Women's Professional Soccer Commissioner Tonya Antonucci and Atlanta Team Owner Fitz Johnson today officially unveiled the Atlanta Beat as the ninth Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) franchise at a ceremony at downtown Atlanta's Metro Chamber of Commerce with Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin in attendance.

The day the Women's United Soccer Association died, I called Tom Stone, the ever-quotable head coach of the Atlanta Beat, who was grappling with the fresh reality that he was out of a job.

This was just days after his team finished second in the WUSA in 2003 and shortly before the Women's World Cup, which had been moved to the United States from China because of the SARS outbreak.

WPS expansion franchise Atlanta Beat has reached a deal to construct an 8,300 seat stadium in an Atlanta suburb about 25 miles from downtown. The stadium will cost less than $20 million to construct and will host both the Beat and Kennesaw State University Women's soccer team. The stadium is designed to increase to 16k for purposes of concerts and is expected to host NCAA events.

Although I am enjoying the breast beating and hair-shirt wearing that the Bath City community is engaged in at the moment, my status as a native Atlantan has given me some cheerier football news to report to you today.
Just over an hour ago Women's Pro Soccer (WPS) has announced the results of their first ever expansion draft, and as a result the first six members of the new Atlanta Beat roster have been revealed.

And now it is time to check in once again on my new hometown football club, the Atlanta Beat. That's the Atlanta Beat of the recently formed league known as 'Women's Pro Soccer' (WPS). Yes, I support a women's team. Got a problem with that? I hope not.
The Beat are what is called an 'expansion' team, meaning that they are currently being created out of whole cloth to compete in the WPS's second season beginning in Spring of 2010.

Well, "Atlanta". It's actually in Kennesaw, on the grounds of Kennesaw State University. Kennesaw is in Cobb County, northwest of Atlanta-proper.

Did you know that everyone in Kennesaw has to own a gun? They don't enforce that law, but it is on the books. Has been since '82, I believe.

We'll Atlanta's Women's Professional Soccer team wants your help in deciding it's name.  And yes, the Beat is an option.  This round consist of 7 suggestions with the ability to write in your own name.  Well, not really your own name. A team name. You know what I mean. The names are: Attack, Beat, Blaze, Fury, Rush, [.

While I have been working on my account of my time in the Atlanta Attack front office (the eagerly awaited "The Soccerball Years, part 2") several prominent citizens of my home town have decided to throw caution (and a lot of cash) to the wind and invest heavily in new professional soccer franchises.

Time for a catchup with my new home town team - the Atlanta Beat!
As explained previously, the Beat are a new team in America's women's professional soccer league (aptly named Women's Pro Soccer or WPS). My last update, in early October, analyzed the recent 'International Draft.' As an expansion team, the Beat were allowed to chose any five non-WPS players in the world to have exclusive negotiating rights with.