Amid the big news about Bob Bradley being hired as the first head coach of Los Angeles Football Club last week came a tantalizing new hint that NWSL expansion to LA is still in the cards.

Following up an earlier report that Spanish giant FC Barcelona wants to put an NWSL expansion team in California, Steven Goff of The Washington Post reported last week that said this projected team would in fact be located in the Bay Area.

. @FCBarcelona on verge of finalizing plans to enter a team in the @NWSL and play in the SF Bay Area, multiple sources tell me — Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) July 27, 2017

Now, remember that NWSL themselves have not commented publicly at all on the Barcelona expansion gambit at this stage, but Goff is one of the most reputable American soccer reporters on the job these days, so his word is pretty reliable.

Ok, so with that context in mind, what about the periodic rumors LAFC could be interested in launching an NWSL expansion team? Well, Bradley was asked about it, and those looking for something may be happy to hear his response.

“That’s the direction things are moving in. I support all of that,” Bradley told reporters on Friday after his introductory press conference when asked about LAFC and the NWSL.

“Mia [Hamm, LAFC co-owner] was a fantastic player, fun to watch, exciting, a winner. And so certainly those are all things we want to be about with our team and I love the idea that we see more of a connection in Major League Soccer between the men’s side and the women’s side.”

Hamm herself has publicly supported LAFC getting into NWSL in the past, and rumors have emerged over time that the club is working on expansion, that could come as soon as 2018. Angels on Parade has also been told from a source who wished to remain anonymous that the club remains interested in NWSL expansion.

So this is nothing concrete, but if the new MLS head coach is comfortable saying NWSL is in the works, seems safe to say it’s still on the way. One would expect if Barcelona’s project or LAFC’s is to begin play in NWSL next year, expansion announcements will have to come soon. Stay tuned.

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