Columbus Crew owners get 18th NWSL franchise for record fee

nwsl Columbus, Ohio was awarded an expansion franchise and an ownership consortium led by Haslam Sports Group. The new Columbus-based team will begin play in 2028.

An NWSL spokesperson told ESPN that the group will pay a $205 million expansion fee for the team.

The new Columbus franchise will join the league with a team in Atlanta, Whose game will also start in 2028To bring the NWSL down to 18 teams.

“Especially Columbus, their love of soccer and their historical connection, is something we’re really excited to bring to the women’s game,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman told ESPN after landing at John Glenn Columbus International Airport for the announcement Tuesday.

The NWSL Columbus team will play at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field downtown, where MLS’s Columbus Crew plays. Haslam Sports Group also owns HSG Crew, the NFL’s Cleveland Browns, has a controlling interest in the Milwaukee Bucks, and has invested in the WNBA.

HSG managing partner Whitney Haslam Johnson told ESPN that ScottsMiracle-Gro Field will be renovated ahead of the 2028 season to add a custom locker room for the NWSL team.

“This is a great opportunity and the right time to make further investments,” Haslam Johnson, a team governor on the NWSL board, told ESPN.

He said that work on the name and branding of the team is still going on.

A major part of the Columbus expansion bid focuses on a plan to build a special training facility for an NWSL team in the southwestern part of the city. The ownership group is expected to initially invest approximately $300 million between expansion fees and infrastructure.

This is in addition to $50 million in state money for infrastructure – $25 million from the city and $25 million from Franklin County.

The Columbus City Council approved the city’s $25 million funding in a divided vote Monday night after a contentious public meeting, and the county approved it Tuesday. The NWSL team’s training site will be in a park that was previously repurposed by the city for adaptive use in a disadvantaged neighborhood.

As part of that agreement, Haslam Sports Group will contribute $3 million to the city’s effort to find a replacement location for the park.

When Haslam Johnson was asked why $50 million was necessary as opposed to private funding, he said, “The public-private partnership is really important. We’re one of 18 teams in the NWSL and it’s a highly competitive process.” “And it’s really important that the public supports these teams. It really makes a difference in a team being able to win and being able to get support from all the different stakeholders.”

Berman said that “evidence of public support is a really important litmus test and proxy” in awarding the award to an expansion team. She also pointed out that government funding was rarely given to women’s sports teams.

“I think when we think about public-private partnerships it’s worth noting that communities and the public have invested in men’s teams for decades,” Berman said. “We believe that if you look at the history, it is an important part of what has made men’s teams successful in this country.

“Our interest is to ensure that appropriate consideration is given to communities and the public sector to set these teams up for success. We view them as community assets. We believe we have a responsibility to perform for the community, and it is a bidirectional relationship.”

The NWSL has expanded rapidly in recent years, from 10 teams in 2021 to 18 by 2028.

Over the same period, expansion fees paid by the Columbus ownership group have increased from $2 million to $205 million. Atlanta, which was awarded team No. 17 at the end of 2025, paid $165 million, a record at the time.

The Columbus ownership group includes the family of Dr. Pete Edwards – who own a minority stake in Crew and recently acquired more shares from HSG – as well as Columbus-based insurance company Nationwide.

ESPN reported last month that the Columbus group was NWSL seriously exploring expansion franchise.

Columbus is only the 35th largest TV market in the US, but has a strong history of local support for Crew and United States national team games.

“When we look at a market, we certainly care about how it will perform nationally and locally,” Berman said. “And really, the national media analysis starts with the performance at the local level. When fans turn on their TV, we want them to see full buildings. We want them to experience some of the energy and excitement that’s happening in the building.”

The NWSL has recently switched to a “rolling expansion” process to accept potential teams when it feels the time is right, rather than setting a deadline for bids.

boston legacy fc And Denver Summit FC Played their inaugural matches just last month, marking the beginning of the NWSL’s 16-team era.

Boston and Denver are playing in temporary venues this year while they await the renovation and construction of their long-term stadiums, respectively.

“We felt that for teams 17 and 18, the appropriate decision was to strike a balance with teams that had ready infrastructure for us to use from a stadium perspective,” Berman said.

ESPN reported last week that the NWSL Board of Governors is expected to vote later this month on whether to switch from a fall to a spring calendar.

Adding Columbus, a cold-weather market, “doesn’t change the analysis of that decision in any way,” Berman said. He declined to comment further on the future of the league’s calendar.