The NWSL has reportedly awarded its 17th franchise to Atlanta, with Arthur Blank’s AMB Sports and Entertainment securing the expansion rights for a record $165 million fee, according to The Athletic. The team is set to begin play in 2028 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which also hosts Blank’s other professional teams – the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and MLS’s Atlanta United FC.
Getty Images SportBlank's sports empire expands with NWSL investment
As per the Athletic’s report, AMB Sports and Entertainment has been involved in NWSL expansion discussions for nearly a decade, with many industry sources describing Atlanta as a "when-not-if" market once Blank decided to commit to the women's professional league. The expansion fee represents a significant increase from the $110 million that Denver Summit FC paid less than a year ago, reflecting the rapidly growing valuation of women's soccer franchises in the United States.
"We have had productive engagement with NWSL and others in its stakeholder group on the possibility of bringing an expansion franchise to Atlanta,” said a spokesperson for AMB Sports and Entertainment, as per ESPN. “We have nothing to announce currently as those conversations are ongoing."
AdvertisementRolling expansion model
NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman confirmed in September that the league would move away from formal bidding processes to a rolling expansion model, allowing greater flexibility in adding new markets.
"Those conversations are ongoing," Berman said, according to ESPN. "Each of them has a different perspective on how much time they need to launch, the investments they need to make to be successful, including potentially around infrastructure, and we want to not force a square peg into a round hole."
Berman has repeatedly stated that the NWSL could eventually grow to match the NFL's 32-team structure.
"Our board believes that we can be the size of the NFL, there is nothing that stands in the way of us doing that, other than having access to top talent,” Berman said to Yahoo Sports. “There's certainly not a problem with the supply, given the size of our country and the level of talent that exists."
Atlanta's women's soccer history
The city of Atlanta has a significant history with women's professional soccer, having previously hosted the Atlanta Beat in both the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) from 2001 to 2003 and in Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) from 2010 to 2011. The WPS version built a soccer-specific stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia, in partnership with Kennesaw State University, though that team folded along with the league in 2012.
Getty Images SportAlignment with media rights renewal
The 2028 launch date for Atlanta's NWSL team strategically coincides with the expiration of the league's current media rights agreements, which are expected to be renegotiated with a significant increase in value. The team will also benefit from the anticipated surge in soccer interest following the 2026 FIFA World Cup held across North America as well as the 2027 Women’s World Cup, which will be held in Brazil.