The National Women's Soccer League awarded its 18th franchise to Columbus on Monday, with a $205 million expansion fee that more than doubles the $75 million Boston and Denver each paid to enter this season. The Columbus group, led by Dee and Jimmy Haslam—who own the NFL's Cleveland Browns and a stake in the Milwaukee Bucks—will launch in 2028. The fee sets a new valuation floor for NWSL assets and accelerates the timeline for secondary transactions among existing owners who paid far less.
Columbus becomes the third NWSL expansion market announced in the past 12 months, following Atlanta's $60 million deal in December. The league has added five franchises since 2022, each at a progressively higher fee: Angel City at $13 million, San Diego at $21 million, then the 2025 cohort at $75 million. The Columbus premium reflects the Haslams' late-stage entry and the league's new media-rights landscape: the NWSL signed a four-year, $240 million deal with ESPN, CBS, Amazon, and Scripps last year, tripling prior annual payouts. The Haslams will also control a new 20,000-seat soccer-specific stadium in the Arena District, scheduled to break ground in early 2026. The city's existing Lower.com Field, home to MLS's Columbus Crew, hosted 18,203 fans for a SheBelieves Cup match last month—one of several test events the ownership group used to gauge market depth.
The $205 million figure matters less for what Columbus paid than for what it implies. Five NWSL teams changed hands or secured new capital at valuations near or above $100 million in the past 18 months, but none approached this level. The San Diego Wave—owned by Ron Burkle—last raised at a $120 million valuation in 2023; Angel City, backed by Natalie Portman, Serena Williams, and a roster of 90-plus investors, has fielded quiet secondary offers north of $150 million. The Columbus entry resets the comp set. Owners who entered below $25 million are now sitting on paper gains exceeding 8x, and private-equity shops that once ignored the NWSL are now modeling 15-team league acquisitions. At least two PE-backed groups are circling underperforming franchises in legacy markets where local ownership lacks stadium control or broadcast-production capabilities.
The Haslams' timing also reflects infrastructure convergence. The Browns' ownership has financed stadium projects and negotiated municipal incentives across three sports; applying that playbook to Columbus means the NWSL franchise will share back-office operations, ticketing systems, and sponsor pipelines with the Crew. The league has pushed new owners toward multi-sport synergies—Boston's ownership includes Celtics investors; Denver's includes Nuggets and Avalanche principals. The shift away from single-asset NWSL ownership tightens the margin for teams without those efficiencies. Chicago, New Jersey, and Washington remain in older stadiums with limited revenue upside and no clear upgrade path.
Columbus also benefits from a long test runway. The 2028 launch means three years to finalize kit deals, lock founding sponsors, and build a season-ticket base before payroll begins. The league's salary cap sits at $3.3 million per team this season, a figure likely to rise past $5 million by 2028 as media revenue flows in and as collective-bargaining pressure mounts. Atlanta, set to debut in 2026, will have 18 months; Columbus will have nearly twice that. The Haslams can also delay stadium construction without operational penalty—unlike MLS or NBA projects tied to near-term revenue covenants.
Watch for secondary transactions among legacy NWSL franchises before the end of 2025. The Columbus fee establishes a clear exit multiple for early investors, and the league's front office is already fielding inquiries from groups that missed this cycle. Commissioner Jessica Berman has signaled a preference for 20 teams by 2030, meaning two more expansion slots remain. Phoenix and Philadelphia are the likeliest candidates, and both will now price against the $205 million Columbus benchmark. The other variable is Atlanta's opening weekend in April 2026. If that market draws crowds above 25,000, the next expansion fee will clear $250 million.
The Haslams are writing the check that every NWSL owner wanted someone else to write first. Now they have.
The takeaway
Columbus's **$205M** NWSL fee resets franchise valuations and accelerates secondary-market activity among legacy owners who paid under **$25M**.
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