Haslam Sports Group paid $205 million for an NWSL franchise in Columbus that will begin play in 2028, the league confirmed Monday. The deal carries a second commercial benefit: it contractually guarantees Atlanta will also pay its full $165 million commitment when that team joins in 2026, according to people familiar with the terms.
The Columbus fee represents a 24 percent premium over Atlanta's price, locked barely seven months apart. Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC entered as teams 15 and 16 this spring at undisclosed fees believed to be in the $120-$140 million range. Columbus will be team 18. The Haslams—owners of the Cleveland Browns, Columbus Crew MLS side, and minority stakes in the Milwaukee Bucks—structured the deal alongside the Edwards family, a Columbus-based investment group. The franchise will play at a venue to be announced; the Crew's 20,000-seat Lower.com Field is the clear candidate.
The Atlanta guarantee matters because expansion fees are typically paid in installments over three to five years, exposing leagues to default risk if a new owner's capital structure deteriorates. NWSL's recent growth—average attendance rose 48 percent between 2023 and 2024, to over 11,000 per match—has attracted both institutional money and family offices unused to writing nine-figure checks into entities with $100 million annual revenue. By linking Columbus's entry to Atlanta's payment schedule, the league creates a cross-collateralized structure: if Atlanta falters, the Haslams' deal includes provisions to backstop that fee, according to one person briefed on the arrangement. The inverse is also true, though less discussed.
For team operators, the pricing escalation sets a new floor. MLS expansion fees hit $500 million in 2022 before slowing; NWSL's trajectory is steeper but starting from a lower base. Clubs bought for $2-$5 million in 2016 are now valued north of $150 million by league guidance, though secondary-market transactions remain rare. Sponsors watching the Columbus deal are recalibrating: if franchise values double every 30 months, kit deals and stadium naming rights priced in 2023 are already underpriced. One Fortune 500 CMO told colleagues last week his company's $8 million annual NWSL jersey sponsorship—signed 18 months ago—would cost $15 million today.
The Haslams also gain leverage in broader Ohio sports infrastructure. The Browns are mid-negotiation for a new stadium in Cleveland; the Crew secured public funding for Lower.com Field in 2021. Adding a third marquee tenant—NWSL's national TV windows air on CBS, ESPN, and Amazon—strengthens the family's case for tax increment financing on future builds. Columbus city officials began quiet conversations about a dedicated training facility for the women's team in March, before the deal closed, according to local reporting.
Watch for Atlanta's ownership to announce its first head coach and technical director by June, now that its fee structure is public. The league will likely announce team 19 before the end of 2025—Nashville and Charlotte are believed to be in active discussions, with fees expected to start at $225 million. And Haslam Sports Group will need to name its Columbus brand and begin season-ticket outreach by early 2026 to hit a 10,000 deposit target ahead of the 2028 kickoff.
The league now has 18 committed franchises generating $1.1 billion in expansion fees since 2023, nearly all of it contractually locked. That number does not include the $75 million in equity sold to private investors in 2022.
The takeaway
Columbus's $205M fee guarantees Atlanta's $165M payment, establishing cross-collateralized expansion structure and a $225M+ floor for future clubs.
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