Haslam Sports Group is paying $205 million to bring the National Women's Soccer League's 18th franchise to Columbus, nearly doubling the $113 million Boston paid in September 2023 and establishing a new baseline for women's sports franchise valuations. The fee was filed this week with league officials. The team begins play in 2026.
The Columbus expansion marks the third time the NWSL has reset its own pricing within two years. Bay FC paid $53 million in early 2023. Boston's $113 million looked like an outlier eighteen months ago. Now it's a comp. The $205 million figure places the Columbus franchise above the $150-175 million range recent MLS expansion teams paid, a crossing point worth noting for family offices building women's sports allocations. Haslam Sports Group already owns the Cleveland Browns and Columbus Crew; the NWSL team slots into existing front-office infrastructure and gives the group a third property in Ohio's media markets.
The valuation acceleration reflects broadcast math changing faster than most operators expected. The NWSL's current media deal with CBS, ESPN, and Prime Video runs through 2027 at roughly $60 million annually. Renewal negotiations begin in late 2025. League officials have quietly circulated $200-250 million annual projections to prospective owners, a four-fold increase driven by FIFA World Cup ratings lift and linear sports scarcity. If those numbers hold, Columbus enters at a 3.4x revenue multiple assuming $60 million in league-wide media money today. That tightens to 1.0-1.2x if the $200 million renewal lands, which would make the $205 million entry fee look cheap by 2028.
Sponsorship infrastructure matters more than the fee itself. Haslam Sports Group brings Crew front-office relationships with Nationwide, OhioHealth, and Columbus-region brands already familiar with soccer economics. The NWSL sold jersey-front inventory at an average of $3-4 million annually for recent expansion teams. Columbus will aim higher. Crew jersey deals run $6-8 million per year. Shared sponsor pipelines and joint hospitality packages mean the NWSL team can underwrite early losses with existing infrastructure rather than building from zero, a different model than most standalone women's franchises.
The fee also reshapes Boston's positioning. Boston paid $113 million for exclusive New England territory. Columbus is paying $205 million into a market where the Crew already competes for attention and the Browns sit 140 miles north. The gap suggests league officials now price new franchises on media-deal timing rather than market exclusivity. Boston entered before the rights renewal cycle heated up. Columbus enters with $200 million+ annual projections already in circulation. The $92 million spread reflects what changed in eighteen months of negotiation preparation.
Franchise valuations will recalibrate again in Q1 2026 when the NWSL likely announces its 19th and 20th teams. League officials have said they want 24 franchises by 2028. That leaves four more slots, with Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and a second Los Angeles ownership group already in advanced discussions. If Columbus proves the $205 million floor holds, the next fee will test $225-250 million. Milwaukee's ownership group includes Giannis Antetokounmpo and will lean on Bucks sponsor relationships. Cincinnati would build around FC Cincinnati infrastructure, similar to Columbus's model.
The expansion fee gets paid over three years, with $75 million due at signing, per standard NWSL structure. That means Haslam Sports Group's first check clears in Q1 2025, eighteen months before the team plays its first match. The timing matters for league cash flow: NWSL took in $113 million from Boston in 2023-2024, and now books another $205 million through 2027, creating a $318 million capital cushion while media negotiations progress. League officials will use that money to fund front-office expansion, data infrastructure, and scouting systems ahead of the next media deal.
Haslam Sports Group has not yet announced a team name, stadium plan, or front-office hires. The Crew plays at Lower.com Field, a 20,371-capacity facility opened in 2021. NWSL teams average 8,000-11,000 attendance; Columbus will likely play there rather than build a separate venue. Crew president Tim Bezbatchenko will oversee the NWSL team, and coaching hires typically happen 12-14 months before inaugural kickoff, putting that announcement around April 2025.
The $205 million fee doesn't include stadium capital or player acquisition costs. NWSL expansion drafts let new teams select from unprotected players on existing rosters, which typically yields role players rather than stars. Columbus will need to spend in international transfer markets or chase U.S. national team players in free agency, adding another $8-12 million in year-one payroll to the expansion fee.
Watch for Boston ownership to start asking questions. They paid $113 million for what they thought was a premium entry point. Columbus just paid nearly double for a similar front-office infrastructure advantage and a smaller market. If the media deal lands at $200 million+, Boston got a discount. If it lands closer to $100 million, Columbus overpaid by $50-75 million. The gap between those outcomes narrows over the next eleven months, and every family office sizing an NWSL stake is watching the same renewal window.