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According to several reports, Atlanta is set to become the 17th franchise of the NWSL ahead of the 2028 season. Arthur Blank, who owns Atlanta United of Major League Soccer and the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, will reportedly pay a $165 million expansion fee to join the top-tier professional women’s league in the United States. A spokesperson for Arthur Blank’s AMB Sports and Entertainment told ESPN: “We have had productive engagement with NWSL and others in its stakeholder group on the possibility of bringing an expansion franchise to Atlanta. We have nothing to announce currently as those conversations are ongoing.” Mercedes-Benz Stadium will serve as the new expansion team’s home. The retractable roof stadium opened in 2017. It hosted Super Bowl LIII and will be a venue for several matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. NWSL Continues to Grow The Denver Summit and the Boston Legacy will expand the NWSL to 16 teams in the 2026 season. Eventually, the league plans to expand to 32 franchises. NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman told ESPN earlier this year that the league has the potential to grow to 32 teams. “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 stated. “There’s certainly not a problem with the supply, given the size of our country and the level of talent that exists.” The 2025 NWSL championship will take place on Nov. 22 at will be played at PayPal Park in San Jose, California.
