The National Women’s Soccer League issued the following press release on Friday
Chicago, IL – July 12, 2019 (nwslsoccer.com) The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), the preeminent professional women’s soccer league in the United States, and ESPN today announced the broadcast talent lineup for the 14 league matches to be televised during the 2019 season.
A collaboration of top talent will team up to support the broadcasts, including Aly Wagner, Jenn Hildreth, Angela Hucles, Glenn Davis, Marisa Pilla and Dalen Cuff, with the full roster to be completed later this month.
Aly Wagner will serve as a game analyst beginning August 25th in Portland on ESPNEWS. Wagner was the lead analyst for the NWSL on Lifetime the past two seasons. Additionally, she covered the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 2019 and was the first woman to call a men’s FIFA World Cup match. Wagner played for the USWNT from 1999 to 2008, winning two Olympic golds and two third place finishes at the Women’s World Cup. At Santa Clara University, she was a star player, earning the Hermann Trophy and leading the Broncos to their first NCAA Championship.
Jenn Hildreth comes on board as the lead play-by-play announcer and will work most games including a semifinal and the NWSL final. After covering the FIFA 2019 Women’s World Cup, Hildreth will begin calling the second ESPN televised game in Chicago on July 21 – the first televised game to feature returning USWNT players. Hildreth has covered women’s soccer as a play-by-play announcer, host, analyst and reporter over the last four NWSL seasons and two Women’s World Cups. She has also worked for the SEC Network, ESPNU, and has called the last three NCAA Women’s College Cups for ESPN. At Emory University, she lettered in soccer, where she was a goalkeeper, as well as in basketball and track and field.
Angela Hucles will be a booth analyst. She was an analyst for both the 2015 and 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cups as well as the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. A former member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, Hucles brought home two Olympic gold medals and helped her team place third in two Women’s World Cups. She spent nine years playing soccer professionally in Boston and served as President of Women’s Sports Foundation from 2015 to 2017. Hucles played soccer at the University of Virginia (1996-1999), where she was a four-year all-ACC player. She currently holds the record at UVA for career goals, game-winning goals and total points. In her last year, she was a finalist for the prestigious MAC Hermann Trophy.
Glenn Davis is joining the team as a play-by-play announcer. His extensive experience includes broadcasting seven World Cups, both men’s and women’s, and two Olympics. In addition to covering international soccer, he has worked with the MLS, NCAA College Cups, and has previously worked with the NWSL. He played soccer professionally in the 80s with the American Soccer League after an impressive collegiate career with Boston University and Davis & Elkins College.
Marisa Pilla will make her debut on ESPN as a sideline reporter. A fixture in the Philadelphia sports scene, Pilla has hosted coverage of the NWSL College Draft the last two years. She has also followed the MLS as reporter and studio host for the Philadelphia Union. Beyond soccer, she has covered the NBA, NFL, and NCAA football and basketball for regional sports networks.
Dalen Cuff rounds out the team and will support the broadcasts in a variety of roles, including play-by-play announcer for the first game on July 14, where Orlando Pride competes against the Portland Thorns FC at Portland’s Providence Park. He will also work as a sideline reporter later in the season. Most recently, Cuff has been working as a college basketball studio and in-game analyst on ESPN. He was recently named a soccer analyst for ESPN’s forthcoming ACC Network. In all, he has worked for a variety of networks covering sports in roles including studio host, analyst and reporter.
NWSL telecasts will begin Sunday, July 14, at 3 p.m. ET on ESPNEWS, with a matchup of the Portland Thorns vs. Orlando Pride. In all, eight matches will air on ESPNEWS, and the remaining six, including the two semifinals and the NWSL championship, will air on ESPN2. All matches will also be available on the ESPN App.
2019 NWSL Schedule on ESPN:
* All matches will also be available on the ESPN App
About NWSL:
The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) is the highest level of professional women’s soccer in the United States. Featuring players from around the world, the nine-team Division-I women’s professional soccer league includes Chicago Red Stars, Houston Dash, North Carolina Courage, Orlando Pride, Portland Thorns FC, Reign FC, Sky Blue FC, Utah Royals FC and the Washington Spirit. Based in Chicago, the NWSL is supported by the Canadian Soccer Association and the United States Soccer Federation. www.NWSLsoccer.com.
About ESPN:
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment enterprise features more than 50 assets – eight U.S. television networks, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN International, ESPN The Magazine and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.
