NWSL Riding Record Momentum

Morning Edition

March 13, 2026

The NWSL kicks off a new season with expansion teams, returning stars, and rising viewership—and league leaders believe the men’s World Cup coming to the U.S. could bring even more attention to women’s soccer. This year could be a big test of the league’s growth and media ambitions.

—Margaret Fleming

First Up

The WNBA and players’ union have met three nights in a row at a Manhattan hotel, each one stretching well past midnight with no CBA deal yet. Read the story.
Iran’s men’s national soccer team rebuked President Donald Trump after he suggested it may not be safe for them to play in the World Cup. Read the story.
The NFL’s schedule could look very different in 2026 as the league adds more standalone games and expands its international slate. Read the story.
The U.S. and other tournament heavyweights advanced to the WBC quarterfinals, setting up a big weekend of knockout games. Read the story.

NWSL Enters Pivotal Season With Expansion, World Cup Boost

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The 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup is going to thrust soccer into the U.S. sports spotlight this summer.

The NWSL is ready.

The league kicks off a new season Friday, riding the wave of strong momentum last year, with ample opportunities to hit new milestones in 2026.

“We’re intending to and expect to break records, as we have in every prior season,” commissioner Jessica Berman told reporters during a press conference at NWSL headquarters in New York on Wednesday.

The NWSL is coming off 22% growth in regular-season viewership from 2024, and a championship that set a new record for the league’s most-watched match with 1.2 million viewers on CBS.

Several of the NWSL’s brightest stars are making comebacks. In the offseason, the NWSL announced a new salary mechanism that—although contentious—allowed the Washington Spirit to re-sign Trinity Rodman and make her the world’s highest-paid women’s soccer player. Along with Rodman, the league welcomes back the other two members of the U.S. women’s national team, “Triple Espresso,” Mallory Swanson and Sophia Wilson, who were out last year with pregnancies.

Big Growth, Bigger Stakes

The league is adding two new franchises to become a 16-team league, officially doubling the NWSL’s size from its founding in 2013. It’s a homecoming story in New England, with Boston Legacy Football Club replacing the Boston Breakers, a founding team that folded in 2018.

And the league will debut in the women’s soccer hotbed of Colorado, where Denver Summit FC has already sold enough tickets to set a new attendance record for a women’s professional sports game at its home opener. USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps will play for her hometown team starting this summer when her European contract ends.

The league plans to announce yet another expansion team this year, which, along with Atlanta, will debut in 2028.

It’s also a big year for the NWSL to test its media aspirations, with its current deal from 2023 expiring after the 2027 season. In September, the league announced expanded deals with CBS and ESPN, and added Victory+ as a fifth media partner. While league leaders say they are continuously talking with current and potential media partners, “this year will be important” for future negotiations, league COO Sarah Jones Simmer told Front Office Sports.

“When you see us deepen our relationship with ESPN and our new Sunday night series, or add Victory+ as a partner, this is us starting to test some of those fan rituals and behaviors, and understand how we engage different fans on different platforms, so that we can be even smarter when we are ready for our next media deal,” Jones Simmer said.

Riding the World Cup Wave

Perhaps nothing provides a bigger business opportunity in 2026 for the NWSL, or any soccer organization in the U.S., than the country hosting the majority of World Cup matches.

The tournament will cause some disruptions for NWSL teams; the Kansas City Current will be booted from their facilities as the Dutch men’s national team sets up base camp, Seattle Reign will play games in Spokane, and Boston Legacy will head to Rhode Island for home games.

But it will also allow people who love soccer, men’s or women’s, to discover the NWSL, Berman said. The commissioner said it’s intentional that the league is holding its Challenge Cup during the World Cup in Columbus, which is not hosting any matches, and will return from summer break as the FIFA tournament moves into the knockout rounds.

“There will be less tonnage, or less games, that are happening on the men’s World Cup side,” Berman said, “and give us an opportunity to occupy some of that space when there are still going to be millions of people paying attention to soccer in this country and globally.”

Shooting for the Equalizer

“Good for a girl” isn’t a metric we recognize. It’s time to rethink the way the world backs female athletes. At Ally, we’re committed to and invested in leveling a lopsided media landscape—because it’s time to even the score.

Believe in the game. Back the game. Watch the game. Change the game.

Ally Bank, Member FDIC.

LOUD AND CLEAR

Celebrity Ownership Lessons

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“We don’t want 90 people on our cap table.”

—Bay FC founder Leslie Osborne, explaining to Front Office Sports, about how the NWSL expansion team approached ownership differently after watching Angel City FC’s celebrity-heavy investor group create internal tensions.

Angel City launched with dozens of celebrity backers and a complex ownership structure that later led to infighting before a controlling stake was sold in 2024 at a record $250 million valuation. Osborne said Bay FC opted for a more streamlined approach, learning from both the successes and challenges of Angel City’s early model. Read the story.

FOS NEWS

Inside Michele Kang’s Spirit Takeover

FOS graphic

Assia Grazioli-Venier of Muse Capital joins Front Office Sports to discuss how Michele Kang became the controlling owner of the NWSL’s Washington Spirit during a turbulent period for the league.

Grazioli-Venier, an early investor in the club, recounts the tense ownership battle, why she believed Kang was the right leader despite having no sports background, and how the takeover helped set the stage for the Spirit—and the NWSL—to grow in value and global influence. She also reflects on the league’s early challenges, the rise of stars like Trinity Rodman, and why she believes women’s sports franchises are still undervalued.

Watch the clip.

We Bank on Women’s Sports

Literally. To us, being an ally means putting our money where our heart is—leveling the playing field so the beautiful game of soccer is finally equal. We’re done waiting for the world to catch up—we’re doing it right and making sure the math maths. Media investment drives viewership, viewership brings more revenue, and more revenue means female athletes can finally earn what they deserve. Join us—let’s change the game together.

Ally Bank, Member FDIC.

ONE BIG FIG

Women’s Sports Boom

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$250 million

The amount of money raised by Project Level, a women’s sports investment fund led by former NFL running back and Washington Commanders president Jason Wright. The Ariel Investments–backed fund has already put money into the NWSL’s Denver expansion team, the Denver Summit, as well as League One Volleyball.

The fund is tied with Monarch Collective for the largest pool of capital focused solely on women’s sports. Wright says investors increasingly see leagues like the NWSL as an undervalued opportunity, as interest and revenue across women’s sports continue to surge. Read the story.

STATUS REPORT

Three Up, One Push

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Savy King ⬆ The Angel City FC defender is set to return just 10 months after surviving a life-threatening on-field cardiac event. King’s heart stopped during the team’s May 9 game against the Utah Royals, leading her to receive CPR on the field and eventually have surgery to repair an anomalous left coronary artery. Her incident led the NWSL to implement CPR training for all 16 teams.

Denver Summit FC ⬆ The team has sold more than 50,000 tickets for its inaugural home opener at Mile High Stadium on March 28. NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said the league is hoping to sell out Empower Field, home of the NFL’s Broncos, which has a capacity of 76,125.

League office ⬆⬇ The NWSL is currently searching for a chief marketing officer and chief commercial officer. The league parted ways with previous CMO and CCO Julie Haddon in May 2025. Commissioner Jessica Berman said Wednesday that a key role of the CMO position will be finding ways to reach and connect with multicultural audiences.

Trading cards ⬆ The NWSL, NWSLPA, and Panini America announced a multiyear collectibles agreement. NWSL trading cards, sticker albums, and digital collectibles will be sold, with a 33-card Panini Instant card set already available for purchase. The base set costs $99.99, while the bundle of the base set with a random parallel or autograph costs $224.99.