National Women's Soccer League Announces Expansion to Bay Area with Investment from Sheryl Sandberg
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"When girls see women playing, they believe women can be huge stars, huge athletes, huge heroes — they believe they can be that," Sandberg tells PEOPLE
The National Women's Soccer League is getting a fourteenth team!
On Tuesday, the league announced it has awarded expansion rights to investment group Sixth Street in the Bay Area of California to bring a team to the Northern California region.
The deal for the team is $125 million, making it the highest valuation of a women's soccer team in recorded history.
Sheryl Sandberg, former Chief Operating Officer at META, is one of the club's leading investors along with her husband, Tom Bernthal.
"This is about sports, but this is also about women in leadership and equality, and we're really excited to combine all of those things together," Sandberg tells PEOPLE.
Part of their inspiration was their five kids, and giving them — particularly their daughters — role models to look up to.
"When girls see women playing, they believe women can be huge stars, huge athletes, huge heroes — they believe they can be that," Sandberg says.
"There's now a chance and a choice to take our daughters and our sons to go see a women's team as well as a men's team," Bernthal adds.
Previously, Sixth Street has participated in investments with Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and the NBA's San Antonio Spurs.
The investment firm has also partnered with four of the most celebrated athletes in women's soccer. Former U.S. Women's National Team players Leslie Obsorne, Aly Wagner, Brandi Chastain, and Danielle Slaton will represent the club's Founding Football Four, working alongside Sixth Street in setting the team's direction. All four women will also represent the club's majority women board.
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"We appreciate each and every one of the thousands of people who have supported us throughout this process and helped us reach this important day, and to Sith Street for stepping up to take this club to the next level," Wagner, 42, said in a press release.
Wagner will also serve as an alternative governor on the NWSL's board and will co-chair the club's board with Sixth Street CEO Alan Waxman, who currently sits on the league's board of governors.
"As lifelong residents of the Bay Area, we know how important women's soccer is to our region and we are going to work hard every day to ensure that this is a club that every player, supporter, and partner will be proud of," Wagner added. "We can't wait to get started."
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League commissioner Jessica Berman said the decision to expand to Northern California is exciting for the entire league.
"We said at the start of the expansion process in July 2022 that we would be intentional in seeking out strong markets and ownership groups that not only had the structural integrity for our league to thrive, but also demonstrated a genuine commitment to investing in and creating first-rate organizations on and off the pitch," Berman said in a statement.
The club will begin playing in the league in 2024.
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Slaton, 42, said, "This is something we've been working on for almost three years, and to reach this point and officially be accepted into the NWSL is both a dream come true and a motivator, because now it's time to start building."
The club's co-founder said the club is "grateful, eager, and humbled by the chance to play an active role in shaping this league and leading our sport towards a brighter future of lasting growth and change."
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Read the original article on People.
