NWSL Boston
GroundWhite Stadium
Boston, Massachusetts
LeagueNWSL
2026Inaugural Season

NWSL Boston is a planned United States soccer club located in Boston, Massachusetts. The club is planning to debut in the National Women's Soccer League in 2026.

History

Original Boston Breakers franchise

The original Boston Breakers was a professional women's soccer team that played in the WUSA from 2001 to 2003. In the final season in the WUSA, the Breakers had their best record (10–4–7) and placed first in the regular season before losing to the Washington Freedom in the semi-finals.[1]

Second Boston Breakers Franchise

In 2007, a new league called Women's Professional Soccer was announced.[2] The second iteration of the Boston Breakers played in Allston, Massachusetts from 2009 to 2011.[1] The league folded in early 2012, and that year, the Breakers competed in the Women's Premier Soccer League Elite.[3] After one season, the club moved to the National Women's Soccer League, where they played from 2013 to 2017. On January 25, 2018, the club folded, and did not participate in the NWSL that season.[4] Reports generally blamed lack of marketing and resultant limited fanbase for the club's demise.[5][6]

2026 Expansion Bid

On September 19, 2023, an NWSL expansion team was announced, with a planned start date in 2026.[7] The ownership group of the winning bid, Boston Unity Soccer Partners (BUSP), is an all-female ownership group led by Jennifer Epstein, Stephanie Connaughton, Ami Danoff, and Anna Palmer.[7] The team will play home matches in White Stadium in Franklin Park, Boston.[7]

The city of Boston planned to commit up to $50 million towards the stadium's renovation, and BUSP pledged $30 million.[8] The stadium is to be the first venue in the country which will be home to a major league sports franchise and the athletic program of a public high school.[8] The stadium will be shared with Boston Public School track and soccer.[8] American football matches will be prohibited at the field during the professional soccer season, although high school football will be played on the field for playoffs and Thanksgiving games.[8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Breakers History". Boston Breakers Women's Professional Soccer. Archived from the original on April 16, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  2. ↑ Porteus, Liza (June 28, 2006). "U.S. Women's Pro League Prepares to Blast Back Onto Soccer Scene". Fox News.
  3. ↑ "2012 WPSL Elite Season Preview". National Soccer Coaches of America Association. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved December 17, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Boston Breakers fold after ownership deal falls through". January 25, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  5. ↑ Churchill, Samantha (May 2, 2018). "The Fall of the Boston Breakers". The Wellesley News.
  6. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff. "How an era ended: The mysterious final months of the Boston Breakers". The Equalizer.
  7. 1 2 3 "Professional Women's Soccer Returns to Boston as National Women's Soccer League Awards Expansion Franchise to Boston Unity Soccer Partners". NWSL. Sidearm Sports. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Hohler, Bob (December 12, 2023). "Plan for professional soccer at White Stadium sharply reduces access for Boston high school football". The Boston Globe. The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on December 12, 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
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