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U.S. women’s pro soccer marks return in June

(AP) – Pro soccer returns to the U.S. next month when the National Women’s Soccer League starts a 25-game tournament in a pair of stadiums in Utah that will be kept clear of fans to protect players from the coronavirus.

Players from the league’s nine teams will train and live at two Salt Lake City-area hotels, the league announced Wednesday. All players will be tested for COVID-19 before leaving for Utah, and then will be regularly screened during their monthlong stay.

No fans will be allowed into the Zions Bank or Rio Tinto stadiums, two suburban Salt Lake City venues that will host the action.

The tournament begins June 27, with games to be televised and streamed by CBS and its online and broadcast affiliates. It’s a boon for a league that was looking for a new TV partner in the wake of the U.S. women’s victory in the World Cup last year and now finds itself on the front end of American leagues returning and offering live sports amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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