The Haslam family closed a $205 million NWSL expansion franchise for Columbus on Tuesday, securing a 2028 kickoff and establishing a new league valuation floor five weeks after Boston and Denver began play at undisclosed but reportedly lower entry fees.
The deal marks the league's 17th franchise and the Haslams' third domestic sports property alongside the Cleveland Browns and Columbus Crew. Dee Haslam, who led the bid, will control the team through Haslam Sports Group, the same structure used for the Crew acquisition in 2018 at roughly $150 million—a number the NWSL slot now exceeds by 37% in a secondary market.
The $205 million figure carries two immediate effects. First, it guarantees the league receives at least that amount from Atlanta's ownership group, which committed $165 million in November for a 2026 start but structured payment over time. Columbus now functions as the backstop: if Atlanta's installment plan falters, the league can point to Columbus as the market-clearing price for a slot two years later in a smaller market. Second, it creates separation from the $53 million San Diego paid in 2023, the last publicly disclosed fee before the current cycle. That 287% jump in two years reflects the league's CBS and Prime Video broadcast windows, which began in 2024 and run through 2027, plus attendance that averaged 11,250 across all teams last season, up 58% from 2022.
The timeline matters for stadium economics. The Crew's Lower.com Field, opened in 2021 at $314 million, seats 20,011 for MLS matches but will need women's-specific sight lines, locker rooms, and potentially reconfigured premium inventory for a tenant playing a different calendar. The Haslams now have 34 months before first kickoff to negotiate cost-sharing with the city, which contributed $50 million to the original build, and to price season tickets without cannibalizing Crew renewals. The dual-tenant model works in Portland and Seattle, both NWSL markets where MLS teams anchor the same venue, but Columbus will test whether a family-owned portfolio can cross-sell effectively or whether the brands compete for the same corporate hospitality budget.
League dynamics shift as well. The Haslams join the Wilf family (Minnesota Vikings, Minnesota Aurora FC) and the Bhathal family (Detroit Pistons, projected Detroit NWSL entrant) as NFL-adjacent owners entering women's soccer through expansion rather than league founding. That clustering suggests NWSL slots now trade as portfolio diversification for families with existing league relationships and stadium infrastructure, not as speculative bets by operator-class buyers. The $205 million price implies a multiple of roughly 6-7x projected first-year revenue if the team hits $30-35 million in sponsorship, ticketing, and merchandise—a figure Boston and Denver are expected to approach in year one based on advance season-ticket deposits.
Commissioner Jessica Berman has indicated the league will stop expanding at 18 teams by 2026, leaving one remaining slot. Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Nashville have all surfaced as candidates, but the Haslams' Columbus win removes one Midwest option and potentially tightens the field to Sun Belt markets where broadcast windows align better with West Coast road trips. The league's schedule format, which currently runs February through November, will need adjustment to accommodate 18 teams without shortening the playoff window or creating uneven rest advantages.
The Haslams' cross-league experience carries risks. The Browns posted a 3-14 record last season, fired their defensive coordinator in January, and are navigating a $230 million guaranteed contract for a quarterback who played six games. The Crew, by contrast, won MLS Cup in 2023 and drew an average of 20,547 fans per match, 102% of capacity. The NWSL slot will test whether the Crew's operational credibility transfers or whether the Browns' recent missteps create skepticism among Columbus sponsors already stretched across two teams.
Atlanta's ownership group must now deliver its $165 million fee in full by 2026 or risk league intervention, with Columbus functioning as the comp that justifies forfeiture clauses. The next franchise announcement, expected by mid-2025, will clarify whether $205 million was an outlier or the new baseline for markets without existing stadium assets.
The takeaway
Columbus pays $205M for 2028 NWSL entry, guaranteeing Atlanta's $165M floor and pricing remaining slot at portfolio-diversification level for NFL-adjacent families.
nwslexpansionhaslamcolumbuswomens-sportsvaluation
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