A Hollywood heavyweight organization and more than a dozen members of the U.S. National Women’s National Team have combined to form a new women’s soccer team in Los Angeles. Players Mia Hamm, Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy and Lauren Holiday are among the biggest names on the launch of Angel City, a National Women’s Football League expansion team that will begin in 2022. Lately the league has nine teams, with a tenth: Racing Louisville FC – It is expected to start playing in 2021.
Angel City FC is just a call in progress and reports that more information about the team will soon be available, adding an official call.
ESPN reports that the organization is run by venture capitalists Alexis Ohanian and Kara Nortman and entrepreneur Julie Uhrman, but also includes Hollywood luminaries Natalie Portman, Eva Longoria, Jessica Chastain, Jennifer Garner and Uzo Aduba. Many of those stars were at a USWNT game last April at Bench of California Stadium in Los Angeles (United States beat Belgium that day).
RELATED: Football says women don’t deserve an equivalent salary, and that’s BS
According to the Los Angeles Times, Uhrman, who has reveled in media and games, has had conversations with LA Galaxy about a date between the new NWSL club and the five-time MLS Cup winner. If this means that the NWSL team and the Galaxy will share a stadium at Dignity Health Sports Park, educational services or more. Currently, six of the nine NWSL groups are affiliated with male professional groups: 4 with the MLS, one with a United Soccer League (USL) team and one with Olympique Lyonnais de France.
Today, current LAFC coach Bob Bradley told reporter Delmy Barillas that the Angel City team would be affiliated with his team. He praised Hamm, who is also a co-owner of LAFC, for his involvement.
“Today, we are taking an exciting step forward by declaring the first proprietary organization that belongs to and is most commonly managed by women,” Portman said, according to Sports Illustrated. “I am very happy to have the opportunity to enroll in this amazing organization of other people to bring a women’s professional football team to Los Angeles. Together, our goal is not only to build a winning team on the field, but also to expand a passionately unwavering fan base. We also hope to have a really extensive effect on our network by committing to expanding access to the game for young people in Los Angeles through our quotes with the LA84 Foundation. Sport is such a joyous way to attract other people together, and has the strength to make tangible adjustments for female athletes, both in our network and in the professional sphere.”
RELATED: USWNT silent protest is helping staff displaced by coronavirus
Ohanian echoed his feelings and said he was proud to take football to a city that already embraces the game and that he and his daughter, Olympia, were already great gaming enthusiasts. She stressed the importance of making an investment in the women’s game.
“I’m proud to be part of this glorious organization that intends to bring a professional women’s soccer club to Los Angeles,” Ohanian said. “Mainly, because I’m a fan of the game, but also because I have great potential for the game and it’s been undervalued by too many people for too long. As someone who spends hours playing on a football with my one-year-old daughter, I need her to be at the forefront of this revolution. I personally invest in the name of my circle of relatives because creating more opportunities in the women’s game is vital for me and my wife, and we must be a component of making a longer career for our daughter.”
The Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA), which ran from 2000 to 2003, and the Women’s Professional Football League (WPS), which retired in 2012, included Southern California groups. WUSA had the San Diego Spirit and WPS the Los Angeles Sol, with Brazilian superstar Marta. The new NWSL franchise marks the return of women’s football to SoCal.
RELATED: U.S. national women’s soccer team will continue to fight for equal pay
“We’ve been looking for a long time for the right wife in Los Angeles given the NWSL fan base that already exists in the region and the great interest in women’s football in general,” NWSL commissioner Lisa Baird said in a statement. “These factors, as well as a group of owners, make it an ideal location and we couldn’t be more excited to move on.”
USWNT player Alex Morgan applauded the news at an Instagram post, writing, “I’m so pleased that women who follow in my footsteps, living in Southern California, starting in 2022, can see the most productive players in the global competition week after week. . just like I was lucky enough to do in 2007.”