The National Women’s Soccer League has announced an expansion team in Los Angeles, starting in 2022. Natalie Portman will lead the ownership group along with entrepreneurs Kara Nortman, Julie Uhrman, and Alexis Ohanian.
Other investors include Serena Williams (and her two-year-old daughter with Ohanian, Alexis Jr.), Uzo Aduba, Lilly Singh, America Ferrera, Jennifer Garner, Jessica Chastain, Eva Longoria, and 14 former USWNT players, including Abby Wambach, Mia Hamm, and Julie Foudy.
“Our story from the beginning was different—from starting with three founding women to building a movement before even having the money, stadium, rights, or fans [to now] being able to grow our list of founding investors,” Portman told Sportico, adding, “We are not a legacy team, but a team of activists, athletes, and entrepreneurs who are used to challenging the status quo and reshaping expectations.”
Portman told The Athletic that she, Aduba, Longoria, Garner, and Chastain attended a friendly match between the USWNT and Belgium in 2019. The actors met the players, and later in the year, after the USWNT won the World Cup, Time’s Up and the USWNT Players Association hosted a pay-equity workshop together in Los Angeles before the team’s first Victory Tour match.
“The more time I spent with these women, the more I learned and the bigger impact I wanted to make,” Portman said. “It was just so obvious—we needed to see these women play in L.A. We needed a team here.”
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