In 2022, the NWSL will have its starting 11. NWSL expansion Los Angeles dominated the headlines after the league announced the awarding of an expansion franchise to an investor group on Tuesday.
The news is significant for many reasons, most of which are commercial. Simply put, this announcement brings the NWSL’s footprint in the global economy to another level.
Who is part of the NWSL expansion Los Angeles group?
The ownership group is one of the largest in the NWSL and arguably the most diverse in terms of the connections and expertise it brings in. The group has a strong contingent of current and former professional athletes, including:
- Lorrie Fair Allen
- Shannon Boxx
- Rachel Buehler
- Amanda Cromwell
- Joy Fawcett
- Julie Foudy
- Mia Hamm
- Tisha Venturini Hoch
- Lauren Cheney Holiday
- Angela Hucles
- Shannon MacMillan
- Ronnie Fair Sullins
- Abby Wambach
- Saskia Webber
- Serena Williams
The group also contains prominent figures in the tech community, such as Williams’ husband Alexis Ohanian and Casey Neistat. The entertainment industry has a robust interest as well.
If actress Natalie Portman isn’t impressive enough, perhaps Jennifer Garner and Eva Longoria will impress. Netflix’s VP of Original Content, Cindy Holland, is also part of the group.
The list of members of the ownership group is impressive and with their resources pooled together, this franchise should have all the resources it needs to succeed. At this point, most of the details are to be determined.
Details for the future remain fluid
NWSL expansion Los Angeles components like the club’s name, colors, logo, and where it will play its home matches remain unannounced. The ownership group calls itself “Angel City,” so the franchise’s name may ultimately resemble a play on that.
While the group’s resources will most directly benefit the LA club, its existence will act as a “rising tide that lifts all ships” for the entire league. It’s hard not to let the mind run wild thinking of all the potential benefits.
The NWSL has a broadcast deal with CBS that began this year. The exact terms of the deal have not yet been publicized, beyond that the deal is a multi-year contract. The presence of the NWSL in the largest sports market in North America might prompt CBS to air more NWSL matches on its broadcast channel, as opposed to cable-only CBS Sports or its streaming product, CBS All-Access.
Additionally, the connection with Holland could prove pivotal. Holland’s sway with Netflix could bring women’s soccer-themed documentaries and feature pieces to the popular streaming platform. Neistat could be involved in such projects due to his reputation as a filmmaker.
Another member of the group suggests that original content featuring NWSL personalities and subjects could be on the way. Bad Robot COO and President Brian Weinstein is also part of the group. Bad Robot has been involved in recent film projects such as “Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens,” the Cloverfield franchise, and the most recent trilogy of “Star Trek” films.
Another possibility might come to fruition after the CBS contract expires. That might be when the NWSL takes more of a firm hand in its own interest.
The NWSL’s next power moves
The three biggest sources of revenue for professional sports franchises are licensing and merchandise, media rights contracts, and sponsorship deals. This expansion could bring all three facets to another level for the NWSL.
With the expertise of the LA ownership group at its disposal, a next step would be to arrange for television coverage of every match played by NWSL clubs. Once that is arranged, the league can step into offering its own streaming product.
Constant coverage of the league and controlling the means of distribution means tremendous opportunities for new revenue for the NWSL. Using the tech expertise in the LA ownership group’s fold, the NWSL’s video content delivery could be unrivaled among sports entertainment products in North America.
That could snowball into greater demand for licenses from the NWSL and its clubs. Fanatics, which has a stranglehold on the officially-licensed sports-related merchandise industry so strong that it is intriguing why there has been so little discussion about that possible monopoly, does not feature NWSL merchandise on its website. Greater interest from manufacturers, which Fanatics also is, would change that.
Robust content delivery and merchandise demand would naturally result in more demand for corporations to get their brands in those spaces. That would not only increase the number of sponsorship deals for the clubs and the league but the value of each as well.
The significance of this announcement for the NWSL goes far beyond just adding the 11th club in the future. Because of the celebrity power, connections, and expertise the members of this new ownership group, NWSL expansion Los Angeles could be the start of a brand new era for the entire league.
Follow me on Twitter @dhellingsport. Be sure to check out Beyond Women’s Sports for more articles on amazing women and their sport.
