The bass drum throbbed, a physical pulse mirroring the energy radiating from BMO Stadium. It wasn’t just a soccer game; it was a happening. Pink wigs bobbed in the stands alongside meticulously crafted flags in Sol Rosa, the dusty pink hue representing the Los Angeles sunset. This wasn’t the scene anyone predicted when Natalie Portman first envisioned a National Women’s Soccer League team for LA in 2019 – a time when the prevailing narrative insisted nobody watched, invested in, or cared about women’s sports. But Angel City Football Club, recently recognized as one of USA TODAY’s 2026 Women of the Year, isn’t just defying that narrative; it’s rewriting the rules of engagement for professional women’s sports, and it’s doing so with a deliberate, community-focused strategy that’s capturing the cultural imagination.
The story of Angel City isn’t simply about building a successful franchise; it’s about proving a point. Portman, alongside venture capitalist Kara Nortman and entrepreneur Julie Uhrman, initially faced skepticism bordering on dismissal. “Back in 2019, the narrative was that nobody watched women's sports,” Uhrman recalls. Launching a team in a crowded LA market – already home to eleven professional sports franchises – felt, to many, like an impossible feat. They didn’t even have a league to study, relying almost entirely on the example of tennis as a model for a women’s sport capable of generating revenue. But the founders weren’t interested in simply existing; they wanted to build a sustainable business, one that would “outlive all of us,” as Nortman puts it, and demonstrate that investing in women’s sports wasn’t just a philanthropic endeavor, but a smart one.
This piece references the USA Today report.
That commitment to sustainability is woven into the club’s very fabric, most notably through its 10% pledge – dedicating 10% of all sponsorship dollars back to the Los Angeles community. To date, that’s nearly $8 million, funding initiatives like delivering over 3 million meals to homebound individuals and providing free soccer coaching through Footy Fridays. This isn’t marketing; it’s a fundamental shift in how sports franchises operate, recognizing their responsibility to the cities they represent. It’s a model that’s resonating, attracting a diverse fanbase and, crucially, attracting investment. The arrival of Willow Bay and her husband, Disney CEO Bob Iger, as controlling owners, valuing the club at $250 million, wasn’t just a financial boost; it was a validation of the Angel City vision. It signaled to the wider sports world that women’s teams could be incredibly valuable, both financially and culturally.
However, the road hasn’t been without turbulence. The team is still chasing its first championship title, and the 2024 season brought unexpected challenges, including the sudden collapse of defender Savy King during a match due to a heart attack. This incident, while frightening, underscored the club’s commitment to its players, with King herself praising the outpouring of support from teammates and staff. Simultaneously, the team navigated a change in leadership with Uhrman stepping aside as CEO and the appointment of a new head coach, Alexander Straus. These shifts, while necessary for growth, created a period of instability that players like Sarah Gorden acknowledged as “really hard to navigate.” The tension lies in balancing ambition – the pursuit of a championship – with the need for stability and player well-being, a challenge faced by many rapidly expanding teams.
Angel City’s success isn’t just about attracting celebrity owners or generating revenue; it’s about fundamentally changing the landscape for female athletes. Gorden, a single mother who previously earned just $8,000 a year in the league, highlights the progress made, emphasizing the club’s dedication to supporting players both on and off the field. The team’s recent investments – a new state-of-the-art practice facility and contract extensions for key players like Gisele Thompson and Riley Tiernan – demonstrate a long-term commitment to building a winning culture. Tiernan, a rookie who chose Angel City specifically for its culture and fanbase, embodies the new generation of players drawn to the club’s values. The question now isn’t if Angel City can win a championship, but how they will navigate the pressures of expectation and maintain the community-focused ethos that has defined their rise. Will they be able to scale their success without sacrificing the very elements that made them unique? That’s the challenge facing Angel City, and the answer will likely shape the future of women’s sports for years to come.
