Haslam Sports Group will pay $205 million to operate the NWSL's 18th franchise in Columbus, starting play in 2028. The fee is 71% higher than the $120 million Atlanta paid in February and more than triple the $53 million Denver and Boston paid in 2024. The Haslams already own the NFL's Cleveland Browns and half of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks.
The league approved the franchise after a five-week window to observe Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC, both of which entered this season. Columbus will play at Lower.com Field, the 20,000-seat MLS venue opened in 2021 and already operated by the Haslam group's Crew. The stadium carried $314 million in construction debt as of last year's filings. NWSL teams typically draw 8,000–12,000 fans per match; Columbus Crew averaged 20,512 in MLS last season, so the women's team will play in a venue built for a different attendance profile unless the league's trajectory changes sharply.
The $205 million fee reflects two facts. First, the NWSL signed a four-year media deal with ESPN, CBS, Amazon, and Scripps in November 2023 worth roughly $240 million total, or $60 million annually—five times the prior contract. Second, institutional buyers now treat women's sports franchises as call options on audience growth rather than charity projects. The Haslams are pricing in the possibility that the NWSL becomes a top-five U.S. league by revenue within a decade, not the certainty that it is one today.
Columbus is the third NWSL market to overlap with MLS, after Portland and Seattle. Both cities demonstrate that women's soccer can draw well when the operator already runs the stadium, manages the ticketing infrastructure, and cross-sells family packages. The Haslams will not need to build or negotiate venue terms; they already control the building. That eliminates the largest variable cost for a startup franchise and the most common reason NWSL teams have failed historically.
The 2028 start date is deliberate. It gives the Haslams 30 months to hire a general manager, a head coach, and a director of recruitment; to establish academy pipelines; and to let Boston and Denver solve the problems that always emerge when a league adds two teams in one season. The NWSL will have 16 teams playing this year, 17 next year when Cincinnati enters, and 18 in 2028 when Columbus starts. That cadence avoids the talent dilution that damaged the league when it expanded too quickly in 2016 and 2017.
The Haslam family's sports portfolio now includes two football properties and two soccer properties, all in markets within 350 miles of each other. Jimmy Haslam bought the Browns for $1.05 billion in 2012; Forbes now values the team at $5.2 billion. The Bucks, purchased with Marc Lasry and Wes Edens in 2014 for $550 million, are worth $4.6 billion today. The Crew, acquired in 2018 for $150 million to prevent relocation to Austin, is valued at $680 million. If the NWSL follows a similar path, the $205 million Columbus franchise could be worth $500–700 million within a decade, assuming the league's media rights continue to double every cycle.
Three things to watch. First, whether the Haslams hire a president with NWSL experience or import someone from the Crew's MLS operation; the latter saves money but risks missing the league's specific operational culture. Second, whether Columbus opens a youth academy before 2028 or waits until after launch; the smart move is to start now and let the academy feed the roster rather than relying entirely on the draft and free agency. Third, whether the team shares a kit sponsor with the Crew or secures its own; standalone sponsors pay less but signal independence, while shared deals create cross-promotional leverage at the cost of brand clarity.
The $205 million fee sets a new floor for NWSL expansion. The league has said it will grow to 20 teams, meaning two more franchises remain. Any city that wants in now knows the entry price is north of $200 million, and that number will rise if the next media deal in 2027 exceeds $100 million annually. The Haslams paid for optionality; the next buyer will pay for proof.
The takeaway
**$205M** Columbus fee is **71%** above Atlanta's and reflects NWSL's post-media deal pricing power; 2028 start lets Boston and Denver stabilize first.
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