The NWSL has awarded an expansion team to a group representing the Bay Area, which will begin play in 2024.
Following last month’s announcement that the Utah Royals will begin play in 2024 as the league’s 13th team, the Bay Area club will now be the league’s 14th franchise.
Multiple reports stated the franchise fee was $53 million, a record for the NWSL, which is part of an overall $125 million investment that, per a league release, includes “building a state-of-the art training venue in a to-be-announced location.”
“The number of bids and the increase in the league’s expansion fees are indicative of both the demand that exists for women’s soccer in the professional sports landscape and the validated growth trajectory of our league,” said NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman.
With Boston also expected to be awarded a franchise in the near future, the league said that it “remains engaged in the expansion process with an eye towards adding teams #15 and #16.”
The new Bay Area club’s majority investor is Sixth Street, a leading global investment firm, but the driving force behind the new franchise is four longtime U.S. women’s national team players: Brandi Chastain, Leslie Osborne, Danielle Slaton, and Aly Wagner.
The “Founding Football Four,” as the press release called them, originally launched the effort to bring a NWSL team to the Bay Area, and will be on the club’s board.
“This is something we’ve been working on for almost three years, and to reach this point and officially be accepted into the NWSL is both a dream come true and a motivator, because now it’s time to start building,” said Slaton.
Also on the club’s board will be Sheryl Sandberg, a former top executive at Meta, who along with her husband Tom Bernthal “will partner with the club to create leadership programs that empower women and girls.”
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