The Western Ultimate League (WUL) is a women's professional ultimate league in the Western United States. It was founded in 2020. The WUL's stated mission is to "promote visibility, opportunity, and equity within women's ultimate".
The WUL was formed to parallel the Premier Ultimate League (PUL), another women's ultimate league established in 2019, with an eye toward a future merger. The WUL was established to provide professional opportunities for women and non-binary athletes in the Western United States, building on the success of showcase games that began in 2019 along the West Coast. The league is committed to creating equitable and accessible pathways for participation while showcasing the abilities of women and non-binary players through professional-level games that are broadcast globally. The WUL also focuses on developing future generations of players through clinics and community outreach programs.
History The WUL started with a 2017 and 2018 series of women's and mixed showcase games affiliated with the American Ultimate Disc League (now the Ultimate Frisbee Association), and a 2019 series of professional women's showcase games along the west coast including games between Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver-based teams and between Los Angeles and San Diego–based teams.
The inaugural 2020 Western Ultimate League season began with tryouts in January and February 2020 with seven teams. Competition, which had been set to begin in March 2020 and continue through May, was postponed and then canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In January 2021, the Portland Swifts announced they were withdrawing from the WUL. The six remaining WUL teams first competed in December 2021 at the Winter Cup in San Diego. The Utah Wild emerged victorious, and two plays from the Winter Cup were featured on SportsCenter. After the Winter Cup, the league announced the addition of a seventh team, the Oregon Onyx.
The first regular season was conducted in 2022, with the Seattle Tempest emerging as champions. In October 2022, the league announced the addition of an eighth team, the Colorado Alpenglow, and in March 2023 they announced the creation of two conferences, Northwest and Southwest.
The Oregon Onyx and Los Angeles Astra departed the league after the 2023 season.
The Oregon Soar joined the league after the 2024 season.
With the addition of the Oregon Soar for the 2025 season, the league restructured its format from the two-conference system that had been in place since 2023. The league moved away from the Northwest and Southwest conferences, which had previously consisted of three teams each following the departure of the Los Angeles Astra and Oregon Onyx after the 2023 season, to operate as a single seven-team table for the 2025 season.
In 2025 the first WUL vs PUL All-Star Game took place. The Los Angeles Astra returned to the league after the 2025 season.
Teams The WUL consists of seven teams as of the 2025 season.
+TeamLocationFirst seasonTeam colors Arizona Sidewinders Gilbert, AZ 2021 Bay Area Falcons Oakland, CA 2021 Los Angeles Astra Burbank, CA 2021 Colorado Alpenglow Thornton, CO 2023 Oregon Soar Portland, OR 2025 San Diego Super Bloom San Diego, CA 2021 Seattle Tempest Seattle, WA 2021 Utah Wild Salt Lake City, UT 2021
Former teams Team Location First season Last seasonOregon OnyxPortland, OR 2022 2023
Champions +WUL championsSeasonDateChampionFinal scoreRunner-upVenueLocation2022 May 15, 2022 Seattle Tempest 18-15 San Diego Super Bloom Mira Mesa Senior High School San Diego, CA2023 June 4, 2023 Seattle Tempest 13-11 San Diego Super Bloom Memorial Stadium Seattle, WA2024 June 2, 2024 Colorado Alpenglow 20-12 Utah Wild Pinnacle Athletic Complex Thornton, CO2025June 8, 2025San Diego Super Bloom12-10Bay Area FalconsFremont High SchoolOakland, CA2026June 14, 2026Seattle Tempest21-11San Diego Super BloomUO Portland CampusPortland, OR
Championship Weekend The WUL Championship Weekend is the annual postseason tournament that determines the league champion. The event features the top four teams from the regular season competing in a single-elimination bracket over two days.
Format
After a 9-week regular season, the four highest-ranked teams qualify for Championship Weekend. The tournament uses a standard four-team bracket:
Saturday: Two semifinal games (1 vs 4 seed, 2 vs 3 seed) Sunday: Third place game (semifinal losers) and championship final (semifinal winners)
Tournament history
Championship Weekend rotates host cities annually. San Diego hosted the inaugural event in 2022, followed by Seattle (2023), Colorado (2024), and the Bay Area (2025). The host region's team has won the championship in 2023 and 2024.
2022 The 2022 WUL season marked the league's first full inaugural season, featuring seven teams competing across the Western United States. The regular season ran from March 11th to May 1st using a hybrid format of traditional home-and-away games combined with special weekend events.
The top four teams advanced to Championship Weekend on May 14-15 at Mira Mesa High School in San Diego, California. The Seattle Tempest emerged as the league's first champions, completing a perfect season by winning every game including a victory over the San Diego Super Bloom in the finals. Seattle's dominant inaugural campaign established them as the WUL's first dynasty.
2023 The 2023 WUL season marked a major expansion as the league welcomed the Colorado Alpenglow as its eighth franchise and split into two four-team conferences for the first time. The Northwest Conference featured Colorado, Oregon, Seattle, and Utah, while the Southwest Conference included Arizona, Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. The season utilized a hybrid format mixing traditional home-and-away games with special weekend events over 10 weeks from March 10th to May 14th.
Despite losing twice during the regular season, the Seattle Tempest dominated the Northwest Conference and successfully defended their championship at home in Seattle. Championship Weekend on June 3-4 saw Seattle defeat San Francisco 13-7 in the semifinals before edging San Diego Super Bloom 13-11 in a thrilling final—marking Seattle's second consecutive title and their second championship game victory over San Diego.
2024 The 2024 WUL season marked a return to traditional home and away games with a streamlined six-team format. The league was divided into two three-team conferences: the Northwest Conference (Colorado, Seattle, Utah) and Southwest Conference (Arizona, Bay Area, San Diego). Each team played every in-conference opponent twice and faced two out-of-conference teams during the 9-week regular season from March 13th to May 19th.
The season culminated in Championship Weekend on June 1-2 at the Pinnacle Athletic Complex in Thornton, Colorado. In a major upset, two-time champions Seattle Tempest failed to qualify for Championship Weekend, while two teams that had never won a semifinal match advanced to the Championship Game. The Colorado Alpenglow, in just their second season, defeated the Utah Wild 20-12 in the finals to claim their first WUL championship on home turf.
2025 The 2025 tournament took place June 7-8 at Fremont High School in Oakland, California, with San Diego Super Bloom defeating the Bay Area Falcons 12-10 in the championship final on Sunday, June 8 to claim their first WUL title.
Super Bloom advanced to the final after defeating Seattle Tempest in the semifinals, while Bay Area advanced by beating Colorado Alpenglow. The championship marked the end of a three-year streak where the host city won the title, as Bay Area was unable to continue that tradition on their home field.
San Diego finished the 2025 regular season with a 5-1 record before their championship run. The team was led by MVP finalists Kaela Helton and Dena Elimelech, along with DPOTY finalist Kaitlyn Weaver and OPOTY finalist Kelli Iwamoto.
2026 Championship Weekend 2026 took place June 13-14, hosted at UO Portland in Portland, Oregon. This year's tournament did not feature a third place game, the first tournament without one in league history. Seattle Tempest defeated San Diego Super Bloom 13-8 in the championship final on Sunday, June 14 to claim their third WUL title.
Seattle advanced to the final after defeating the Bay Area Falcons 21-11 in the semifinals, while San Diego advanced by beating Colorado Alpenglow 16-14. It was the first Championship Weekend held in Oregon.
Seattle was led by 2026 league MVP Jamie Kauffman and OPOTY winner Cheryl Hsu, both of whom received their awards during halftime of the final. Also leading the team were DPOTY finalist Meg Manning and BPOTY finalist Gemma Munck.
WUL vs PUL All-Star Game The first-ever WUL vs PUL All-Star Game took place on August 23, 2025, in Madison, Wisconsin, during the UFA's Championship Weekend. This historic matchup brought together the top players from both professional women's and non-binary ultimate leagues, with rosters selected through a combination of fan voting and coach selection. The game was scheduled during UFA Championship Weekend to maximize visibility and energy, featuring high-quality live streaming and benefiting from the national championship audience atmosphere.
This inaugural All-Star Game represented a significant milestone for women's and non-binary ultimate, showcasing the talent from both leagues on a premier stage. The event was included with Saturday UFA title game tickets, making it accessible to championship weekend attendees and marking a new chapter in professional women's ultimate competition. +SeasonDateChampionFinal ScoreRunner-upVenueLocation2025August 23, 2025PUL15-9WULBreese Stevens FieldMadison, WI
Awards WUL end of season awards are voted on by players, coaches, league officials, and media members, ensuring a balanced evaluation that considers both on-field performance and overall contribution to the league and sport.
MVP +Most Valuable Player AwardSeasonWinnerNominees2023Kaela HeltonKaela Helton, Abby Thorpe, Jade McLaughlin, Kaitlyn Weaver, Paige Kercher2024Abby ThorpeAbby Thorpe, Brooke Stanislawski, Chip Chang, Kaela Helton, Kelli Iwamoto2025Kaela HeltonKaela Helton, Dena Elimelech, Robyn Fennig, Abby Thorpe, Rory Veldman
OPOTY +Offensive Player of the YearSeasonWinnerNominees2023Paige KercherPaige Kercher, Alex Diaz, Chip Chang, Maggie O'Connor, Paige Applegate2024Ari NelsonAri Nelson, Cheryl Hsu, Han Chen, LP Aragon, Paige Applegate2025Ari NelsonAri Nelson, Paige Applegate, Melissa Dunn, Kelli Iwamoto, Kat Songer
DPOTY +Defensive Player of the YearSeasonWinnerNominees2023Molly RobbinsMolly Robbins, Avalon Igawa, Dena Elimelech, Kristen Pojunis, Rory Veldman2024Dena ElimelechDena Elimelech, Abbie Davis, Allysha Dixon, Blaise Sevier, Cynthia Thomas 2025Sadie JezierskiSadie Jezierski, Georgia Cardosa, Justine Cherwink, Jackie Riley, Kaitlyn Weaver
CSOTY
+Coaching Staff of the YearSeasonWinnerRecordNominees2023San Diego Super Bloom (Head Coach Angela Wells, and asst. coaches Benjamin Eto, Alisha Stoun, Jonathan Helton, Carlos Ruiz, Shar Stuht, Henry Argetsinger, Jeremy Cho)6-22024Bay Area Falcons (Head Coach Manisha Daryani and Assistant Coaches Shaun Webb, Candice Tse, and Byron Liu)5-1Bay Area Falcons, Arizona Sidewinders, Colorado Alpenglow, San Diego Super Bloom, Seattle Tempest, Utah Wild2025Colorado Alpenglow (Head Coach Madison "Badger" Oleson, Defensive Coach Lena Goren, and Offensive Coach Thomas Echols)6-0Colorado Alpenglow, San Diego Super Bloom, Seattle Tempest
References
External links Arizona Sidewinders Bay Area Falcons Colorado Alpenglow Oregon Soar San Diego Super Bloom Seattle Tempest Utah Wild