 | |||
| Full name | Western New York Flash Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Flash | ||
| Founded | 2008 | ||
| Dissolved | 2018 | ||
| Stadium | All-High Stadium Buffalo, New York | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Owner | Joe Sahlen | ||
| President | Alexandra Sahlen | ||
| League | United Women's Soccer | ||
| Website | http://www.wnyflash.com/ | ||
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The Western New York Flash (WNY Flash) was an American women's soccer club based in Elma, New York, that most recently competed in the United Women's Soccer league in 2018. They won league championships in four different leagues: the USL W-League in 2010, Women's Professional Soccer in 2011, Women's Premier Soccer League Elite in 2012, and the National Women's Soccer League in 2016.
The team was founded in 2008 as the Buffalo Flash and played in the USL W-League from 2008 to 2010. In 2011, the team became the Western New York Flash and joined Women's Professional Soccer (WPS), its only season in the league. In 2012, following the folding of the WPS, the team was a member of Women's Premier Soccer League Elite (WPSL-E). The Flash won three consecutive league championships from 2010 to 2012 under head coach Aaran Lines: W-League in 2010, WPS in 2011, and WPSL-E in 2012. The Flash reached the inaugural NWSL Championship during the 2013 season, but fell to the Portland Thorns FC while searching for their fourth straight title. In 2016, the team won the NWSL Championship for the first and only time.[1]
The team was owned by the Sahlen family, who run the Sahlen's meat packing company in Buffalo.[2] Joe Sahlen was the team's owner. His daughter, Alex Sahlen, was the team President and a former defender on the team.[3] While the professional team was replaced in the NWSL by the North Carolina Courage and folded following two seasons in the United Women's Soccer League, the franchise remains through a youth academy player development program.[4][5]
- ^ "Watch: Western New York Flash win NWSL title in PKs after clutch Williams goal". Sports Illustrated. October 10, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
- ^ "Buffalo Flash join W-League in 2009". USLsoccer.com. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ DiVeronica, Jeff (September 16, 2010). "Women's soccer on horizon". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. Gannett Company. p. 1D. Archived from the original on September 16, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2010.
- ^ "History". WNY Flash Academy. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ Demos, Khari (December 24, 2020). "WNY Flash Academy grooming many top local soccer players". Niagara Gazette. Retrieved April 24, 2023.