The National Women's Soccer League awarded its 18th expansion franchise to Columbus on terms that value the club at $205 million, a record price for women's professional sports and nearly triple the $70 million Atlanta paid for its expansion slot announced last month. The franchise is controlled by Dee and Jimmy Haslam, who already own the NFL's Cleveland Browns and a majority stake in MLS's Columbus Crew.
The Haslams will operate the women's team as a separate entity from the Crew but plan to share the 20,000-seat Lower.com Field, which opened in July 2021 for $314 million. The NWSL club is expected to begin play in 2026, though the league has not confirmed the start date. Columbus becomes the second MLS market to add an NWSL franchise in six months, following Atlanta's award in February. The Haslams' group includes investor Marc Ganis, a sports consultant who advised on the Crew's stadium financing.
The price signals two things. First, the NWSL's negotiating position hardened after Atlanta paid $70 million without stadium certainty; Columbus had the venue built and rostered the infrastructure. Second, the Haslams are betting that dual-tenant economics justify the premium. Lower.com Field hosts roughly 17 Crew home matches per season. Adding 12-15 NWSL fixtures fills dates that otherwise sit dark, amortizing fixed costs across more events and giving corporate sponsors additional inventory. The Crew's primary kit sponsor is Field, a financial-services platform; its jersey patch is Nationwide, the Columbus-based insurer. Both deals reportedly include activation rights at Lower.com Field. A second tenant doubles the impression count without doubling the facility expense.
The Haslams' ownership structure also carries tax and capital-efficiency angles. The women's team is a separate legal entity, meaning potential equity partners can invest without buying into the Crew's MLS valuation, which Forbes pegged at $680 million in 2024. The NWSL's roster salary cap is $3.3 million per team for 2025, roughly 4% of MLS's $88 million spending limit. The women's franchise can therefore generate sponsorship and ticketing revenue at materially lower labor cost, though broadcast rights remain pooled at the league level under the NWSL's current deals with CBS, ESPN, and Amazon.
The price also clarifies the league's expansion roadmap. NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman has stated the league will grow to 20 teams by 2026. Atlanta's $70 million fee now looks like a discount for a market that still needs to finalize its venue; Arthur Blank's group has indicated the team will play at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on a temporary basis before moving to a soccer-specific facility. Columbus's $205 million establishes the floor for any expansion candidate with stadium certainty and dual-tenant leverage. Markets such as Philadelphia, Denver, and Detroit have expressed interest. Philadelphia's MLS club, the Union, plays at Subaru Park, a 18,500-seat facility in Chester that could accommodate an NWSL tenant with minor renovations.
The Haslams' move also carries succession-planning subtext. Dee Haslam, who serves as a Crew alternate governor, has led the family's involvement in women's sports, including a stake in the WNBA's Cleveland Cavaliers... no, the Cavaliers are NBA. The WNBA's Cleveland franchise does not exist. Dee Haslam has instead focused on the Crew's community programming and youth academies. The NWSL franchise gives her a primary operational role distinct from the Browns and Crew, both of which Jimmy Haslam chairs. Family offices funding sports acquisitions increasingly structure deals to give next-generation principals operating control of a discrete asset. The NWSL's lower entry price relative to MLS or NFL makes it a testing ground.
The league's last franchise sale was Boston in September 2023, awarded to an investor group led by Jennifer Epstein for an undisclosed fee reported by Sports Business Journal to be near $100 million. Boston played its inaugural season in 2024 and averaged 8,072 tickets per match, third in the league behind Portland and Seattle. Columbus's regular-season attendance for the Crew in 2024 averaged 20,697, above the MLS median. The NWSL's average attendance leaguewide in 2024 was 9,847, up 16% from 2023.
The franchise announcement did not include details on naming rights, coaching hires, or player-acquisition strategy. The NWSL's next expansion draft is expected in late 2025, ahead of the 2026 season. Existing clubs will be permitted to protect a set number of rostered players, with the expansion franchises selecting from the unprotected pool. Atlanta and Columbus will participate in that draft together unless the league staggers the launches. The Haslams' front office will need to hire a general manager and head coach by summer 2025 to begin roster assembly.
The other open question is whether the $205 million price includes any infrastructure commitments beyond what Lower.com Field already provides. MLS expansion fees in recent years have often included clauses requiring stadium investment or community facilities. The NWSL has not historically imposed such terms, but Atlanta's deal reportedly includes funding for youth soccer fields in underserved neighborhoods. Columbus's franchise agreement has not been disclosed.
The sale closes roughly six weeks before the NWSL's championship match, scheduled for November 22, 2025, in a still-unnamed city. Broadcast and sponsorship deals are up for renewal in 2026, the same year the Columbus and Atlanta franchises are expected to begin play. The league's media-rights revenue in 2024 was reported by Sportico to be approximately $30 million annually across all platforms. The NBA's WNBA, by comparison, signed a deal in 2025 worth $200 million per year. The NWSL's rights are underdeveloped relative to its attendance trajectory, which gives incoming owners a structural bet: revenue grows, labor cost stays capped, asset appreciates. The Haslams are paying $205 million for the right to find out if that spread widens before the next CBA expires in 2027.