Courtesy of Sports Business Journal
The National Women’s Soccer League is looking for a new city to become home to a team by the end of this year. Currently sitting at 14 teams, and with Boston getting the 15th team, the league has narrowed it down to three cities for the 16th team.
Denver
Current major league professional teams: Rapids (MLS), Broncos (NFL), Nuggets (NBA), Rockies (MLB), Avalanche (NHL), Mammoth (NLL), Outlaws (PLL)
Denver wants to add its first team in a major women’s sports league. Their bid is backed by former NWSL player and Denver native Jordan Angeli, Parsyl chief executive Ben Hubbard, and sports executive Tom Dunmore.
If Denver gets chosen for an NWSL team, the team would play at a temporary venue before moving into a new stadium.
Denver missed out on getting a team in the most recent WNBA expansion, and is eager to bring a major professional women’s team to the city.
Cincinnati
Current major league professional teams: FC Cincinnati (MLS), Bengals (NFL), Reds (MLB)
Cincinnati is looking to get its first professional women’s team. The Queen City’s bid for an NWSL team is led by the FC Cincinnati ownership, as well as WNBA star Caitlin Clark, an important face in the growing popularity of professional women’s sports. Clark’s star power and emergence as a role model for women in sports could be just what the city needs to land a women’s sports team.
Cincinnati’s NWSL team would play at the three-year-old TQL Stadium, which is home to FC Cincinnati.
The odds of an NWSL team heading to Ohio look pretty good…
Cleveland
Current major league professional teams: Browns (NFL), Cavaliers (NBA), Guardians (MLB)
Cleveland is vying to add women’s sports to the city, having bids for both the WNBA and NWSL. Their bid for an NWSL team is backed by Michael Murphy and Nolan Gallagher, the founders of Cleveland Pro Soccer.
While Cleveland does not have an MLS team like the other two cities do, it is getting an MLS Next Pro team, and the Cleveland Metroparks granted land for a soccer stadium to be built with the intention for it to host an NWSL team. This means that with Cleveland’s new stadium, a professional women’s sports team would be the primary tennant. Cleveland Pro Soccer has also put in an offer to purchase the site of the former Notre Dame College, about half an hour outside of Cleveland, to use it as a training site for the soccer teams.
Courtesy of The New Yorker
All three cities are rich in their sports culture and would embrace professional women’s sports finally becoming a part of it. Denver, Cincinnati, and Cleveland are finalists for a reason, and any of these cities would be lucky to have and be perfect for an NWSL team.
If the decision were up to me, though, I guess I would have to pick Cleveland.
Stay tuned in the coming weeks as I will provide details on the city that gets the honors.
Edited by Giana Robertaccio
Comentarios