?? Angel City nears valuation surge with new owners

Women's sports have experienced significant?growth in recent years?as?teams and leagues consistently see?record-breaking attendance, viewership, and valuations. Look no further than this?recent LinkedIn post from?NWSL?as evidence.

This?trend shows no signs of slowing,?as?Angel City Football Club?appear?to be on the brink of a key ownership change.

Investment would extend?record?for women's sport?franchise value

An unknown equity percentage in Angel City was put up for sale?back in March?by its star-studded investor group, and now the club is on the verge of completing the sale in just a few short months.

Willow Bay, the first female dean of USC's journalism school and wife of Disney CEO Bob Iger, looks?set to become the newest owner of the club. The reported investment from the Bay-Iger group would?be new capital at a pre-money valuation of $250 million. This would see Bay become the largest shareholder and further drive the club's valuation.

According to Semafor, the club now values itself at $300 million, which could signal?a $50 million investment or more from Bay. While we wait for the confirmed financials upon?announcement of sale, it's noteworthy that this valuation further extends?Angel City's standing?as the most-valuable NWSL club. From Sportico in Q4 2023:

If we focus on the $180 million number via Sportico's most recent?valuations, not only was?Angel City already the most valuable NWSL franchise, it's also more valuable than the WNBA's most valuable franchise, the Las Vegas Aces ($140M), and nearly?double the?average WNBA franchise value ($96M).

What the potential sale means for the club's future

Already in 2024, Angel City?added partnerships with NYX Professional Makeup, Pacsun, 24 Hour Fitness, Slalom, and Once Upon a Farm, extended its back-of-jersey partnership with Sprouts Farmers Market, and entered a team in TST to compete for the $1 million prize. The club?even plans to host its second-annual Equity Summit during the Paris Olympics.

But even current Angel City forward Christen Press acknowledged the club needs a different level of funding to take it to the next level.

What does the "next level" mean? Slides from the Bay-Iger pitch deck, obtained by Semafor, gives some?insight into the collective vision, from on-field performance, to off-field growth opportunities.

But the purchase of Angel City is just further evidence of the explosion in popularity of women's sports, which isn't slowing anytime soon.

SPONSORSHIP: Charlotte FC announced its sponsorship with Rugs.com has been elevated to a Founding-Level partnership, which includes the Charlotte-area company becoming the club's jersey sleeve partner. The two kicked off their initial partnership ahead of the 2024 season and the home decor company's logo debuted on Charlotte FC's jerseys last week.

VIEWERSHIP: Despite the early exits by the U.S. and Mexico, viewership for Copa América hasn't waned. Through the quarterfinals, which includes 28 games, FOX Sports is averaging 1.17 million viewers per game across FOX, FS1, and FS2. Through the same tournament stage, TelevisaUnivision is averaging 1.50 million viewers per game.

APPAREL: West Ham and Ghanian player, Mohammed Kudus, recently signed a deal with Skechers, marking the latest soccer move by the Southern California-based footwear and apparel company. Kudus joins?Bayern Munich and England star?Harry Kane, who, if you haven't seen, features in this... interesting... commercial opposite Snoop Dogg. Other athletes on the Skechers roster include?Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers and Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

EXECUTIVE HIRE: U.S. Soccer announced?the hiring of Catherine Newman as the Federation's new Chief Marketing Officer. Newman brings with her more than two decades of marketing experience across top sports and entertainment brands, most notably at?Manchester United where she was the club's first-ever CMO. Newman's most recent role was as Executive Vice President for WWE.

EXTRA TIME: Check out this from Fortune, which?recently chatted with the U.S. Women's Olympics team captain Lindsey Horan about investments in women's sports and the impact of Caitlin Clark on future contracts. Also, learn more about how brands are using this summer's Copa América as a launching pad for their?2026 FIFA Men's World Cup?ad campaigns.?