The NWSL has agreed to add an 18th team in Columbus, Ohio, owned by Haslam Sports Group, according to multiple people familiar with the details. The league confirmed the expansion news in an announcement Tuesday.
The group, which includes the Edwards family and insurance giant Nationwide, has agreed to pay a record $205 million expansion fee, said the people, who were granted anonymity because the details are private.
The average team is worth about $184 million, according to Sportico’s most recent valuations.
The team will play at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field, the home of the Haslam-owned MLS club Columbus Crew, and will begin play in 2028. The group has committed to building a practice facility, which isn’t included in that expansion fee, and making enhancements to the stadium. Franklin County and the city of Columbus have separately approved a combined $50 million—$25 million each—in public funding for those endeavors.
A rep for the NWSL declined to comment; a rep for the Haslams didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Columbus’ $205 million expansion fee is $40 million more than what Arthur Blank’s AMB Sports + Entertainment paid for a team in Atlanta also launching in 2028. Of the other recent expansion franchises, Bay FC and Boston Legacy FC each paid slightly more than $50 million, while Denver Summit FC’s expansion fee totaled $110 million.
As part of the deal, the Haslams are contributing to the NWSL Foundation, the sources said. Blank, who owns the Atlanta Falcons, provided what the league called “seed funding” for the foundation last year, with the aim of advancing research and innovation in women’s sports.
Jimmy and Dee Haslam bought the NFL’s Cleveland Browns for roughly $1 billion in 2012 and later added the Crew. They bought a significant minority stake in the Milwaukee Bucks in 2023, which included future control of the team on a rotating basis.
Haslam Sports Group confirmed its interest in an NWSL team in February, citing in a statement “the growth of women’s sports and the NWSL” as well as “passionate soccer fans across Ohio. Columbus will host its first NWSL event on June 26 when Gotham FC and Kansas City Current play in the league’s Challenge Cup.
The Edwards family, led by Christine and Pete Edwards, have been investors in the Crew since 2019. Nationwide, involved in the NWSL expansion deal, has been a sponsor of the Crew since 2020 and a partner of the NWSL since 2021.
Inner Circle Sports has been working with the league on its expansion efforts, which recently shifted to a “rolling” process.
Sidley Austin served as legal advisor to Haslam Sports Group.
(This story has corrected that the NWSL Atlanta team is launching in 2028, not 2027. It has been updated after the NWSL confirmed the news and with more details on the Edwards family and Nationwide, and to note Sidley Austin’s role.)
