Introducing Boston Legacy FC: NWSL expansion team announces new name
The Boston NWSL expansion club has officially renamed itself to Boston Legacy FC as of Wednesday. The change comes five months after the club's initial launch as BOS Nation FC, which swiftly faced criticism, followed by an official announcement earlier this month that the club would change the name. The team's crest and full brand identity will be released at a later date this summer.
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The club's official news release describes the selection of Boston Legacy FC as keeping the focus on the city itself, 'while invoking both its long history and its importance as a hub of future innovation — a city that carries its own decades of sporting legacy, while the club aspires to create its own new legacy that is true to the city, true to the fan, and true to the sport.'
The club selected Boston Legacy FC as the new name following public surveys, feedback from team advisers and community listening sessions. The team received over 500 suggestions during the name change process.
The club said they had guiding principles based on their extensive feedback, including honoring the history of the city but also steering clear of colonial, Revolutionary War and nautical themes. Fans also wanted the name to be immediately understandable (compared to BOS Nation, which was an anagram of Bostonian) and withstand the test of time, and fans wanted to make sure the team respected the existing Boston women's pro sports teams, such as the Boston Fleet of the PWHL.
From there, Boston narrowed it down to a short list of 14 names with some ruled out due to trademark or other legal issues. Boston Legacy FC was the name that emerged, and the club said it was the name that had tested best among their surveyed fans 'in every single category by a statistically significant margin.'
Wednesday's announcement is considerably more toned down than last October's original launch, as it's clear the club decided to move forward with the name alone and announce the rest of the team's identity when it is ready. The team colors have remained unchanged from that original announcement with 'Championship Green' the primary color associated with the team and five additional accent colors selected.
Boston Legacy FC shouldn't surprise anyone, as the language around the team's identity has always embraced the long history of sporting success in Boston and New England. Changing the name does feel like a much more conservative attempt at harnessing that history compared to the October launch featuring the 'Too Many Balls' campaign, centered around men's sports and widely panned as a terrible miss on their messaging. Now, the club has been using the line 'It's a great day to start a legacy' in their various social media bios.
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'Our name is just the beginning,' controlling owner Jennifer Epstein said in Wednesday's news release. 'It's what we build together, through dedication, commitment, and grit that will give it life. We aim for our values to reflect a city that breathes competition, passion, and pride, and to pay tribute to those who paved the way before us, including the gamechangers who helped build previous women's professional teams in Boston. We are also focused on the future, for the next generation of players and fans who will carry forward what we build today.'
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