot of the Boston Breakers, "Chunk", a British Bulldog owned by Boston Breakers Academy Head Coach, Lee Billard.

References

External links

*
Boston Breakers News at NWSL News
{{Womens Professional Soccer 2008 establishments in Massachusetts Association football clubs established in 2008 Soccer clubs in Massachusetts National Women's Soccer League teams Soccer clubs in Boston Women's Professional Soccer teams Women's soccer clubs in the United States Women's Premier Soccer League Elite teams 2018 disestablishments in Massachusetts Association football clubs disestablished in 2018 Women's sports in Massachusetts