The Chicago Force is one of seven elite level women's tackle football teams that have left the Independent Women's Football League ( IWFL ) and are working in cooperation with the Women's Football Alliance ( WFA ) and Artfest International to create a platform to unify the sport at the top level of play, starting with the 2011 season.
The other teams leaving the established IWFL are the DC Divas, Kansas City Tribe, Dallas Diamonds, San Diego Surge, New York Sharks and Pittsburgh Passion.
"We want to challenge ourselves by playing against the highest level of competition, which is no longer in the IWFL," said Chicago Force General Manager/Owner Linda Bache, a former Force player.
Six of the eight 2010 IWFL playoff teams, including the defending champion, have left the IWFL as well as several other top teams and former champions.
"All of these teams are leaving in an effort to advance women's football, create more opportunities and have a greater voice in their team and league operations," Bache said. "We will have a much more competitive regular season schedule [ in 2011 ] than was possible in our previous league. We'd also be facing the absolute best teams in women's football in the playoffs. It's a huge challenge and a great opportunity."
Bache said the group of teams that left the IWFL has not officially joined the WFA; it is more of a partnership, she said.
"We are developing an affiliation with the WFA that would involve their top teams joining ours to create a top division of women's football teams," Bache said. "It will be a separate entity that is an affiliate of the WFA. For the sport to truly advance, we need the leagues to begin working together. If we're successful, this could be the beginning of that unification."
The Force will play eight regular-season games in 2011, with its season still running from early April until July.
"It's not entirely clear yet how the divisions will line up, as it appears that more teams may be joining us," Bache said. "But the Midwest Region will be very well represented. Between our group and the WFA, we'll have six playoff teams and/or champions located in the Midwest: the Chicago Force, Kansas City Tribe, Pittsburgh Passion, Columbus Comets, St. Louis Slam and West Michigan Mayhem."
Bache said the team's home field for the 2011 season might be back at Amundsen High School, but that is not confirmed.
"We left [ the IWFL ] to pursue a situation that would allow for a more democratic approach to league operations, an improved level of competition, reduced travel costs and greater marketing opportunities," Bache said. " [ It ] became an easy decision as most of the power teams left the IWFL. We want to play tough teams and challenge ourselves, so we need to go where the tough teams are."
The Force will hold its first tryouts for the 2011 season on Saturday, Nov. 20, at Evanston Township High School, starting at 10 a.m. A second tryout will be held in mid-December at Northwestern University's turf arena.
"Head coach John Konecki is returning after leading Team USA to a gold medal in Sweden last summer," Bache said. "He is the best head coach in women's football, so I hope we can find more talent for him to develop at the upcoming tryouts. There is also an effort underway to develop some kind of production deal so that games could be televised next season. It's a lofty goal, but we're hopeful that we can achieve itif not this [ upcoming ] season, then next year. Women's football is still in its infancy, but for the first time in many years there is a real buzz about what this could mean. My phone is ringing off the hook; I'm getting tons of inquiries from women who want to try out, and there is a palpable excitement for next season. We need to seize this momentum and take the sport to the next level."