Portland is the global epicenter of women’s sports. At least, that’s what some people have been saying lately.

The phrase pops up in media coverage of our new WNBA team, the Fire, and our beloved women’s soccer team, the Thorns. And those are not our only professional women’s sports teams. We also have a pro softball team, the Cascade, and a pro ultimate frisbee team called the Oregon Soar. The Cherry Bombs are our new pre-professional soccer team. We’ve got women’s tackle football, rugby, and a badass roller derby league.

So, is Portland the epicenter of women’s sports? It’s hard to know how to measure such a thing, but what we can say for sure is that there are countless opportunities for women, girls, trans, and nonbinary people to play sports and cheer for teams across the city.

We talk a bit about the history behind the Rose City’s enthusiasm for women’s sports and hear from OPB business reporter Kyra Buckley about how the Portland Fire season is shaping up.

Watch a short video about the history of women’s sports in Portland by OPB’s Emily Hamilton.

Listen to all episodes of “The Evergreen” podcast here.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/06/22/why-portland-is-at-the-heart-of-womens-sports-in-the-us/