A group of former players — including Aly Wagner and Brandi Chastain — has joined with global investment firm Sixth Street to bring a National Women’s Soccer League team to the Bay Area.
The expansion team, which is set to begin play next year, was formally announced by the league Tuesday. Details about where the team will play and what its name will be announced in the future.
"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," NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said in a statement. "We said at the start of the expansion process in July 2022 that we would be intentional in seeking out strong markets and ownership groups that not only had the structural integrity for our league to thrive, but also demonstrated a genuine commitment to investing in and creating first-rate organizations on and off the pitch. I am confident that this ownership group and market will help us deliver on the league’s continued transformative growth and success and look forward to watching the Bay Area club kick off in 2024."
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Joining Wagner and Chastain as founders of the new team are Danielle Slaton and Leslie Osborne. All four have connections to the Bay Area and played for the United States.
"To bring a team here to our community, to our backyard, and our home, it’s an incredible moment for us and we know the Bay Area is ready for it," said Osborne.
"We all know girls who play become women who lead, and we are about being a part of that pipeline," said Slaton.
San Francisco-based Sixth Street is the new team’s majority backer with an investment of $125 million. The firm has also invested in soccer clubs Real Madrid and Barcelona, as well as the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs.
The club's board will also feature Sheryl Sandberg and Rick Welts, former Warriors president and COO.
Wagner said the new team is poised to ride NWSL's 11 years of momentum and attendance that is growing year-over-year.
The team plans to build a world-class training facility and eventually a stadium of its own.
The ownership group said the Bay Area is a hot bed for women's soccer talent and they hope this will grow the game and inspire girls everywhere.
"Our breadth and our width of impact will be not just in the nine counties and along the nine bridges, but really globally," said Chastain.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
